Less talk, more Phrasebook- this week’s words [or abbreviations, actually] are OP and ED.

OP & ED n. abbrv. – literally, “opening” and “ending”

Every anime needs something to set the mood and the tone before the show starts- and this is one of the functions of an OP, or opening song. Generally, the OP is selected to match the feel of the anime. OP’s are generally performed by Japanese pop or rock groups, although some Western artists have been used. (Such as Franz Ferdinand for the anime “Paradise Kiss.”) OP’s may or may not be written exclusively for the show, but the songs chosen are usually released in a special single format that ties into the anime. And therein lies the second purpose of an OP; to sell the artist/song/single and push it up the Oricon charts with joint promo. ED songs are essentially the same; something to play over the image montage that is the credits, but a generally characterized by a slower or softer pacing than the OP, although this is not always the case. When a US company procures the rights to the anime, they must also try to get the rights for the OP and ED songs. Returning to the Paradise Kiss anime, some fans feared that the show would be unable to obtain the rights for the Franz Ferdinand track at the end, thereby forcing the US company to produce another track to fill the ED slot. If an ED or OP song’s rights cannot be acquired by the US company, then the company must come up with their own music for the ED or OP, although this very rarely happens.