Every My Chemical Romance music video ever made, ranked

Remember when we ranked the music videos of those lovely chaps in All Time Low and Twenty One Pilots? Well, now we’re doing it for the gone-but-never-forgotten heroes that are My Chemical Romance! Gerard, Frank, Ray and Mikey were always known for combining their music with thrilling visual spectacles, so sit back, relax and enjoy this countdown of every video My Chemical Romance ever made!

18. “Fake Your Death” (May Death Never Stop You: The Greatest Hits 2001-2013)

We’ll be honest, we put this one in last place partly because we’re still not over the fact that they’re gone. Seriously, guys, please get the gang back together! This video-come-trailer compiles footage from the various music videos shot throughout MCR’s illustrious career. One to stick on when you feel like reminiscing.

17. “Honey, This Mirror Isn’t Big Enough For The Two Of Us” (I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love)

A lot of things are pretty weird about this video, but the big question we’ve got is: Gerard, what the fuck are you doing with your tongue at 1:16?

16. “Sing It For Japan” (Sing It For Japan)

This orchestral reimagining of the Danger Days single was released to benefit the victims of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. The best thing about this video is the sheer volume of art the band’s fans contributed. Proof, if ever it was needed, that the MCRmy are one of the most creative and devoted fanbases out there.

15. “I’m Not Okay (I Promise) [Version 1]” (Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge)

An iconic song, no doubt, but this isn’t the video you associate with My Chem’s breakout single. Before the school uniforms and croquet—more on that later—“I’m Not Okay” was visualized in the form of early tour footage of the band.

QUIZ: How well do you know the lyrics to “I’m Not Okay (I Promise)”?

14. “Vampires Will Never Hurt You” (I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love)

Face paint, feverish playing and heaps of drama, MCR’s debut video was a sign of what was to come from the band. Gerard’s performance here, in particular, is evidence of a future star just beginning to discover his abilities as an artist.

13. “Planetary (GO!)” (Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys)

Filmed at London’s Islington Academy and featuring hundreds of the band’s fans, the video for Danger Days’ third single is a visualization of the illegal raves Gerard speculated would take place in the dystopian world of the Killjoys. Where do we get a ticket?

12. “The Kids From Yesterday” (Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys)

Like “Fake Your Death” before it, “The Kids From Yesterday” is a montage video, produced by the band and fan Emily Eisemann, who impressed My Chem with her own rough-cut of the video enough that they brought her in to help on the official thing. Yet another example of the MCRmy’s power.

11. “I Don’t Love You” (The Black Parade)

It’s the ultimate emo heartbreak anthem, and the video for “I Don’t Love You” echoes the emotional devastation of the song. A proper tear-jerker.

10. “Teenagers” (The Black Parade)

A partial tribute to Pink Floyd film The Wall, the video for “Teenagers” has got gas masks, cheerleaders, confetti and rioting students—everything you need to party, MCR style. 

QUIZ: Can you pass this ridiculous My Chemical Romance test?

9. “Blood” (The Black Parade)

The cheerleaders are back for this one, but it looks like Gerard and the gang wish they would go away. Frank and Ray look far more interested in that dog… what do you reckon it’s called? “You Know What They Scooby Doo To Guys Like Us In Prison?” Imagine trying to fit that name on a dog tag…

8. “Desolation Row” (Watchmen: Music From The Motion Picture)

Best. Gig. Ever. Or that’s how the video for “Desolation Row” starts, anyway. Here we see My Chem at their ferocious best, before the cops rock up and things get nasty. Still, this vid is a middle finger to those who say MCR  weren’t punk. This is Punk. As. Fuck.

7. “SING” (Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys)

We recently dug into the potential meanings behind the “SING” and “Na Na Na” videos in our op-ed on the art of Danger Days, so let’s just revel in how gorgeously shot this video is. Seriously, it’s like a scene from a sci-fi epic, and it’s proof that Gerard Way can act as well as write, sing and draw. What a talented bloke he is.

6. “Famous Last Words” (The Black Parade)

Directed by acclaimed visual artist Sam Bayer—the man behind the videos for Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and Green Day’s “American Idiot”—“Famous Last Words” is a stunning sight to behold, but it was a shoot plagued by injuries, with Gerard Way tearing ligaments in his foot and Bob Bryar sustaining severe burns. Don’t play with fire, kids.

5. “The Ghost Of You” (Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge)

With an estimated budget of over $1,000,000, “The Ghost Of You” comes across more as a mini-film that it does a music video. Depicting both a World War II-era armed forces ball and an homage to the D-Day landings, its emotional power is undeniable, especially when a young Mikey Way is shot and killed. Heavy stuff.

4. “Na Na Na” (Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys)

It’s the video that introduces you to the Technicolor world of the Fabulous Killjoys, and it’s absolutely fucking crazy. Gerard Way made his directorial debut here, and it’s a video oozing with ambition and ideas that’s just crying out to be made into a feature-length film. Someone call Michael Bay, we’ve found his next blockbuster.

3. “I’m Not Okay (I Promise) [Dialogue/MTV Version]” (Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge)

“You like D&D, Audrey Hepburn, Fangoria, Harry Houdini and croquet. You can’t swim, you can’t dance and you don’t know karate. Face it. You’re never gonna make it.”

“I don’t wanna make it. I just wanna…”

The ultimate outsider video to accompany the ultimate outsider anthem. If you’ve ever been picked on at school for being different, “I’m Not Okay” is a pertinent reminder that the My Chem boys were once in the same boat. Now, they’re rock stars and the bullies are probably flipping burgers. Here’s to being yourself and never settling for any less.

Read more: 11 alternative music videos with the best choreography, ranked

2. “Helena” (Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge)

So. Much. Emotion. The video for “Helena” is probably the defining image of the mid-2000s emo scene. Gerard acts his butt off once more, while the dance choreography makes for an incredible sight. Again, this is a video featuring many members of the MCRmy, including one very lucky fan who carries the coffin with the rest of the band at the video’s climax.

1. “Welcome To The Black Parade” (The Black Parade)

It couldn’t really have been anything else at No. 1. A song, an image and a video which symbolizes a whole generation of young music fans, everything about “Welcome To The Black Parade” screams “instant classic.” This is a music video that not only hit home in the alternative community, but spawned a pop culture phenomenon that made My Chemical Romance the biggest band on the planet. MCR were a band whose videos and image were tied to their music in a way that’d never been seen before, and may never be seen again.