Manga

I think the series that impressed me the most last year was a late arrival - Unexciting Date. It's easily the best dialogue I've seen all year (since Food Court de Mata Ashita is still stalled) and it's an oddly satisfying slow-burn romance (with their awful communication skills, any romance at all is an impressive accomplishment).

As far as ongoing stuff goes, I'm still very impressed by Boku dake ga Shitterun daze aka Only I Know. It's a somewhat typical young romcom that's most notable for the MMC - Waku - who has a lot of the cliched reflexive reactions to all this nascent romance stuff, but instead of just allowing himself to be subject to them, he stops and considers why he's reacting that way and what he should be doing instead and, most notably, what would be best for the FMC - Oura - then he steels his resolve and does what needs to be done, and it's such a pleasure to watch.

And Renge to Naruto just gets better all the time. It started off as just a sort of goofy ecchi comedy with an enthusiastic gyaru running a Chinese restaurant and a sort of quiet and awkward working stiff who becomes a regular, but over time it's morphed into an impressively subtle and complex character study/slice of life/rom-com.

My favourite series that I read in 2025 is a manhwa:

• Villains Are Destined To Die: the villainess trope is one I like a lot (though more and more are coming out that I don't care about) and I think manhwa has some of the best villainess stories. Villains Are Destined To Die is the best among them. Its art is gorgeous, but the story and characters is where it's at. The FMC got dealt a very bad hand and the way she deals with it in a grounded, no-nonsense kinda way is very satisfying and gripping.

But if I were to exclude manhwa and ignoring actual release dates:

Favourite reads of the year:

• Ruri Dragon
• Frieren
• Gals Cant Be Kind To Otaku
• My Dress-up Darling (ended in 2025, but the final English volume is to be released still).
• 2.5D Seduction
• Monthly in the garden with my landlord
• Renge to Naruto

Please wrap this up already:

• Anjo The Mischievous Gal: I don't hate reading it, but it feels like it's really stretching it out.
• Kuzuhana-chan: I dropped this. This manga is the reading version of edging. Finally progressing somewhere, then regressing, then progressing, then regressing etc.
• The guy she was interested in wasnt a guy at all: after the 1st arc, it started wandering like it didn't know what to do and that really came through. It probably should've ended when the arc ended tbh.

While I started reading a few interesting series last year, the one that stuck with me the most turned out to be the simply titled Unexciting Date. There's no grand story, no suspenseful drama or eye-watering action, just two awkward goobers going on dates. Simple premise, nice dry humour and somewhat unusual protagonists - it was a surprise hit for sure.

Is it the best series of last year? I honestly don't know but reading it makes me feel really nice and warm and I enjoy it immensely. That's good enough for me.

Best series last year, and possibly surpassing Sweet Blue Flowers as my favourite series of all time (as evidenced by my pfp), was There Is No Love Wishing Upon a Star. It's a slow build to a spectacular dramatic climax with heartrending romance. A must read for anyone interested in mature yuri and drama :) And the art is gorgeous <3

Sakura, Saku finished printing in English last year and is, imo, a near perfect shoujo. Adorable, saccharine, beautiful and very deliberate.

Love Bullet was a surprisingly good and heartfelt first volume which works as a standalone. The premise is silly and there's plenty of action but it's rather endearing.

Best-Of 2025

Personally, it has to be The Daughter of the Demon Lord is Too Kind!

It isn't one of those wholesome slice-of-life where nothing happens. There's actually a plot with a climax.

Also, Dou is just too cute, and too kind. I would welcome her to rule over our world any time.

I am so glad that it received an anime adaptation right when it ended.

This week I finished reading Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku. It was incredible. I don't think I've laughed that much from any other manga except Kaguya-sama: Love is War - and even then it's a tie.

I also borrowed a friend's The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity collection. I enjoyed it, but not quite as much. Maybe it's that the people all feel a little too idealized? I dunno. None of the characters seem to have any real flaws, and it feels like every time there's even a hint of something bad or stressful in any way happening it immediately gets resolved. There's no tension. All the same, I did enjoy it. Unfortunately the aforementioned friend only has the first 8 volumes so I'll have to read the rest later.

Anyways now that I've finished those I'll be reading Mobile Fighter G Gundam Re:Master Edition next. Unfortunately I only have the first volume, so after that I'll probably be getting started on Laid-Back Camp; I picked up a set while I was in Japan and it's just waiting to be read.

I don't claim to have a good enough memory to remember all of the series I read last year, but here are the ones that stuck in my memory as I was thinking over it:

Best Action

• I Got a New Skill Every Time I was Exiled, and After 100 Different Worlds, I was Unmatched

I really, really like this series. You might see the long, descriptive title and lump it together with a bunch of other series that blend into a generic mess, but this one is different. The art in the fight scenes is excellent and dynamic and, most importantly, the story has been super engaging. I love the two leads in this series and if anything happens to them, I will be inconsolable. Highly recommended!

Best Comedy

• I Became the World's Strongest Witch

Every chapter of this series is a riot. I fully expect this to get an anime adaptation someday and I can only hope it is given the comedy treatment it deserves. 60 chapters in now and each one still manages to surprise me. It is a madcap mix of meta references to internet culture, buggy game mechanics, and OP protagonist tropes. It really makes you question whether you can call yourself OP as a protagonist until you can turn the power of pop-up advertising against your foes.

• IseGure: After Constantly Being Used as a Foil for OP Isekai Protagonists, the Elite Knight has Finally Had It

This series ended up as a short and sweet love letter of a parody to isekai slop. It knew exactly what it was and made fun of itself relentlessly. It is basically an isekai series all about preventing any more isekai series. The isekai tropes themselves became weapons to be wielded against the isekai powers that be. It's a quick, but hilarious read that ends just when it needs to, and doesn't overstay its welcome.

Best Romance

• Journey Home After School

I have loved this series right from the beginning and it has only gotten better as it has gone. It has been a slow burn, but a satisfying one. These two goobers are so gosh-darned cute and I can't get enough of it. The relationship they have feels so natural and effortless.

• The Ice Princess Wants to be Melted by a Small Patch of Sunlight

This is one of those series where the true matchmakers are the younger brothers/sisters that bring together their older siblings through shared babysitting. Nothing about this series is reinventing the wheel, but it is just really well executed. If you are looking for a dose of the "good stuff," this is it.

Best Drama

• The Moon on a Rainy Night

This series has been excellent from the jump and it shows no sign of slowing down. I debated including this in the romance category, but I think drama fits it better. It is pretty melodramatic, but manages to stay grounded and heartfelt enough to keep me engaged. If you are looking for a serious yuri story, this is an excellent choice.

Best Art

• Slime Saint

Look, some might think this is a crazy pick for best art, but it is one of the few series where I consistently notice the artwork specifically. I love how playful the artist is with facial expressions. Each individual chapter is a veritable scrapbook of expressions on Lady Jelly's face and each is wilder than the last.

Best Slice of Life

• Renge to Naruto

I had no idea this series would turn out as great as it has back when I read chapter 1. It might look like an ecchi series about a gyaru infecting people with her genki-ness, and it is that, but it has managed to add so much more depth to these characters as well. This series is comfortable at this point, like a warm bowl of ramen at a table with rowdy friends.

Best Conclusion

• Sometimes Even Reality Is a Lie!

It's not every day that a series that has been running for 5 years comes to a close. This series managed to keep me engaged the whole way through and ended on a high note as well. I can't speak too much about the plot without spoiling stuff, but just know that this is a great romcom and one of those rare examples of a romance that continues long after the dating starts (and stays great).

• Kirio Fanclub

I might be the only person in this community that read this series, but that won't stop me from singing its praises. It was exceptionally weird at times, but I had a lot of fun. The ending that it built up to was pitch-perfect, no notes. If you give this one a shot, know that you won't be let down by the end.

Just End it Already

• Yankee JK Kuzuhana-chan

This series basically spent a whole year spinning its wheels. I think it is time to take this one out to the pasture. Recent chapters have finally pushed the story a bit, but at this point, I fully expect things to reset back soon enough. I am somehow trapped in this endless loop though, so look forward to this being on my list next year as well!