Winter 2025 Anime Season Roundup

Written by Rei Caldombra 3/31/25 Video: https://youtu.be/CS9ilF-G_iw

Previous Season: Fall 2024 Anime Season Roundup — Blog Under a Log

Another Winter ends and another Spring blossoms. I’ll be giving my thoughts on what I watched this season (without specific spoilers) and talking about what I plan to watch next season. This season was packed with shows, pretty sure this is the most amount of shows I’ve watched in a bit. Only one of the new shows stood out as especially great to me, but I enjoyed all the ones I watched. Even including the one I decided to drop. And all 3 of the continuing series I watched kept up their good quality.

Dr. Stone: Science Future (First cour)

This was another excellent season of Dr. Stone. I was on the edge of my seat each episode and had the hardest time waiting between each episode out of anything I watched. When I first started Dr. Stone, I never thought it would get as into it as I have been the last few seasons. The aspect of Dr. Stone that I think is the strongest compared to other long running shounen is how thoroughly consistent it is when it comes to overall quality, tone, how science is used and everything else. I can’t say much about a series so far into the story without spoiling, so I’ll just say that I enjoyed this arc a lot, loved the villain, and am super excited for how the story continues in the next cour (there will be 3 for this season fyi). Out of all of the shows of this season, this was my favorite. Dr. Stone also gets my award for the best opening, you cannot beat the immaculate vibes of Cassanova Posse. Dr. STONE SCIENCE FUTURE - Opening | CASANOVA POSSE

Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Season 3

Another crazy arc of Re:Zero. This is another one I can’t be very specific on since it’s far in the story. The art and animation is fantastic as usual. All the characters and their drama are enthralling. I do wish a plotline with a certain character was not getting a bit dragged out in my opinion, but outside of that I like how things played out. Especially that twist at the end :( . We got some especially interesting and dynamic combat this season with a certain asshole who I loved to see get punted around. Super excited for the continuation!

Shangri-La Frontier Season 2 (2nd ~half)

Shangri-la is the 3rd of the big, long running series I am a huge fan of included in this season. As usual this was a ton of gaming fun. I think it’s about the same quality as the first season. It still carries it’s sometimes strange pacing and choices of places to leave off, but I am used to how this series does things by now. I’m in for the long haul and know that the series always ends up at an awesome conclusion. The great action with awesome art and animation portraying it, video game stuff, and characters continue to leave me wanting more. Unsurprisingly, S3 has been confirmed already. And I’m looking forward to it. And reminder that I did an analysis about what makes

Honey Lemon Soda

Here we have a classic shoujo. I’ve watched a handful of shoujo over the years, most of which I’ve enjoyed. But I don’t exactly actively seek them out. My older favorites are Ouran High School Host Club, Kimi ni Todoke, Ore Monogatari!!, and Maid Sama! The latest I’d seen before this is a A Sign of Affection (which you can find episode reviews of here under Yubisaki to Renren). Just wanted to talk about Shoujo a bit since I haven’t in awhile and don’t watch a ton. This is an overall solid but not spectacular show. I feel the emotional issues surrounding Uka are compelling and well done, particularly with the idea that trauma and severe emotional issues are not an easy fix. If you care about or can relate to issues of adolescence, lack of confidence and self-worth, the difficulty of improving yourself, and things along those lines, consider checking it out for that. It is a pretty standard shoujo romance through and through, so if you can’t stand some of its tropes then this probably isn’t for you. The male lead I know is the type that can bother some people while being extremely attractive to others lol. He didn’t bother me but I wouldn’t exactly say I liked him as lot either. To put myself in the show, I wouldn’t be interested in him romantically or platonically when it comes to my tastes for people. Honestly none of the guys are especially great as characters to me honestly. Ayumi best girl, and overall, the female characters are the better ones. In A Sign of Affection I enjoyed the wider cast of characters and the male lead much more. The visual quality of the show is not particularly great and has some moments where it is noticeably worse. It has some moments that look awesome and have great direction, but the average animation is pretty stiff. I think this is one where non shoujo fans can certainly enjoy it if you like adolescent school drama and romance, but it has some pain points that can bother people. I genuinely enjoyed it, connecting with some of Uka’s issues (I would like to put together a full piece about this if I can get it to a satisfactory state, stay tuned) and a few romantic moments are the other truly memorable parts for me. I’ll conclude by saying it’s a decent, average show with some one big strength and some things that could be bothersome to people. It’s definitely enjoyable but I would recommend other great shoujos over it. I will give it the best ending award, the vibes, visuals and song felt like such a perfect match for the tone of the series. Honey Lemon Soda - Ending | Wonderful World

Welcome to Japan Miss Elf

I have a full review coming for this one, so I’ll keep it brief. This show is complicated for me. While I definitely enjoyed it, I’ve got a lot of issues and nitpicks to talk about. If you want an isekai that has an interesting premise that also brings in comfy slice of life travel/foodie stuff, consider giving it a try. But in doing both it does not do either of them as well as you may like, especially the fantasy side. for me It has a novel premise, going for this mix of isekai and comfy slice of life, but it can also fall heavily into tropes. If you love elf girls, go for it, though some of her appeal will be lost if you are neutral to elves like me. It has some romance aspects to it as well that are pretty sweet, and it succeeds at giving you that comfy traveling and appreciating food vibe. But I really wish the main character was done better. I think this is a real mixed bag, coming together to an alright show that I think could be a big hit or big disappointment based on your tastes and if any of its iffier aspects are pet peeves for you.

Okitsura: Fell in Love with an Okinawan Girl

Refer to my First Impressions Review if you want to see my more detailed earlier thoughts. By the end, I still stick to what I said there about this being a solid but niche appealing show. I appreciated the committed focus on Okinawan culture, that aspect was interesting to the end. It was generally funny, with the comedy not running dry like I thought could happen. But the romance side of it was still not great. If you are interested in learning about Okinawa and like comfy slice of life, consider it. If not, this is a fair skip.

Flower and Asura

Refer to my First Impressions Review if you want to see my more detailed earlier thoughts. This is the other major work of Takeda Ayano, who wrote Sound! Euphonium. You can definitely see the parallels between these two series, with them both having very strong characters and writing. If you liked Euphonium, I highly recommend you give it a try. This is one of those hobby focused series I like where your interest in the hobby is not required for you to get invested in the story and characters. Characters are king for me when it comes to what single aspect of a series is most important. Flower and Asura had my favorite characters by far for all of the new shows. They all have standout personalities and developed well over the course of the season. My investment in them never faltered. My definitive favorite of the new shows. And Akiyama is the best boy of the new shows. I would happily give this series a full focus of a writing+video, and I plan to read the manga.

I Have a Crush at Work

Refer to my First Impressions Review if you want to see my more detailed earlier thoughts. My feelings didn’t change much from my first impressions. The show is cute and sweet, and it brings up some good situations and themes when it comes to work and relationships. The most notable thing to come out of it after my first impressions is the 2nd main couple coming together, who I did not expect to like so much. They’re the highlight, especially considering that type of couple is not one I normally like. I still think it is a very average comfy romcom that is enjoyable if that’s your thing, but definitely skippable if you don’t eat up wholesome things like I do or want any romance with adults that you can get your hands on.

Sakamoto Days

This is one of those series that I enjoyed for what I watched, but felt I had enough of part way through. I don’t think it got worse than it started, I just think the appeal wore thin for me. My feelings got confirmed when I stopped keeping up with it when I went on a trip, and just didn’t feel like picking it back up when I got back. It has great animation and fight choreography. And it’s decently funny. It’s a good show in my opinion. But series primarily focused on action and/or comedy can be very hit or miss with me. And there just wasn’t enough to the characters and storytelling for me to get attached to. I enjoyed what I watched, but had enough. If you want to hear my thoughts on a similar sort of situation, check out my blog post/video on Shikanoko https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kin2bWc0Yx4&feature=youtu.be

Spring 2025 Anime

The next season is going to be pretty light for me. Which I am looking forward to as I have had a lot of stuff on the backburner that I’ve been wanting to get to but have struggled to while keeping up with the seasonals. But I still have a few I’ll be watching and am excited for! This time I will be including the official PVs for the anime I’m checking out, hoping that will be helpful so you can easily take a look yourself at what I’m planning to check out.

Mono - YouTube PV: TVアニメ「mono」ってこんなもの！＜第1弾PV＞｜2025年4月放送開始！

This is my most hyped anime for the season! The manga’s author is Afro, who also made Yuru Camp. And also runs in a Kirara magazine like Yuru Camp. I love my cute wholesome shows and if it’s anywhere near as good as Yuru Camp, I’ll love it. The vibes are very similar but with the focus of the high school club’s travels being on photography and film rather than camping. The studio behind the anime is Soigne, a very new studio who does not have any solo produced works out yet to my knowledge. But the show looks great based on the PV. The overall production quality looks good and mimics Afro’s style for the characters very well. So I see no reason to not be excited for it. If you like wholesome, cute girls do cute things, outdoorsy slice of life shows I would definitely keep it on your radar.

Food for the Soul - YouTube PV: TVアニメ「日々は過ぎれど飯うまし」本PV｜2025年4月12日(土)より各局にて放送開始！

Sticking in the same genre, we have another comfy cute girls do cute things slice of life, this one seeming to be based around cooking. This one has the characters in college rather than high school, so I hope that it notably plays into things and differentiates if from the myriads of high school focused ones. I don’t have much information on the background of this show, as it looks like the manga and anime are both in the process of being released. So, while I wouldn’t call this an anime original because the manga does exist too and looks to be coming first out, it doesn’t have a proper source material. But what’s also notable that also gives me confidence is the creator behind it is Atto, who wrote another slice of life favorite of mine, Non Non Biyori. The anime is being done by P.A Works, who has a very high number of works of varying quality. But they do put out a lot of great stuff, including the two most recent shows by them that I’ve seen, Ya Boi Kongming and Buddy Daddies. It looks like a cute and fun time, so I’ll give it a try.

Guilty Gear Strive: Dual Rulers - TVアニメ『GUILTY GEAR STRIVE: DUAL RULERS』メインPV【4月5日より毎週土曜放送開始】 - YouTube

I am not exactly a Guilty Gear fan, but it’s a series I’ve known about and respected for awhile. I don’t enjoy playing fighting games outside of playing with my friends every so often. But I’ve seen stuff online from Guilty Gear, and I love this series’ energy, style and soundtrack. I’ll happily take the chance to try enjoying this series in anime form. Studio Sanzigen has done a lot of CGI anime series, and in this case the CGI haters can’t really complain as the anime’s style is pretty much dead on to the 3D used in the game. The soundtrack also sounds like it will be like the games as well. I hope old fans, new ones, and people in the middle like me can all enjoy this anime! TOTSUGEKI

Rock Is a Lady's Modesty - TVアニメ『ロックは淑女の嗜みでして』メインPV｜4月3日(木)放送開始

Anime about girls putting bands together has always been a thing since K-On! was a massive hit, but recently it feel like we’ve really been getting a lot of them (Bocchi the Rock, Girls Band Cry, Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night, Bang! Dream, etc.). I tend to enjoy these series when they give me great characters and link the characters to their music in compelling ways. And this season is no exception, but at least it’s got a new twist on the formula. This one is about girls at a high-class school for ojou-samas, with our characters seeming to rebel against the system through music. It’s being made by Bandai-Namco, which doesn’t give me much to go off of. But the anime looks like it has great energy and style to it. I hope it executes the tonal clash of high-class society with rock as well as it intends to. Now feels like a good time for one of these girls band anime to do something different.

And lastly I wanted to briefly mention My Hero Academy: Vigilantes. I like MHA, and I did enjoy reading the first few volumes of Vigilantes. But I just don’t feel like I need to watch this right now. Maybe I’ll watch it once the main anime is over.

Thanks for reading! This turned into one of my longest blog posts. My Patreon if you would like to support me and the website: patreon.com/ReiCaldombra As a free member you can get notifications for posts on Blog Under a Log and videos on my Youtube channel. When I start running polls again you’ll get to vote as a paid member. But any support is greatly appreciated!

Posts about shows in Winter 2025 (this will get updated with anything that comes out later)

Capturing the Essence of Gaming - Shangri-La Frontier — Blog Under a Log

Okitsura: Fell in Love with an Okinawan Girl - First Impressions — Blog Under a Log

Flower and Asura - First Impressions — Blog Under a Log

I Have a Crush at Work - First Impressions — Blog Under a Log