Damn, we’re nearing the end of 2025, huh? It’s been an embarrassment of riches when it comes to entertainment. The Switch 2 got released, the movie industry rolled some all-time bangers out, heck even our local music scene is popping off.
Anyway, we’re here to talk about anime, and whew was the past year EXPLODING with quality shows. Everything from entrancing curiosities to bonafide masterpieces to mind-bending revivals. And somehow 2026 is looking to take things even further!
But for now, Fall 2025 has been relatively… quiet. We do have the crowd pleasers in My Hero Academia and Spy X Family, but the overall buzz has been somewhat muted compared to past cours. Which is fine! We can always use a breather. We also get to talk about shows that might have been overlooked in busier seasons. Shining a spotlight on the more niche stuff is always a plus!
(Note: I’d also like to add here that the big omission will be Gnosia, which I think is the actual best anime that started airing this fall. But as it will continue into next year, it will have to hedge its chances in the next roundup.)
My Hero Academia
I have my fair share of misgivings about the last chunk of My Hero Academia, but despite how it fumbled the execution of many of its themes, I still respect that it tried, with all its heart. That’s perhaps the thing I find most fascinating about MHA– it was always more about the emotions and motivations of the characters, rather the combat techniques they develop. And despite my lukewarm feelings for how the manga petered out, there’s just something about the vivid cocktail of music, voice acting and animation that makes it all hit harder. I actually teared up for the last few episodes, and overall I can say it was a fantastic sendoff. It’s not going to be one of my favorites, far from it, but I totally understand how My Hero Academia has defined and will define a new generation of battle shonen fans.
Uma Musume: Cinderella Gray
Ah, Uma Musume. A gacha game that as expected wants its players to develop a crippling gambling addiction, based on a sport that wants its spectators to develop a crippling gambling addiction. It’s very easy to write this anime franchise off as a cynical cash grab. I wouldn’t blame you, especially when they turned the horses into cute anime girls that also hold idol concerts.
Leave it to the actual creatives to sell you the actual exhilaration of the sport of horseracing. By the time season 2 rolls around, the story grows from cutesy shenanigans to a passion-filled, sweat-stained tale of athletes striving to win the crown. And Cinderella Gray, the latest in the line, is the grittiest so far. You’ve got bullies trying to push you down. Injuries that can threaten your career. Rivalries within which friendships are forged.
Season two, with Tokai Teio, remains my favorite of the offerings of the Uma Musume anime, but Cinderella Gray does cement the franchise as some of the best competitive sports anime you can get.
Sanda
I don’t even know if I want to explain what this anime is about, because the plot is so out there, even the mere act of learning about it is an experience in and of itself. If you’re willing to get a glimpse into the madness, though… if you’re really sure… (you can still turn back)… okay, okay, here we go. A girl called Fuyumura tries to murder her classmate, the eponymous Sanda, because she believes Sanda is Santa Claus. She is desperate to have a certain wish granted. And she’s right, Sanda is Santa! Or more accurately, he has the bloodline of good ol’ Saint Nick, which lets him transform into a buff grandpa with magical powers. This is all in the first episode, by the way. We haven’t even gotten to how the society they live in think that old people are gross. Yes, that is an actual plot point. Any mind that comes up with this stuff had to be on at least three drugs. Seriously, don’t let me spoil the fun. Watch this and get wrapped up in its wonderful web of weirdness.
Toujima Tanzaburou Wants to Be a Kamen Rider
There’s a scene that sold this anime to me, which I’m now going to try and sell to you. The only setup you need to know for now is in the title– there is a Toujima Tanzaburou, and he wants to be Kamen Rider. We see him at his high school. His classmate starts getting harassed by delinquents from another school, and he goes to defend her. Of course, they had the strength in numbers, and Toujima was getting pummeled left and right.
So what does he do? He does the signature Kamen Rider pose, you know the one, and he transforms. And by “transform”, I mean that he takes off his shirt, unveiling his chiseled body… that had the inky drawing of the Kamen Rider on it. And somehow this lets Toujima summon the strength to prevail against the gangsters. He sidles up to the girl he saved… and she runs away, visibly weirded out by him. And what does Toujima take away from this? That he should have never revealed to laypeople that he can transform into Kamen Rider.
I just love these absurd premises that the characters in-universe take 100% seriously. Much of the comedy stems from the disconnect between Toujima (who’s 40 years old by the time the show proper gets rolling) desperately wanting to go through life as Kamen Rider, and, well, reality being reality. He’s trained to the point of being able to best a BEAR in barehanded combat, but there’s no villains for him to vanquish. Oh, and somehow he’s not the only goofball who’s doing this.
(Major spoilers) Later on, actual monsters start appearing, which you’d think would harm the humor, but then you watch the monsters get flabbergasted that ordinary, non-battle-cyborg humans are somehow beating the tar out of them, and we’re right back to laughing. Hell, there’s even moments of genuine badassery, too! I wasn’t too sure about this at first, but this shouts its love for Kamen Rider with every fiber of its being, and you just can’t hate that.
May I Ask For One Final Thing?
Now this is my kind of power fantasy. Imagine if you could simply deck all your problems in the face. That’s exactly what Scarlet Vandimion does. Hell, it’s what she lives for. Insecure bullies that put her down so they can feel better about themselves? PUNCH. Corrupt nobility treating their subjects as expendable livestock? PUNCH. Sham priests scamming the populace? PUNCH. The animators have gone on record to confirm that they took the utmost care in animating how the flesh of the face ripples from the impact of Scarlet’s fist. They know what they’re selling.
Scarlet’s violent escapades are entertaining not only because of how much her targets deserve her wrath, but also because she almost always unleashes her fury with absolute poise. She might swing a bloke around to use them as a human meat-club, but she’ll do so with the grace of a ballroom dancer sweeping her partner off his feet. And nestled in between these exaggerated gags are clever bits of more subtle humor, whether it’s barely discernible smirks or amusing juxtapositions.
To top it all off, the banter is legitimately great! Scarlet’s antics are often met with audible disbelief/exasperation, much to the entertainment of her primary love interest. Her bark is also as deadly as her bite; she has an excellent array of one-liners throughout the series.
This really was a pleasant surprise, and it was always excellent catharsis after a long day at work. How I long to solve my problems the Vandimion way.
AND THAT’S A WRAP.
We’ll soon be heading into the unknown frontier of 2026, and from the whispers going around, we already know that year of anime is gonna be insane. Hell, we’re getting Psyren. PSYREN. Anything can happen.
quiche.cafe 
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