It’s hard to believe that Yuri!!! On Ice skated into our hearts five years ago. Premiering back in October 2016, the series became a beloved gem for the anime and ice skating community due to its story, its beautiful skating, and an opening theme that truly felt like an Olympic event.
That opening? “History Maker” by Dean Fujioka, a Japanese actor, singer-songwriter, musician, model, and film director.
While I can’t say for certain that this new version of “History Maker” is in honor of the five-year anniversary (though it would make sense if it was), I can say that it’s here and is part of Fujioka’s album Transmute, which was released at the end of October. The whole album is available on Spotify.
This would normally be the part where I tell you that a song is making me fall in love with an anime series all over again, but honestly? I’ve never fallen out of love with Yuri!!! On Ice, it is THAT anime series that is still in my heart today.
The history of “History Maker”
In 2016, after appearing in several movies and films throughout his career, Fujioka released his first album Cycle in March of that year. Months later, he would release the single “History Maker” for Yuri!!! On Ice, and lord, when I tell you that it was the anime bop of 2016, I mean it.
I’m not overexaggerating when I say that there was a time where you’d hear “History Maker” everywhere. The song was so popular that Dean Fujioka was number 5 for Google Trends of the Year in 2016, and for good reason. The lyrics are inspirational, especially as the series progresses and you get to know our main character, Yuri Katsuki, as he’s at a crossroads in his career after coming in last at the Grand Prix Final. Feeling humiliated, especially in front of his idol, Victor Nikiforov, Yuri debates whether or not he should quit ice skating altogether.
Yuri’s life changes for the better (he’s not aware of that yet) when a video is uploaded of him skating to one of Victor’s routines. Victor seeks him out and decides to be his coach, kickstarting a relationship that is as heartfelt as it is romantic. The two inspire each other, Victor trying to find the spark in skating after being at a bit of a crossroads himself, while Yuri is trying to figure out his place in a career where there are so many others who seem to shine brighter than he does, especially when one of those skaters is much younger than him (Yuri Plisetsky, the other series lead, has all the potential in the world at just 15 compared to Yuri K’s 23).
“History Maker” is the kind of anime opening that gets better with every episode because the lyrics begin to mean a whole lot more as the story progresses. Combined with a dazzling animation style where Yuri K., Victor, and Yuri P. skate to the music, it was, in my opinion, one of the best anime openings we got in 2016. Hearing the song in the first episode when Yuri K. is down on himself, then hearing it when he sets off to take on the Grand Prix Final again, creates two completely different feelings despite it being the same song.
The opening is completely unskippable, even now.
The 2021 version
The new version is a more mellow version of the song. Gone are the triumphant beats, and instead, we get a much softer, gentler take on “History Maker.” It’s the kind of song you expect to hear during the end credits to an anime and is fitting for the way the first season ends.
This is the music that will play in my head when I imagine Yuri K. and Victor getting married. Like. This could be a wedding song, easily. We already had a kiss and a ring exchange, why not add “husbands sharing their first dance after saying I do.”
Fandom visions aside, if this song showed up in the upcoming movie Ice Adolescence I would not be surprised – not that we know when that movie is coming, but when it does come, I hope we get to hear Fujioka again.
Yes, we were born to make history.
(Image: MAPPA)
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Published: Dec 14, 2021 09:39 am