Though the process of anime creation is often associated with adapting source materials like manga or light novels, there is plenty of fantastic work being done with original anime as well. Some of the greatest anime ever made, from Cowboy Bebop to Neon Genesis Evangelion , are original anime, proving that it is a consistently ripe medium for storytelling. And the 2025 Anime Awards aims to celebrate that storytelling with its Best Original Anime nominees . Let's break them down! RELATED: Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2025: Your Ultimate Guide BUCCHIGIRI?! RELATED: BUCCHIGIRI?! Anime: Everything You Need to Know With some stylish animation by MAPPA, BUCCHIGIRI?! is a roughhouse of an anime. You might be familiar with some of the elements — there are two rival gangs at a high school and they are constantly looking to throw down. But it takes little time for the chaos to set in, as transfer student Arajin Tomoshibi finds himself in love with a girl who is related to the leader of one gang while one of Arajin’s best pals is a member of another. Add in Arajin’s desperate quest to lose his virginity and an awakened genie and you have a recipe for a weird, wild time. GIRLS BAND CRY We’re living in a golden age for anime about women that start bands and GIRLS BAND CRY adds to the healthy subgenre. Produced by Toei, GIRLS BAND CRY is a found family story. It features Nina Iseri, a high school dropout who finds little comfort in her rural life, so she moves to Tokyo to get a fresh start. As it turns out, Tokyo isn’t that easy of a place to live either, but when she has a chance encounter with her favorite guitarist, things start to turn around. They, along with a few other girls, start a band, and the group not only makes music but also aids one another in figuring out their own personal issues. Music is just as much of a healing factor as friendship, and GIRLS BAND CRY is great if you’re looking for a mood booster. Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night Image via HIDIVE Produced to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the famed studio Doga Kobo (the company behind series like Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun , SING “YESTERDAY” FOR ME and Oshi no Ko ), Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night is another story about using art to find your place in the world. In this case, it’s the formation of the band JELEE, and it involves an illustrator, an idol, a VTuber and a composer, many of whom are openly disillusioned with their careers and/or their lives. Through working together, though, they might figure out how to step back from the malaise that can so easily swallow you and become everything they were meant to be. Metallic Rouge RELATED: 6 Cyberpunk Anime to Watch if You Like Metallic Rouge Produced by Bones and created by famed mecha artist Yutaka Izubuchi, Metallic Rouge is a fast-paced science fiction adventure with thrills to spare. If anything, Metallic Rouge feels like something you would’ve stayed up to watch on Toonami’s “Midnight Run” block back in the day. It takes place in the future where, after a war with interstellar beings, mankind has come to live alongside androids… though the relationship is far from perfect and fraught with conflict. And though the story involves one of those androids being tasked with taking down a group of cyborgs that threatens humanity, what she’ll learn about the inner workings of the system will shock both her existence and the entire wider system. Ninja Kamui Image via Max And now for a show that actually aired on Toonami: Ninja Kamui . After going into hiding with his family in the US, retired ninja assassin Higan (aka Joe Logan) thinks he’s in for a peaceful life. But that dream is shattered when his former clan returns and slaughters his family. Wracked with grief and thirsting for revenge, Higan decides to repay blood with bountiful blood and take down that clan once and for all. While this tale of revenge includes a lot of the things you’re used to — awesome ninja techniques, rad scenes of a dude taking on a whole bunch of dudes, fountains of gore, etc. — where its plot goes and where its futuristic features come into play might surprise you. Two words: ninja mechs. Train to the End of the World RELATED: The Many Missed Connections of Train to the End of the World And finally, Train to the End of the World is one of the most delightfully inventive anime in years and provided a refreshing spin on the dystopia. After a technological accident turns most of the world’s population into bizarre oddities (talking animals, people with mushrooms sprouting from their heads and miniature beings, to name a few), four girls set out on a train to Ikebukuro in order to find an old friend. And though the journey on the rails is quirky and funny, it’s also filled with a frequently profound look at humanity and what connects and divides us. You’re missing out if you don’t climb aboard for Train to the End of the World . The 2025 Crunchyroll Anime Awards will be live from Tokyo, Japan, on May 25, 2025! Make sure to celebrate your favorites from the year by voting every day until voting closes on April 14 at 11:59:59 p.m. PT!
