Austin

Third Impact Anime Episode #166 – Best Anime of 2025

Reze from Chainsaw Man (art by @peach1ko)
Yachiyo from Apocalypse Hotel (art by @peach1ko)

While other podcasts did their end of year retrospective two months ago, why rush when you can take 3 months? In this episode, Sarah, Austin, Tori, and Bill break down the “best” anime of 2025, and by “best” we mean “the stuff we got around to, whether we liked it, finished it, or not”. We’ve got Kowloons, we’ve got Kaisens, and do you finally want to know what the deal with Solo Leveling is? Well, I can’t promise we’ll tell you, but maybe we do!

What were some of your favorite anime of 2025? Let us know by sending us an email at thirdimpactanime@gmail.com and we’ll discuss it on the show.

Follow Austin on Bluesky, Tori on Bluesky, Sarah on Bluesky, and Bill on Bluesky.

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Character art by peach1ko!

Reiko Kujirai from Kowloon Generic Romance (art by @peach1ko)
Scarlet El Vandimion from May I Ask for One Final Thing? (art by @peach1ko)

Timestamps:

  • 00:00:00 – Opening check in about how 2025 treated us despite everything and our aspirations for 2026
  • 00:20:41 – Sarah hosts a game where we guess what anime were at the top of the popularity lists on various websites
  • 00:55:28 – What anime did we just dabble in this year and not finish?
    • Titles include things like Anne Shirley, New Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt, Gachiakuta, Ranma 1/2, The Dinner Table Detective, This Monster Wants to Eat Me, Pass the Monster Meat, Milady!, City, The Summer Hikaru Died, etc.
  • 1:39:53 – Sequels!~
    • My Dress Up Darling, The Apothecary Diaries, Solo Leveling, Dandadan, etc.
  • 02:10:19 – Lupin the IIRD: Zenigata and the Two Lupins & Lupin the IIIRD: Immortal Bloodline
  • 02:22:08 – Black Butler: Emerald Witch Arc
  • 02:30:46 – Chainsaw Man: The Movie -Reze Arc-
  • 02:46:44 – Zombie Land Saga: Yumeginga Paradise
  • 02:54:28 – Let’s Play
  • 03:05:01 – May I Ask for One Final Thing?
  • 03:20:15 – 100 Meters
  • 03:38:16 – Kowloon Generic Romance
  • 03:53:23 – Apocalypse Hotel
  • 04:01:27 – What anime are we looking forward to for 2026?

Note that we talk a lot more about various other anime that were brought up in the lists/comments submitted to us from members of our Discord, so the timestamps above are not exhaustive (the list below this is exhaustive, though).

Music used in this episode:

  • “Doukashiteru” by WurtS (DANDADAN ED 2)
  • “Hello Zepp” by Charlie Clouser (SAW OST)
  • “Strategy” by TWICE
  • “HUGs” by Paledusk (Gachiakuta OP 1)
  • “Jane Doe” by Utada Hikaru and Kenshi Yonezu (Chainsaw Man: The Movie -Reze Arc-)
  • “You and Idol Precure Light Up!” by Ami Ishii, Chihaya Yoshitake & Akane Kumada (You and Idol Precure ED 1)
  • “SAGA Arena Live Digest” by Franchouchou (Zombie Land Saga: Yumeginga Paradise OST)
  • “Senjou no Hana” by CHiCO with HoneyWork (May I Ask for One Final Thing? OP 1)
  • “Summertime Ghost” by Wednesday Campanella (Kowloon Generic Romance OP)
  • “Skirt” by aiko (Apocalypse Hotel OP)

A collection of things we brought up:

thirdimpactlogo Basil 2019 green better.png
Logo created by itsbasiltime

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