A gigantic chunk of my childhood was spent watching Transformers: The Movie from 1986 over and over again. I geeked out over it more with each viewing. I ultimately found myself interested in the end credits as well. As the cast list rolled by, seeing the names of kick-ass voice actors like Michael Bell, Peter Cullen, and the godly Frank Welker credited as not just one but several of my favorite fictional characters made a giant impression on me. Just like that, I had yet another interest to fully immerse myself in.
Fanboying over who voiced what Transformer eventually lead me to pay attention to the credits of other cartoons as well. Of course, I started seeing the same names on just about every other show I liked. I started idolizing those guys as if they were freakin' rock stars. When I eventually found myself in the wild world of the Internet, cartoon cast lists were among my earliest searches. It became an endless source of general "no way!" reactions. Fred from Scooby Doo is Megatron? Amazingly bizarre, and infinitely cool.
Reading up on such things lead me to check out more and more cartoons over time. Just as A-list actors help "sell" movies to the undecided masses, I was suddenly much more interested in a cartoon if it had someone like Rob Paulsen (who hosts an excellent podcast where he chats with other voice actors) in the cast. Most times, it probably did.
I've had similar experiences with other forms of media as well. When my immense love of music developed, the initial spark wasn't from the likes of radio or MTV at all. The soundtrack to Final Fantasy VI was perhaps the first instance of music seriously moving me, and it has stuck with me to this day. I get at least one of the game's famous tracks stuck in my head on a weekly basis.
I might not have paid as much attention right at first, but you can bet on the next playthrough I took notice when the "Music: Nobuo Uematsu" credit popped up during the beautifully atmospheric opening scene. One guy came up with all of those melodies? Soon enough I found out he'd also done the soundtracks to all of the other games in the series, and I quickly fell in love with a lot of those tracks as well. Nobuo Uematsu is pretty much amazing.
As with the Transformers-inspired voice acting interest, this love for Final Fantasy music made me pay more attention to the composers and soundtracks of other games as well. In no time at all, I had yet another major passion for me to proudly sink my teeth into.
I know I'm hardly the only person that can appreciate the likes of end or opening credits, but there are still those out there that couldn't care less. If you like even one aspect of some form of media, whether it's the dialogue or camera work in a movie or the illustration in a comic book, you owe it to yourself to check the credits to see who was responsible! The credits matter.
Next time you find yourself mashing buttons or keys to skip after you've beaten a game or immediately reaching for your phone at the end of a movie, take a moment to read what's scrolling past and appreciate their hard work. You never know what might stick out for you. I know from personal experience, doing so can lead to major passions that will last you a lifetime.
For updates on my future ramblings, I'm on the Twitter @castlegeekskull! A lonely little Castle Geek-Skull Facebook Page exists as well. If you "follow" and "like" I'll be your BFF!
Great article. I learned of some of my favorite bands by taking the time to read the thank-yous in the liner notes. I learned of some great comics by reading interviews with bigger comic artists. I wish more people took the time to research past surface levels because they'll like what they find.
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