Controversially,Crunchyroll pickedSolo Levelingas the best anime of 2024, despite stiff competition fromFrieren,Delicious in Dungeon, andThe Apothecary Diaries. Ultimately, everyone has their preferences, and I would personally putDandadanabove any other 2024 anime (FrierenandThe Apothecary Diariesnotwithstanding, since they debuted in 2023).Solo Levelingwas, apparently, Crunchyroll’s most viewed anime of the previous year, so its victory makes sense based purely on numbers.
How doesSoloLevelingstack compared to Crunchyroll’s other anime of the year winners? The platform has been handing out this award since 2016, with nine shows earning the accolade so far. Although all the series are great in their own right, some picks were more surprising than others. And,Solo Levelingranks pretty low among thebest anime of the year winners. Let’s go through Crunchyroll’s AOTY.
9Devilman Crybaby (2018)
7.7/10 (MyAnimeList: 7.74/10 & Anime-Planet: 7.66/10)
To give credit where credit is due, Crunchyroll is willing to nominate and even crown anime that are exclusive to other streaming services.Devilman Crybabyis only available on Netflix and made a big splash when it dropped in 2018, providing a dark and uncomfortable take on Go Nagai’s classic property. Purposefully abrasive, this anime deserves all the praise in the world forboldly tackling mature and challenging themesthat are socially relevant. The animation is also fantastic and eye-catching, and still looks great all these years later.
As gripping as it can be,Devilman Crybabyis pretty dang polarizing, which is not necessarily a bad thing. A show this unsettling, frantic, and (at times) degenerate should spark a visceral reaction in viewers, be it of admiration or disgust. Even if you might not love the 2018 anime of the year, you will not forget it.
The onlyboys love animeto be nominated for Crunchyroll’s anime of the year,Yuri on Iceis possibly that theme’s most important representative of all time, even though it is quite tame compared to some other modern and especially classic shows. I was not sure what to expect from MAPPA’s original series, butYuri on Iceended up juggling sports and romance pretty well, albeit with a slightly heavier emphasis on the former.
As the first-ever anime of the year winner,Yuri on Iceovercame some strong competition in 2016, including shows (Re:Zero,Mob Psycho 100, andMy Hero Academia) that would remain fixtures in the industry for years to come. Was it a deserving winner? Honestly, strong arguments could be made both in its favor and against it.Yuri on Icewas an international phenomenon that captured the cultural zeitgeist, more so than any other 2016 anime. MAPPA’s animation was and still is great, and the character writing is generally quite good. The boys love element could have led to a better pay-off, but it also does not overshadow Yuuri’s journey to achieve his dream. That said, as far as sports anime are concerned,Yuri on Iceis nothing too out of this world.
Solo Levelingis one of Crunchyroll’s most divisive anime of the year. That does not mean it is bad by any stretch of the imagination, as all these shows are fantastic; however,Solo Levelingis probably the most obvious “popular” pick. Season 1 was a huge hit that sparked a wave of online discourse and set the stage for a sequel that would be pretty much inescapable, and the latter could easily end up being 2025’s best anime of the year. The adaptation’s success could pave the way for even moreanime based on manhwa, although they might not all get the same high-quality treatment. Let’s just say, I don’t thinkThe Beginning After the Endwill be nominated for anime of the year.
Yet,Solo Levelingwent up against so many big names that its victory felt a bit undeserved. Even if only the second cours ofThe Apothecary DiariesandFrierenwere considered, they could still be seen as superior toSolo Leveling’s first season.Dandadanblended romance, action, sci-fi, comedy, and fantasy seamlessly, whileDelicious in Dungeonproduced magic for half of 2024. Still,Solo Levelingis a good action anime.
Another Netflix exclusive picked asCrunchyroll’s anime of the year,Cyberpunk: Edgerunnerswas a fairly safe choice, especially since some of2022’s biggest showsdebuted in Fall and, consequently, were only eligible for the 2023 competition. Inspired by CD Projekt Red’sCyberpunk 2077, the anime features gorgeous animation by Trigger, a studio that has barely set a foot wrong over the last couple of years.
Telling a complete story in just 10 episodes,Edgerunnersestablishes Night City and a pretty expansive cast of characters in a short time, all the while telling an effective and complex love-ish story between David and Lucy. In terms of pure production value, this 2022 anime is right up there with the best of the best, and it will likely stand the test of time effortlessly. Story-wise,Edgerunnerstakes a while to fully get going, but it builds steadily to an electric final act.
Similar toDevilman Crybaby,Made in Abyssis not a pleasant watch. Sure, the anime has beautiful visuals and an adventurous tone fueled by wonder and whimsy, but that means nothing when characters are put through hell and their screams bury themselves in your subconscious, ensuring they echo forever within your nightmares.Made in Abyssis probably my favorite anime that I will never recommend to anyone, and season 1 is frankly tame compared to its sequel movie and 2022’sThe Golden City of the Scorching Sun.
To be clear,Made in Abyssis a dark fantasy masterpiece with top-of-the-line animation, sympathetic characters, fascinating world-building, and ahorrifying Lovecraftian-esque threat in the eponymous Abyss. It is just not fun. Watch it, but only if you are ready to take a trip into despair (along with some splashes of hope).
One of a handful of anime that can matchSolo Leveling’s popularity,Demon Slayerhad a pretty slow start, with season 1 not exploding in popularity until episode 19. After that point, the anime became an absolute juggernaut, going on to produce a highly successful movie and multiple great sequel seasons. Later in 2025,Ufotable will dropInfinity Castle, the first entry in a cinematic trilogy that will bring Tanjiro’s animated story to a close.
Considering the impactDemon Slayerhas had, Crunchyroll naming the first season as the best anime of the year is retroactively justified. Some people, myself included, might argueVinland Sagawas 2019’s best anime, butDemon Slayeris about as good of a battle shonen as they get. Ufotable’s animation alone makes this an understandable choice.
MyAnimeList and Anime-Planet do not differentiate between cours that aired sequentially, so this score is based onJujutsu Kaisen’s entire first season and not just the opening 12 episodes. Consequently, this ranking has to be taken with a grain of salt.
AlongsideDemon SlayerandMy Hero Academia,Jujutsu Kaisenhas cemented itself as thedefinitive battle shonen of the last decade. While all three shows are relatively reliable,JKis not only the most consistent but also set a new standard for action in anime, even more so thanDemon Slayer.
Season 1 tells Yuuji Itadori’s peculiar story, one that sees him thrust into the supernatural world and, eventually, eating a finger that holds a pretty dangerous curse. Yes, the inciting incident is pretty weird, butJujutsu Kaiseneases viewers in with exhilarating fights, lovable characters, and a sense of familiarity through the establishment of a school for sorcerers.
Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2Debuted On July 31, 2025
Staying within the same universe,Jujutsu Kaisen’s sequel matched its predecessor, although season 2 is slightly more divisive. While the first few episodes focus on Gojo’s backstory and tell arguably the best arc in the series, the rest of the two-cour season consists of pretty much non-stop battles. I appreciate a great fight as much as the next shonen fan, but the Shibuya Incident Arc is so relentless that exhaustion can start to set in after a while.
Still, in terms of pure spectacle,Jujutsu Kaisenseason 2 has very few peers that come close to matching its quality, withSolo Levelingseason 2 being one of the few exceptions. The story might not always take center stage, but it is not terrible and gets the job done.
Attack on Titan: Final SeasonDebuted On Jul 23, 2025
As potentially the most hyped series of the 2010s and 2020s,Attack on Titanhad to win anime of the year at some point.The Final Seasonmarked a substantial shift in the narrative, one that flipped the script on both the characters and the world they exist within. Shocking and ambitious, the change was executed fantastically, even if not everyone loved one specific new character or Eren’s development.
Attack on Titanthreatened to overstay its welcome by extendingThe Final Seasonto its breaking point, but this frustrating release schedule should not take away from thequality of the episodes. While nearly every annual pick is controversial to an extent,Crunchyroll’s best anime of the year winneris arguably the most worthy.
FAQ
Q: How does Crunchyroll decide the anime of the year?
For the most recent awards, Crunchyroll staged two rounds of voting. The first round was determined by judges, while the second one added fan votes into the mix.
