Honestly, walking into the 2025 awards season, everyone thought they had it figured out. We all saw the juggernauts coming. You had the return of the Apothecary Diaries, the sheer visual violence of Solo Leveling, and the weird, kinetic energy of DAN DA DAN. But then the actual anime of the year 2025 vote results started trickling in from different corners of the globe, and suddenly, the "obvious" winners weren't so obvious anymore. It's been a wild ride.
If you’ve been hanging around the community lately, you know the vibe. One day we’re praising the emotional depth of a slice-of-life gem, and the next, we're arguing about whether a high-budget shonen final season deserved to sweep the boards. It’s messy. It’s passionate. It’s exactly what being an anime fan in 2026 feels like when we look back at the chaos of last year.
The Big Winners: Solo Leveling and the Power of the Hype
The Crunchyroll Anime Awards are basically the Oscars of our world now, like it or not. When they announced the winners in May 2025, the room—and the internet—sort of exploded. Solo Leveling took home the big one. Anime of the Year. It also nabbed Best New Series and Best Action.
Is anyone actually surprised?
Sung Jinwoo’s journey from "World's Weakest" to a literal god is basically built for voting polls. It’s got that "wow" factor. A-1 Pictures really didn't miss with the animation, and Hiroyuki Sawano's score? Absolute fire. He won Best Score, by the way. It’s hard to beat that combination of peak production and a story that moves like a freight train.
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But it wasn't just a Solo Leveling sweep. Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End stayed relevant deep into 2025, proving that a story about what happens after the adventure can have more staying power than the adventure itself. Keiichiro Saito won Best Director for it, and Fern—everyone’s favorite grumpy mage—took Best Supporting Character.
That South Korea Curveball: My Hero Academia Reigns Supreme
Here’s where it gets interesting. While the Western-centric polls were busy crowning Sung Jinwoo, South Korea’s "Anything Awards" 2025 threw a massive wrench in the narrative. They crowned the final season of My Hero Academia as their Anime of the Year.
Think about that for a second.
It beat out Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc and even the record-breaking Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle. Why? Because ending a story matters. Deku’s final stand wasn't just another fight; it was the culmination of a decade of fandom. It reminds you that the anime of the year 2025 vote isn't just about what looks the prettiest—it’s about how much heart a series leaves on the floor when the credits finally roll.
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The Cult Favorites and the "Real" Top Tens
If you go over to places like 5ch or the deeper Reddit threads, the "mainstream" winners don't always match the community's heart. For example, the 5ch 2025 rankings—which are famously picky—put Medalist at the very top.
Medalist. A figure skating anime.
It beat out high-octane shows like Ruri Rocks and Apocalypse Hotel. It’s a great reminder that when you give fans a "top 5" weighted voting system, the shows with the most genuine emotional resonance often rise above the ones with the biggest marketing budgets.
Notable Mentions from the Community Polls:
- The Apothecary Diaries Season 2: Maomao basically owns the "Leading Woman" category. She won the ANN Readers' Choice by a landslide.
- DAN DA DAN: This show won Best Opening ("Otonoke" by Creepy Nuts) and Best Character Design. It’s just... weird in the best way possible.
- The Summer Hikaru Died: This one was a sleeper hit for many, eventually winning the Screen Awards for Best Anime TV Series. It’s creepy, it’s gay, it’s heartbreaking. It’s everything modern anime should be.
Why These Votes Actually Matter
Look, some people say awards are just a popularity contest. They're kinda right. But these votes dictate what gets a second season. They tell studios like MAPPA or Wit that we want more Orb: On the Movements of the Earth and maybe a little less of the generic "I got reincarnated as a vending machine" tropes (though, hey, no judgment if that’s your thing).
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The 2025 voting cycle showed a massive shift toward "prestige" anime. We’re seeing more movies like Look Back (which won Film of the Year) getting the same level of respect as 24-episode series. We’re seeing original works like Ninja Kamui actually stand a chance against the big manga adaptations.
The limitations are obvious, though. Recency bias is a beast. A show that airs in January 2025 has a much harder time staying in the conversation than a banger that drops in October. That’s why the ANN Readers' Choice Awards are so useful—they wait until January 2026 to let the dust settle before they let people cast their ballots for the previous year.
What to Do With This Info
If you’re looking to catch up on what you missed during the anime of the year 2025 vote frenzy, don't just stick to the winners. The "underrated" lists are where the real gold is.
Start with Apocalypse Hotel. It won Most Underrated for a reason. It’s only 12 episodes, it’s post-apocalyptic, and it’s got a vibe that most "save the world" shows completely miss. Then, go watch Medalist. Even if you don't care about skating, the character growth is top-tier.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Cross-reference your watch list: Compare the Crunchyroll winners with the 5ch Top 10. If a show appears on both, it’s a "must-watch" regardless of your favorite genre.
- Watch the "Film of the Year": Look Back is short, poignant, and arguably one of the best things ever put to ink.
- Check the "Underrated" Category: Series like City The Animation or Takopi's Original Sin offer unique storytelling styles that the big shonen hits simply can't replicate.
The 2025 season proved that the medium is getting more diverse, not less. Whether you're here for the "Bling-Bang-Bang-Born" energy or the quiet tragedy of a mountain spirit, there was something for everyone. Now go watch that one show you've been putting off—you know the one.