The Top Ten Best NES Soundtracks of All Time

(Image taken from: en.wikipedia.org)

I love Chiptune...so freaking much. And listening to it just now, it actually got me thinking about my all-time favorite NES soundtracks. People are always so quick to point out Mega Man 2, but eh. I always found it just okay. But these babies below are solid (Solid as a rock). Disagree? Do so in the comments below. And suggestions would also be appreciated. (NOTE: I have not played EVERY game in the NES library, but I have played most of them through emulators, so if I'm missing anything, please forgive me).

10. Ninja Gaiden

This soundtrack is just so cinematic, which works because of the (snicker) "in-game cut-scenes" (I laugh because of how primitive they are compared to today's standards. But hey, it worked back when we were kids). I remember how intense some of these songs were, and how angry I would get at tough jumps, throwing my controller at the wall. This soundtrack reminds me of frustration...in the best possible way.



9. Super Mario Bros. 2

My favorite soundtrack of the three SMB's on the NES, I just love how bizarre it sounds. It totally plays like a totally different entity, which it is. The game started out as another game called Doki Doki Panic in Japan, and Mario characters replaced those characters because Japan thought their version of SMB2 was too hard. That game would later become The Lost Worlds. But most importantly, this soundtrack is just so catchy. I love it!



8. Adventures of Tom Sawyer

There's a sense of adventure with this soundtrack, which is why I think it fits the game it accompanies. Though the game doesn't quite live up to its tunes, I definitely think it compliments the game quite well. Give it a listen.



7. Duck Tales

Everybody always raves about "The Moon Theme," which is good to be sure, but this whole soundtrack is fantastic, to that perfect title music, to the stage select screen, to pretty much everything. Such a good soundtrack.



6. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

A truly lousy and frustrating game, but man, were those tunes slamming. It's upbeat at times, sinister at others, but always different and interesting. I will always hate this game (That f**king dam stage!), but the music still holds up, even to this day.



5. Bubble Bobble

I know I might catch hell for this, since The Legend of Zelda theme is not on this list, but I really love the Bubble Bobble song, which pretty much plays throughout the entirety of the game. This song drives my wife nuts, but I can't get enough of it.



4. Double Dragon II: The Revenge

A pulse-pounding, fist-pumping soundtrack to one of the best beat-em-ups on the NES. There are so many great layers to each level's song, which is surprising because most of the levels are so short on this classic.



3. Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest

A crummy sequel to the original, but probably my favorite music in the entirety of the Castlevania series, right there next to Super Castlevania IV.



2. Metroid

Spooky, atmospheric, dense, you truly feel lost in space with this haunting soundtrack. Great game, even better music.



1. Taboo

And now for a soundtrack that nobody has ever heard before. Seriously, Taboo is probably one of the least unplayable games ever made, but man, oh, man, does this soundtrack creep me out. Everything about it just gets underneath my skin. I had nightmares about the music in this game, and any soundtrack that can stick with me like that wins the title of best NES soundtrack in my mind.

The Top Ten TV Intros That I've Ever Seen

Intros to TV shows are supposed to pump you up. They're supposed to put a smile on your face and make you tilt your head to the side like you're a school girl taking a picture with a giant lolly. To sum it up, TV intros are supposed to be awesome. The thing is, not many of them are. I can count like, 20, in the history of the idiot box. That said, I don't have the energy to write a top 20, so here are my top 10. If you disagree, note that you probably checked your soul at the gun store and don't have one any more.

10. New York Undercover

(Image taken from: tvrage.com)

Okay, so you've never even heard of this show before. That doesn't mean that it still doesn't have one of the best intros ever. The sax is soothing, the images are vivid, and it doesn't look all that 90s, even though it was TOTALLY a 90s show. In short, it's superb. Check it out.



9. Duck Tales

(Image taken from: sharetv.org)

Was Duck Tales a great show? Eh, not really. I mean, it was watchable, as most cartoons were when we were younger, but was it actually good? Nope. It was really just subpar. But you know what WASN'T subpar? That theme song. Duck Tales, whoo hoo! It doesn't get much better than that.



And look, it's even great in Hindi! That's proof of a great song!



8. Taxi

(Image taken from: sharetv.org)

Taxi is such a chill show with laughs in all the right places, and this intro is equally chill, with a swell keyboard melody that just makes you smile and go, "Oh, man, I LOVE this show!" If this were a longer list, I'd put Cheers on here, too, but it's not. So Taxi gets the spot.



7. The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers

(Image taken from: fanpop.com)

I'm going to be honest with you. When I was younger, I didn't really like the Power Rangers. It wasn't until I got older that I actually dug their cheesiness and outlandish explosions. But something I've ALWAYS loved is the intro, as its searing guitars and "Go, Go, Power Rangers!" chant really made me want to go out and kill some Puddy Patrol. And also be the black ranger.



6. The Cosby Show

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The Cosby Show had a lot of intros, but none were as funny as season 3's, where Cosby is basically making the funniest faces in the world. I wish I could show it to you here on this blog, but its embedding abilities have been disabled by request. Stupid brilliant Cosby Show. You can find the intro here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OS6wZl7G-QE&feature=relmfu

5. X:Men-The Animated Series

(Image taken from: DVDactive.com)

I talked about this intro in my discussion on the best cartoons of the 90s, because seriously, it doesn't get much more intense than this. The thumping beginning, the awesome shots of all of the main mutants, and that last scene of all of the good guys colliding with the bad guys is just so killer. I mean, man, this is what I call a jump off your couch intro. It's just so badass.



4. Twin Peaks

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Twin Peaks is weird, and it should be. It's partly the brainchild of David Lynch, the king of weird. But the intro is surprisingly...relaxing. It's just the kind of intro that gets you into the atmospheric mood of the show. It's as close to perfect as I can think of.



3. The Wayans Bros.

(Image taken from: coopersjd.com)

Okay, this intro is just ridiculous. I remember the first time I watched it, I seriously couldn't even follow the show because I was laughing so hard from the intro when the old woman gets hit by a bus...and then wipes herself off. This is definitely the funniest intro I've ever seen. And the show wasn't that bad, either.



2. The Twilight Zone

(Image taken from: wired.com)

The Twilight Zone is definitely up there with The Simpsons as one of my favorite TV shows of all time. But unlike The Simpsons, The Twilight Zone has a phenomenal intro (Yeah, I said it) that really grabs you from the very beginning. It's going to be hard to top THIS intro. But one actually does.



1. Thundercats

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Ask me a single thing about the show, and I couldn't tell you what it was about. But ask me about the intro, and I could tell you every single detail. Thundercats is the quintessential example of an intro that's even better than the show, and you know I'm right. Also, if you just heard the theme song from the other room, you might not be all that impressed. But when you combine the music WITH the images, oh, boy. You had yourself some fist pumping, foot stomping, head banging going on. Seriously, I'm pretty sure the birth of Hyphy began from this intro.