The Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2025 – the event dubbed the “Oscar of the anime industry” – has officially ended with a shocking result: “Solo Leveling” won the title of Anime of the Year, surpassing a series of other big names. However, instead of being honored, Solo Leveling was criticized after winning the award and created a strong wave of mixed reactions from the global fan community. Is this victory really deserved or is it just the effect of excessive love?
Korean anime makes history for the first time in Japan
Solo Leveling, produced by A-1 Pictures, is adapted from the famous Korean webtoon of the same name. With eye-catching graphics, dramatic music and a “leveling up” main character, the anime quickly created a fever worldwide after just a few episodes aired in early 2024. The fact that a product not originating from Japan was named in the most important category – Anime of the Year – is unprecedented at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards.
But it is worth mentioning that no anime like Solo Leveling has been criticized after winning an award, causing strong reactions and even division in the fan community like this year.
The plot lacks breakthroughs, the supporting characters are bland.
Many viewers think that Solo Leveling repeats the familiar “leveling” motif: fighting monsters, leveling up, unlocking new skills. Although this genre is very attractive, if there is no breakthrough or new challenge, the plot can easily become boring. Some parts happen too quickly, without reasonable explanation, making viewers feel that the plot is illogical and rushed.
Solo Leveling was criticized after winning the award when Sung Jinwoo's character was well-developed, but the supporting characters were overlooked. They appeared briefly, with little opportunity to show their own personality or story. This made it difficult for the audience to bond with the cast and reduced the depth of the Solo Leveling world. A good anime not only needs a strong main character, but also needs supporting characters that are attractive enough to create emotions.
Lack of depth compared to competitors, win by image?
Solo Leveling's wins in categories like "Best Action Anime" or Sung Jinwoo's most impressive main character were harshly compared to anime like Jujutsu Kaisen, Attack on Titan or Vinland Saga. In particular, Solo leveling won the 2025 Crunchyroll Awards with 9 awards while Delicious in Dungeon, despite 16 nominations, went home empty-handed. This made many fans feel unfair, believing that this victory came from reputation rather than actual quality.
Fans on forums like Reddit also pointed out that Solo Leveling is still a simple "power fantasy", lacking depth, simple content, and the main character Sung Jinwoo is simply "cool" but lacks psychological development.
The topic Solo Leveling vs Frieren: Who is more deserving at the Anime Awards 2025 was also fierce when The Funeral Mage (received up to 29 nominations), with its thoughtful storytelling and subtle investment in portraying character psychology, was knocked out of the highest title. This made many people even more disappointed.
Voting mechanism questioned: Fan game or professional award?
The focus of all the controversy is the voting mechanism of this year's awards. According to statistics, the audience votes account for 70%, the rest is decided by the jury. This difference raises the question that the Crunchyroll Anime Awards is gradually becoming a "whoever has more fans wins" race, instead of honoring works that are excellent in content and art.
Award ceremony video removed: More suspicion?
Amid the protests, netizens discovered that the official award ceremony video had been removed from Crunchyroll’s social media platforms and YouTube channel, raising further doubts about transparency and suggesting that the organizers were trying to control the flow of negative information.
Is the Crunchyroll Anime Awards losing its credibility? The Crunchyroll Anime Awards is a prestigious award that plays a role in introducing quality anime to the world. However, after the 2025 season, the image of this event is seriously shaken. When the trust of the audience is challenged, will the organizers learn their lesson and adjust the voting mechanism in the coming seasons?
Solo Leveling was criticized after winning the award , which is inevitable when a famous work has to meet too many expectations. What do you think about this wave of controversy? Follow Hobiverse to follow the latest information about this anime as well as other blockbusters in the near future.
