Every year, there is an anime that immediately gains a huge cult following on MAL and is lauded as the best thing ever. Which anime will that be in 2025?
| 2021 had Odd Taxi, 2022 had Bocchi the Rock, 2023 had Oshi no Ko, 2024 had Frieren. What will 2025 have? My pick is Sakamoto Days. |
"Molly Ringwald" out right now - check my Linktree!  |
| Difficult to say yet. Only time will tell. |
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| based off nothing but anime covers here on MAL: sakamoto days or zenshuu |
can't yuck my yum  |
| "huge cult following" This is not a thing. "Cult following" means relatively small, but dedicated fanbase. Odd Taxi and Bocchi the Rock were huge and Oshi no Ko had Frieren still are. Example of "cult classic" would be Gensou Mangekyou: The Memories of Phantasm - one of the Touhou anime entries. A more recent example would be Girls Band Cry. "2024 had Frieren" But it came and got popular in 2023. I think what OP means is "Unlikely to become popular judging by the mainstream taste, but actually did.". I would add other recent examples of that like Kusuriya no Hitorigoto and Dungeon Meshi. On topic - I am really bad at predicting stuff. People mention Sakamoto Days, but that's kind of obvious, since its manga is already popular, thus it's not "unlikely". |
alshuNov 18, 2024 11:46 PM
| We haven't got many updates on new anime airing next year, but only sequels |
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| IDK, but I think Sakamoto Days has the potential if there won’t be any production-related issues. |
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| This is exactly why i dislike MAL's herd mentality and think that animenwsnetwork has a better and more objective rating system. |
| Hmm, if we're talking about the biggest hits of each year, I would say it's these anime: 2020: Jujutsu Kaisen 2021: Mushoku Tensei, Ousama Ranking, Horimiya 2022: Chainsaw Man, Spy x Family, My Dress-Up Darling, Bocchi the Rock! 2023: Frieren, Oshi no Ko, The Apothecary Diaries 2024: Dandadan, Solo Leveling, Kaiju No. 8 But, if we're talking about anime that started off being unassuming and kind of under the radar but ended up exceeding most people's expectations, then I believe it would be these anime: 2021: Odd Taxi 2022: Bocchi the Rock! 2023: The Dangers in My Heart 2024: Girls Band Cry I think it's still a bit too early to say what the next big new anime or most surprising hit will be for 2025, but we will know for sure once next year's fall season arrives. |
| It has to be Witch Hat Atelier (I didn't read, just based on what I heard). It must be it, or it would be a huge failure and wasted potential for Bug Films. The issue with Sakamato Days seems to be that the PV doesn't look as good in terms of animation as the top tier shounen adaptations. Not bad at all, but not good enough to be "the best thing" of 2025. |
| Hopefully Gachiakuta, but I really don't see it coming sadly. |
| Sakamoto Days. It's Exciting, The mix of action, comedy, and family drama makes this series the ultimate contender for a cult following Honey Lemon Soda:The relatable high school setting and romance among characters make it a strong contender for a cult following. Witch Hat Atelier.. The beautiful artwork and storyline have already garnered a lot of attention. |
| Gachiakuta is a worthy contender that I think more people should be aware of. The manga is easily the best battle shonen I've read, and I don't usually like battle shonens. It's stylish, cool, and just plain fun. The characters are great as well. Unfortunately, I'm not sure about how well studio Bones can adapt the manga's amazing art. Still, I can see it becoming a big hit if things work out. Either way, an adaptation means more manga readers which is a win according to me. I have also been keeping track with Chinese animation, and I think 2025 could be the year that donghuas become mainstream. So, here are some donghuas I'm excited for: I've been hearing a lot about Lord of the Mysteries. I haven't read it myself, but from what I've heard, apparently the source material is one of the best webnovels out there (#15 on MAL). The trailer gave ufotable vibes, so I'm not too worried about the animation. In other words, I think this could be neat. I don't think this will be as big of a hit as Lord of the Mysteries, but To be Hero X looks very promising. There's clearly passion put into the animation, and the staff is stacked. If not popular, it will probably at least be highly enjoyable. |
| I feel like Oshi no Ko and Frieren were to popular to be consider "Cult". Atleast Odd Taxi and Bocchi were hidden gems when they came out and got more of a following later from people talking about them. |
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| Not going to include "Sakamoto Days" or even "Witch Watch" since that shounen stuff is always getting a lot of attention, so I'll say "Medalist." Not sure what's coming out in summer or fall 2025. |
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MeanMrMusician said: 2021 had Odd Taxi, 2022 had Bocchi the Rock, 2023 had Oshi no Ko, 2024 had Frieren. How on Earth could something be identified as 'cult material' when they're popular even to people outside of the bubble containing its own bubble? That has the same mentality with people who call others with whom they disagree "elitist" or"-tard". |
SgtBateManNov 20, 2024 4:49 PM
Help! I need somebody. Help! Not just anybody. Help! You know I need someone. Helpppppp!  |
| Probably Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku or Witch Hat Atelier. Both are really good manga so could be one of them. |
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| It would probably be a shounen/seinen with pretty boys like jjk/frieren ect. High ratings are hard to obtain unless it is made for the wider audience. |
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| random guessing City the animation - kyoani + nichijou mangaka Gachiakuta - bones + shonen with cool art Lazarus - mappa + scifi ones with pre-existing large following Witch hat atelier Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku Sakamoto Days |
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| I was looking back at some of the older threads, and I think we have our answer now to this thread question: Takopi’s Original Sin |
| With Witch Hat Atelier delayed to 2026 and Sakamoto Days turning out to be super mid, no one could have guessed that the right answer was going to be Takopii no Genzai. The only other non-sequel anime rated above 8.40 is Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku, and also Lord of Mysteries if we also count donghua, but their 58% of recommended reviews is abysmally low and a sign that they're not nearly as beloved as their scores may seem to imply. |
| Chi : About the movements of the earth is also a good shout imo |
| @RunariNoctis Thanks for bumping this thread, interesting read. Agreed on Takopi's Original Sin, the reception felt almost feverish. I also became aware of Sakamoto Days and Gachiakuta due to the pre-release hype, but I'm pretty sure they didn't live up to it... |
| Huge cult for 2025 ? My pick it's "none" |
| Lotm, hikaru, or takopii Well, pick one Next year is def gonna be witch hat |
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Reply to perseii
@RunariNoctis Thanks for bumping this thread, interesting read.
Agreed on Takopi's Original Sin, the reception felt almost feverish.
I also became aware of Sakamoto Days and Gachiakuta due to the pre-release hype, but I'm pretty sure they didn't live up to it...
Agreed on Takopi's Original Sin, the reception felt almost feverish.
I also became aware of Sakamoto Days and Gachiakuta due to the pre-release hype, but I'm pretty sure they didn't live up to it...
perseii said: Thanks for bumping this thread, interesting read. Yep, no problem :p perseii said: Agreed on Takopi's Original Sin, the reception felt almost feverish. Yeah agreed. This anime got quite a lot of people discussing. perseii said: I also became aware of Sakamoto Days and Gachiakuta due to the pre-release hype, but I'm pretty sure they didn't live up to it... I'm personally not too aware of how hyped the pre-release hype was for Sakamoto Days Part 2 and Gachiakuta, but a 7.92 and 8.05 rating don't seem all that bad to me. |
| This is what I said last year. In hindsight: (lol) Takopii really flew under most people's radars with Enishiya, a studio known for making high quality short films and music videos, adapting it... With that said, the source material was one of the more popular short manga even before the anime, and the PVs looked incredible. Anyone who looked through the Summer 2025 anime chart beforehand would have been super hyped for the show. Of course, nobody expected this level of creativity and consistent quality. I'm glad to have been one of these people, since I got to experience Takopii for the first time as the episodes came out every week; with a show like this, the discussions contributes so much. I think To Be Hero X was also really great. The animation was consistent, and incredible at select moments. What surprised me the most though was the writing. TBHX's story turned out to be exceptionally well-thought-out. Although the middle of the show lost many viewers, it turned out that all of this built momentum towards the absolutely incredible final arcs. Seriously; if you haven't watched TBHX, you're missing out on something special. Gachiakuta's anime didn't blow up, but I never expected for it to. The manga was simply too hard to adapt; it's a miracle that Bones was able to make a show that could stand up to the manga at all. Bones did some good work here. I think Gachiakuta's slow start also hurt it to some degree: a lot of exposition was needed to get to where we are now, which was great for manga readers but stopped the anime from getting much traction. Hopefully anime-onlies will start to appreciate Gachiakuta more in the next few arcs. Something interesting is the discussion surrounding Kaoru Hana wa Rin to Saku (The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity). Before the anime, reception to the manga was mostly positive; I never quite got why since I always thought the manga was mediocre. The anime was still rated incredibly highly, but you couldn't really go anywhere without seeing someone say something along the lines of "'I'm sorry' the romance anime." I think the manga resonated with manga readers because they are probably tired of reading trashy and contrived romance series; way more of these exist in manga than anime form. Overall, I think the answer to this thread's question would be Takopii no Genzai. Most people seem to agree that this show is amazing, after all. |
detarameMALYesterday, 12:43 AM
| Considering it's popularity and the score, Takopi's Original Sin could be. |
| ..........fking...frieren!!! god help us! |
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Reply to Stanis150
The Fragrant flower - 58% positive reviews
Takopi - 67%
Meanwhile author's examples:
Odd Taxi - 86%
Bocchi - 84%
Oshi no Ko - 63% (bad example)
Frieren - 77% (same year)
and from 2024 it's probably
Orb - 81%
So, based on this numbers I don't think there is some "universally beloved" anime this year like that was in previous years.
Takopi - 67%
Meanwhile author's examples:
Odd Taxi - 86%
Bocchi - 84%
Oshi no Ko - 63% (bad example)
Frieren - 77% (same year)
and from 2024 it's probably
Orb - 81%
So, based on this numbers I don't think there is some "universally beloved" anime this year like that was in previous years.
| @Stanis150 When I replied before, I forgot about Orb because it started in 2024 but I think that for this kind of discussion it can be considered from 2025 as well. Its score actually skyrocketed only during its second half that aired in 2025. The % of recommended reviews alone isn't a perfect indicator (for example Medalist has 87% but out of only 47 reviews, way less than all the other anime that are being mentioned here), but I'd say that the mix of score, popularity and % of recommended reviews gives Orb an edge over Takopii. I'd also like to add Dungeon Meshi among the most beloved anime from the last few years: 82% recommended reviews out of 203 so fairly popular, and despite a lower score compared to other anime it can count on the slowest score degradation (peaked at 8.61 and only lost 0.02 after 16 months) which means the best staying power. |
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