Once again we are on the cusp of a new year and its time to reflect on the world of anime and manga in 2025!! Top of the pile is an alphabetical synopsis of the ones I watched with the ones I thought were the best held to the end in their order of greatness in my mind.
Season 2 went off the rails in it's insanity and I think it lost me near the end...not sure if I will watch season 3.
Aharen-san season 2
Everyone always hates that romances end when the relationship starts. A full season of this fun couple dating was well loved.
Anyway I'm Falling in Love With You
The only thing interesting about this reverse harem is vague references to the Covid 19 pandemic...otherwise it was terrible with a subplot that could have been cool if explored better.
The Apothecary Diaries season 2
This season saw the revelation of a significant plot thats been in place from the start and paid off incredibly well. Such an amazing story!!
April Showers Bring May Flowers
While not the worst, ugly duckling romances are still painful to watch. I still need to finish this though but its better than Honey Lemon Soda by a long shot.
Bad Girl
An off kilter comedy that also acts as a yuri with a lot of weirdness. Funny but not memorable.
The second part of the first season didn't make it any more enjoyable...its really been a let down and an unneeded waste of time.
Can a Boy-Girl Relationship Survive
An atypical high school romance that is as good as it is bad and ends in a rather unsatisfying manner.
Chitose is in the Ramune Bottle
A weird romance slash self help tutorial that feels more like a spite move against popular kids by the original author. Kinda hated it.
Detectives These Days are Crazy
A crazed gag comedy adaption that did a pretty solid job of expressing compartmentalized insanity into a long form episode. Not for everyone but I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Every Day Host
A short form gag comedy about a bunch of weirdo's in a host club. No How I Attended an All Guy's Mixer but it was cute.
This slice of life drama didn't tell the most engaging story and the last arc got a bit weird and over dramatic, but it was a refreshingly unique story premise among the repetitive season fare.
The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity
Sadly I only watched a few episodes but this may be one of the most satisfying romances of the year? Great characters, interesting interactions and great artwork.
Gintama: Mr. Ginpatchi's Zany Class
Sadly the return of Gintama as his high school teacher alter ego struggles to remain consistently funny or relevant.
Gyagu Manga Biyori Go
I actually forgot about the return of the king of gag comedy, it happened so fast. But it was a welcomed return.
A lot of hype was put into this one and I hated almost everything about it...including the obsession with urine colored things.
I Got Married to the Girl I Hate the Most in Class
An initially stupid catalyst for the story that turned out to be fun based purely on the two main characters personalities and interactions. Everything else around them was terrible.
There is always room for adult romances and this mildly spicy work place romance didn't cause any issues. It isn't amazing but its good.
I Saved Myself with a Potion
I don't do isekai. Its limited animation. The protagonist exists in a bubble of naivety that goes unpunished. But it was really cute and fun regardless!
A spicy sci-fi mystery romance that feathers some incredibly beautiful, if unnaturally drawn characters.
The lauded return of Watanabe Shinichiro (Cowboy Bebop). The series was repetitive and hollow. I hated it.
Lets Play
An anime based on an American made webtoon about an awkward girl trying to find joy in her past time while navigating awkward romance and pressures. I didn't hate it but I didn't like many aspects of it.
A Mangaka's Weirdly Wonderful Workplace
An all female cast set in an industry setting that actually isn't about them being moe. I only got half way so far but apparently it gets a bit yuri eventually. Wasn't bad at all.
Medaka Kuroiwa s Impervious to my Charms
Ecchi for the sake of ecchi done right. This series was dumb and humorous and outrageous. It did the assignment quite well.
A short series telling a what if style story with the original series that triggered me to watch a lot of Gundam in the second half of the year.
My Awkward Senpai
An OK workplace comedy/romance that feels like a follow up to Toradora is Yuji and Taiga didn't hook up at the end.
My Happy Marriage season 2
While it was lacking in the first season, some of the background machinations came into play in this one making for a more cohesive narrative. I still dislike the heavy supernatural combat leanings.
I will never watch My Hero Academia...but Vigilantes was incredibly fun and reminded me of mid 90's comic books.
Okitsura: Fell in Love with an Okinawan Girl, but I Just Wish I Knew What She's Saying
A fun romantic comedy that works really hard to showcase Okinawan culture. And doesn't do too bad at either aspect.
Orb on the Movements of the Earth season 2
Orb could be considered a modern classic for the ages in line with the respect that Monster and Legend of the Galactic Heroes garners.
Ranma 1/2 season 2
The second season ramped up the awesome in this well needed remake.
Rent a Girlfriend season 4
It was a severe struggle to get through this terrible and pointless section of the story, especially after the strong ending of season 3...terrible.
At first it made up for season 1 but kicking up the pace and being interesting and then it shit the bed with an exam arc.
The first season was a bit of a struggle in getting the audience to care but this season took all of the painstaking groundwork and delivered with high quality sleuthing.
Solo Camping for Two
Part iyashikei, part tutorial, part romance? Strange bed fellows indeed. Bro...you were in high school when she was born too!!!
Spy Family season 3
More shenanigans and fun until we get a really well executed look at the past that shaped Twilight/Loid Forger. This would have worked as a hard drama as well, but we love the light hearted comedy book ended by merciless blood letting.
A Star Brighter then the Sun
A fun shojo romance where the main character isn't a petite flower. The characters lean more into the realistic side than not.
Sword of the Demon Hunter
A super natural historical action story that tells an interesting tale of cursed hatred and regret. Kinda lacks a lot of the garbage trappings found in shonen titles.
An interesting mystery around whispered secrets of semi-rural Japan and the price friends pay for those old rituals.
Terrified Teacher at Ghoul School
A really fun comedy that reposition yokai into stupidity...but then it gets slightly resist in one episode.
To Be Hero X
A Chinese Japanese joint that tries to reposition super heroes into a darker grittier aspect...but we already have The Boys and The Watchmen and Rising Stars...to name a few. It suffered from a lot of things and wasn't very enjoyable for me.
To Your Eternity season 3
The modern arc of the long sprawling fantasy epic about discovering the meaning of existence and consciousness.
Touring After the Apocalypse
A fun sci-fi action vehicle disguised as an iyashikei.
Ubel Blatt
A terrible adaptation of a pointlessly visceral fantasy series that tried to Berzerk but failed to be cohesive or interesting enough.
Watari-kuns **** is About to Collapse
I still don't understand what point this series was trying to make. It was bad and suffered from an identity crisis.
A reverse isekai that was sweet and loving even though it had the ability to become perverted and exploitative at so many points.
A goofy super natural comedy that seemed like it should have ended sooner but kept delivering and being amusing.
Yano-kuns Ordinary Days
A reverse ugly duckling romance where a normal girl falls for the awkward guy largely based on her motherly instincts. No where near as awesome as Shikimori Isn't Just a Cutie but good enough to pass the time.
Zatsu Tabi
A less effective cute girls going on tips iyashikei. It largely fell flat when compared to the amazing mono...see below.
Without further ado, my top 10 favorite anime from 2025!!
Honorable Mention: Gnosia
Based on the social deduction game of the same name, this is essentially Among Us the anime, with a realistically repetitive episode structure. What makes it so interesting is the amazing character design and the creative world building. Highly recommend just for the spectacle of it.
I will admit it was carried by the amazing voice work of Hayami Saori but this was a very relaxing and lovable slice of life series about companionship and loneliness.
#9 mono
Set in the same universe as Laid Back Camp this takes the same concept of cute girls camping and exploring and injects a lot of zany comedy and personality. I loved this...maybe more than Laid Back Camp?
An all female cast with a lot of yuri action and turns left and right...black humor done well with a lot of ridiculous dialog tossed in for safe measure.
#7 Zenshu
An absolutely gorgeous love letter to anime as a medium. This original creation heavily emphasis the importance for companies to allow space for them to exist.
An unexpectedly loved story about two teenagers being teenagers in their own company. Sadly it was only 6 episodes long. I could have gone on watching them be themselves so much longer.
#5 Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus
The second TV series for this amazing light novel series...taking us into the final arc with a pending final movie. One of the greatest of all time in my mind.
#4 My Dress Up Darling season 2
Season one was amazing, if uncomfortable at points. This season got rid of all that and jacked up the love and tenderness. I can't wait for season 3!!
Who could have expected so much love would go into a tale of abandoned robots endlessly maintaining an empty luxury hotel? Heavy on the comedy, laced with fun sci-fi aspects, this was a very fun journey that got a little emotional at the end.
Season 1 exceeded all of my expectations. Season 2 knocked them out of the park with a keen eye towards timing and presentation. Even the final frame of the final episode made me more hyped for the next season than any preview can right now. I WANT MORE!!! But in the fantastic vision brought to use by Science Saru.
The spiritual successor to one of the greatest anime of all time, Nichijou, by the same author and same anime production company. Every second and millimeter of this adaption is nothing but love for their process and the manga. The manga is fun but the animation and direction elevates it to something rarely seen in the industry. This is a benchmark anime that will not see the level of praise it rightfully deserves.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment