T5W#542-Top 5 Best Titles I’ve Reviewed in 2025

Today we bid farewell to 2025 and this year has seen the Gundam Anime Corner take on some interesting challenges and titles eh?  This summer we revisited a library of Mecha classics (some worthy of being called such and others make me question plenty of tastes).  We got super raunchy with Shimoneta, down with the funk with Ya Boi Kongming and had three megahit animation titles get their time in the review spotlight.  The question I ask as always ask after looking back on all of these highs and lows: which ones made the End of the Year cut?  Well that’s what we’re tackling with todays Top 5 Wednesday, which just so happens to be the last one of 2025 as I reveal my Top 5 Best Titles I’ve Reviewed in 2025.

Hazbin Hotel (Season 2)

After saving Hell from another Angelic extermination, the Hazbin Hotel’s popularity has skyrocketed…for all the wrong reasons.  As new guests arrive hoping to learn how to kill Angels, the Entertainment Demon Vox plots to use the Hotel’s newfound fame to his advantage, pressing for a complete overhaul of both Heaven and Hell.  And with Charlie Morningstar too overwhelmed by her own ambitious and demands of the hotel, Vox has little standing in his way.  The Hazbin Hotel may have saved Hell once but if they cant band together once again they might just be the downfall of Heaven and Hell.

Hazbin Hotel was a massive hit when it dropped in 2024 and many of my friends wanted me to cover it on the blog.  Sure enough, I loved Season One so much it ended up on my Top 5 Best Reviewed Titles of that year.  Heck it was so good I’m relaxing my usual “wait til the shows run is done to review it” rule to continue looking at Season Two.  Given how much Season One succeeded, Season Two’s hype and expectations is through the roof.  And for the most part, it manages to accomplish what the First Season did and improve in various ways when it comes to the characters, music and scale of the rising conflict.  In fact, it kind of says a lot about how well Hazbin Hotel Season 2 is that it’s weakest component is it’s main character, Charlie.
 

Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuX Part 4 Episodes 10-12

Chaos envelopes the Earth Sphere as Kycillia enacts her Coup d’etat to seize total control of Zeon from her family and finish the Earth once and for all.  Unaware of the destruction she’s causing, Nyaan continues to obey Kycillia, desperate to find Shuji. Standing in her way is Machu, who is determined to save the Lalah from another world any way she can.  As the former friends cross swords, their mutual wishes are on the verge of being granted…though doing so may bring about the end of their world.

By the time we get to the final moments of Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuX my biggest question is: Why?  Why is this show so short?  Why is it so poorly written?  Why were any of the creative choices given a greenlight and, amongst so many others, Why is this the result of a team up between Studio Sunrise and Studio Khara?  Most of last weeks penultimate episodes felt like a soft reboot of the shows status quo with a lot of potential for Nyaan and even Machu…ok maybe not Machu but maybe for the new UC at large.  However that might’ve meant something and could have resulted in a Gundam ZZ type of creative comeback…if this wasn’t twelve episodes long.  The only thing that would make this mess of a finale more poetic is if we had that clip of the main cast running in the intro and just have them trip and collapse over one another, it’s the most fitting image of GQuuuuuX in general.
 

Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuX Part 3 Episodes 7-9

Following a disaster in Side 6, Shuji is missing and Machu and Nyaan are on separate sides of a growing conflict.  Nyaan finds herself in the care of Kycillia Zabi herself.  With renewed purpose and a Gundam of her own, Nyaan hopes she can find the missing Shuji.  Meanwhile, Machu flies to Earth in the GQuuuuux, secretly pursued by Chalia Bull and his unit.  Here, she meets the mysterious Lalah Sune only to learn there’s more to her story and the end goals of everyone around her than she could have ever imagined.

Ok.  I’ve said this a couple of times but it bears asking once again (and in all caps this time):  WHY IS THIS SHOW ONLY 12 EPISODES LONG!!!???  And I’m not saying that because I’m liking what I’m watching.  No I’m practically screaming it because the structure of Gundam GQuuuuuX is all over the place, filled with ideas that don’t have time to breathe, characters who are just characters without character, and one of the worst pacing problems I’ve ever seen not just in Gundam but in Anime in a while.  This is the penultimate set of episodes for the entire series and yet it wants to act like it successfully crammed…let’s say 9 or so episodes into 3…and it sucks.  Whoever greenlit this approach should have been told flat out, to quote the great Benoit Blanc from Glass Onion, “NO!!! It’s just dumb.”
 

Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuX Part 2 Episodes 4-6

Now a full fledged member of the Pomeranians, Machu continues to develop as a Mobile Suit pilot in Clan Battle.  The deeper she gets into it though, the tougher it is to keep her secret and push herself to be as ruthless as her opponents.  But all hell is about break loose when Zeon leader Kycillia Zabi pays a visit to the colony with a secret Federation Black Ops unit ready to take her out.  Machu might be able to hack it in Clan Battle but is she ready for real combat against actual soldiers still fighting a long lost war?

When I was originally considering reviewing GQuuuuuuX a major hurdle became timing: just how long was this series planning on running?  Realizing it was gonna wrap after only 12 episodes signaled problems and those problems begin rearing their ugly heads in this sophomore set of episodes.  GQuuuuuX is sort of suffering an identity crisis as well as not really being able to handle the weight of lofty expectations, trying to be new but not really knowing how or why in general.  From the characters to the pacing to the constant teases that I don’t know will even pay off, the second part of our Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuX coverage is not in the best shape.
 

Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuX Part 1 Episodes 1-3

Universal Century 0085.  Five years have passed since the One Year War ended in victory for the Principality of Zeon.  In the neutral space colony of Side 6, Amate “Machu” Yuzuriha dreams of seeing the oceans of Earth with her own eyes.  The road to her wish coming true begins when she comes into possession of a prototype Zeon Gundam unit, the GQuuuuuX and begins to partake in Mobile Suit Clan Battles.  Fighting by her side is Suji, a mysterious and ethereal young man piloting a Gundam of his own, one colored red and once belonging to the infamous Zeon ace, Char Aznable.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE FROM THE GUNDAM ANIME CORNER!!!!  

And do I have a special gift for you.  Starting today and for the next couple of days to close out 2025, we’ll be looking at the latest chapter of the Mobile Suit Gundam saga, MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM GQUUUUUX.  Originally I was planning to launch this one next year to possibly kick off the Blog’s 13^th Season.  But then I figured, with the Slayers Event running a bit short and I always want to have at least one special review for Christmas Day, this felt like a good compromise.  Plus I get to review brand new Gundam the same year it came out?  Feels like a no brainer.  Anyway enough of that long winded Happy Holidays intro.  Let’s suit up and get to the review proper.
 
The announcement of a new Gundam project of any kind is going to get plenty of attention.  41 years in, it’s still one of the most popular Mecha Anime franchises of all time and still going relatively strong after the last couple of years with The Witch from Mercury and SEED Freedom.  But Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuX has a whole other level of expectation behind it.  I base this soley on the fact that this is a joint collaboration between Studio Sunrise and Studio Khara, aka the studio behind the Rebuild of Evangelion series.  Yep, the forces behind TWO of Anime’s biggest Mecha legends unite to unleash a whole new breed of Gundam upon the world.  We’re in for an interesting ride with this one but right now, how’s does the initial launch go?
 

T5W#541-Top 5 Thoughts on the Street Fighter (2026) Reveal Trailer

2026 is shaping up to be a big year for Video Game Adaptations on the big screen.  April sees Mario and friends take to the stars in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie and May will finally see the stupidly delayed sequel Mortal Kombat II tear up the screen (Bring on Kitana and Karl Urban as Johnny Cage).  Later in the year though, another recognizable franchise is getting another shot at the silver screen: Street Fighter.  Like Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter has had similar ups and downs with it’s two previous movies: the flawed but incredibly campy and fun 1994 film and the so-bad-no-one-even-talks-about it…like ever The Legend of Chun Li.  The Game Awards a couple weeks back revealed the first look the new movie and…wow, both head scratchingly wow and HOLY FRAK wow.  Is this the Live Action Street Fighter movie we’ve all been waiting for?  We’ve still got less than a year to wait but on today’s Top 5 Wednesday, I’m sharing my Top 5 Thoughts on the Street Fighter (2026) Reveal Trailer. 

 

Slayers Premium

Lina Inverse and her partner, Gourry Gabriev have come to the town of Acassi to sample it’s famous Octopus dishes.  Sadly, much like with any adventure, they’ve arrived at the worst time.  The townspeople are falling victim to a curse where they can only speak the language of the Octopus, and Gourry has just been cursed too.  Together with Zelgadis, Amelia and Xellos, it’s up to Lina to find a cure and stop the oncoming invasion of Octupus seeking revenge against the people of Acassi.  But they picked the wrong time.  No one disturbs Lina Inverse’s meal and lives to tell the tale.

Slayers Premium marks a major milestone for the Slayers Film Series as it’s the only entry not a prequel to the TV Series like the others.  And yet the notion that Lina is heading into chaos with her usual group of misfits doesn’t make the experience any more meaningful because Slayers Premium isnt so much a movie as it is a run of the mill episode of the TV Series and even then, it’s just an ok one at best.  It’s not long enough to be boring like the Slayers Excellent OVA but too short to be anything special.  In fact, that’s probably the best word to describe Slayers Premium, it’s a TV Special and if this was meant to relaunch interest in the franchise after Slayers Try ended in 1997 (Premium came out in 2001), well I can see why they waited a few more years to give us Slayers Revolution and Evolution-R.
 

Slayers Excellent

There has never been a menace, monster or force of Evil Lina Inverse hasn’t been able to handle…until now.  When a busty and scantily dressed Sorceress called Naga the Serpent appears and declares herself Lina’s greatest rival, Lina’s world is turned upside down forever.  Now she cant seem to escape this walking time bomb whose laugh hails her appearance.  And Lina’s got all manner of jobs and missions driving her crazy as well.  How the heck did Lina and Naga survive their first encounter?  This is where the Legend begins.

Slayers Excellent marks our final feature with Lina and Naga as the main stars and it does set itself up with quite the hook: the very first meeting of our two sexy Sorceress frenemies.  However, while their first encounter goes exactly as you might imagine for these two danger magnets, the rest of Slayers Excellent falls far short of the bar set by their previous feature films and the Slayers Special OVA.  I dare even say this might be the most dull and bored I’ve been watching anything Slayers.  Honestly, it’s so much of a letdown that even Lina and Naga cant salvage a lot of it, mostly because the OVA wont even let them try.
 

Slayers Special

It seems to be a guarantee that no matter where they go, trouble is never far behind for Lina Inverse and Naga the Serpent.  Even if said trouble involves mirror doppelgangers, over protective mothers and Lina’s worst nightmare: an army of Naga clones, where there’s money to be made, the Slayers will be there.  Bring on the danger and bring on the adventure.

Having spent most of the last few weeks hanging out with Lina and Naga in more adventures, I think Slayers Special, released stateside as Slayers: The Book of Spells (not sure why), is further evidence there could have been a Slayers Season Zero (SLAYERS ZERO!!!) dedicated to just the two of them.  It looks fantastic, has some great jokes and makes it clear to me that not only am I not tired of Lina and Naga’s escapades…I kind of don’t miss the OG Slayers crew either (yikes that is a scary notion).  However, as I said, Slayers Special presents a good case for a TV Season and that includes the good and the bad. There’s a lot to like but one story in particular gets annoying fast and the other tales are going to depend on your tolerance for the main duo, especially Naga.
 

T5W#540-Top 5 Studio Gainax Titles

Last week, the world officially bid farewell to one of the most important and influential Anime studios of all time: Gainax.  Personally, I hadn’t kept up with the drama that had fallen upon the studio in recent years, preventing it from producing more titles.  But whoa boy, Hideaki Anno shared all and…wow yeah it was, it was bad. But we’re not here to talk about that.  On today’s Top 5 Wednesday I’m looking through this studio’s impressive catalogue and looking for five titles that led to some of Anime biggest success stories and even the founding of successor studios like Khara and Trigger.  These are my Top 5 Studio Gainax Titles.

 

Slayers Gorgeous

In a town besieged daily by Dragons, Lina Inverse and Naga the Serpent find themselves on opposite sides of a family squabble.  Little do they and their employers know, something dark and ancient is waiting to take advantage of the situation and it has the power to control the very Dragons under Marlene’s command.  Unfortunately for them, the one thing Dragons fear more than anything is Lina Inverse and she’s not going to let anything stop her from getting a big payday.

Slayers Gorgeous marks a turning point for the Slayers franchise as it’s the last original film and overall featuring Lina and Naga together as the main characters.  We’ll be touching on their OVA adventures soon enough but when it comes to finales, Slayers Gorgeous is a fun and hilarious send off for this era of the Saga of Lina Inverse.  We get Dragons, large scale showdowns and a redo of the Lina vs. Naga fight promised in Slayers Great that didn’t feel earned but here it’s one of the many highlights of Slayers Gorgeous.  That already makes is better than Slayers Great (even without adorable Golems) but does Gorgeous rise to the rank of Best of the Slayers Movies?
 

T5W#539-Top 5 Questions that Need to be Answered in Jujutsu Kaisen: The Culling Game (Part 1)

This past weekend, fans of Jujutsu Kaisen’s long awaited third season got a special sneak peak when Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution dropped in theaters.  Acting in the same vein as what Demon Slayer has done in the past Execution is a Compilation Preview film featuring the last episode of The Shibuya Incident (aka Season 2) followed by the first two episodes of The Culling Game (Part 1) (aka Season 3).  It’s been a little over two years since the battle that left an Akira sized hole where Shinjuku used to be and the entire status quo of JJK has been changed forever. A lot of character fates and plot threads have been hanging for fans (who haven’t read the Manga) to mull over and on todays Top 5 Wednesday, I’m sharing my own set of questions I’d like to see answered when Jujutsu Kaisen returns in January 2026.  These are my Top 5 Questions that Need to be Answered in Jujutsu Kaisen: The Culling Game (Part 1). 

 
BTW Spoilers for Jujutsu Kaisen: The Shibuya Incident and Execution will be discussed.
 

Slayers Great

When Lina Inverse and Naga the Serpent save the life of a girl from a living Golem, they have no idea what kind of trouble theyre about to find themselves in.  Two warring factions seeking control of the town of Stoner each request the aid of a skilled Golem maker.  Making things more complicated, each Maker wants Lina and Naga to be their muses for their latest creations.  It’s Lina vs. Naga.  Slayer vs. Slayer.  Golem vs. Golem.  Will their friendship survive this ordeal and will anyone involved with this conflict realize they’ve made a mistake bringing the Slayers into their personal grudge match?

Slayers Great’s trailers offered a pretty interesting setup, the notion of Lina and Naga being on opposite sides and forced to fight each other.  Judging from the looks on their faces, it didn’t look like either was fully on board with the idea, showing they’re more than just bickering rivals.  It was both heartbreaking and exciting…and then I watched the actual movie and we don’t get any of that.  However, while Slayers Great doesn’t deliver the potential dramatic goods, it more than delivers on Slayers trademark humor and maybe, just maybe, made me laugh harder than any Slayers story so far. 
 

T5W#538-Top 5 Seasons of Slayers

Lina Inverse is at last back here at the Gundam Anime Corner for the Slayers 30^th Anniversary Celebration Event.  It’s a long overdue reunion for sure and we’ll be spending much of it in Lina’s pre TV Series adventures running around with her best frenemy Naga the Serpent.  But don’t worry, I haven’t fully forgotten about Lina’s other Slayers companions: Gourry, Zelgadis, Amelia and Xellos.  We’ll be seeing them again later this month but for todays Top 5 Wednesday, we’re revisiting their previous adventures from my 2018-2019 reviews of the Slayers TV Series.  That’s right, we’re ranking the entire TV run with the Top 5 Seasons of Slayers. 

 

Slayers Return

Legend tells of an ancient treasure buried by a tribe of Elves, one of unimaginable wealth.  It also happens to be hidden in a village under siege by an evil organization.  Their only salvation may end up being their destruction as a young girl recruits the destructive duo of Lina Inverse and Naga the Serpent to save the day.  But when a simple job spirals out of control really fast, The Slayers find themselves in over their heads once more and even their magic might not be enough to save the day.

Man, oh man.  It is good to be back in the world of Slayers.  Specifically, it’s good to be back in the pre series days with Lina and Naga again.  I’ve been waiting to watch and review the rest of the Slayers Movies and OVAs for a really long time and I have to say, Slayers Return might have just set the bar for the other features to follow.  What starts off kind of simple more than improves on everything from Slayers: The Motion Picture in just about every way (which despite its flaws I still love a great deal).  So, is the titular Return of Lina Inverse and Naga the Serpent really that awesome?