Dear Retro Anime Fans: Yes, “Good Anime” Is Still Being Made

by Kara Dennison
August 21, 2025

A few weeks ago, I was hanging out at my local game store during a D&D break and overheard a friend of a friend talking about anime. Of course, since that’s my bread and butter, I listened in. “There haven’t been any good series since Cowboy Bebop,” this person said. And while I absolutely agree that we will never see the likes of Bebop again, I disagree that there hasn’t been any good anime since the 1990s. Far from it.

But I also understand, especially for fellow older fans, why it can feel like good series are pleasant surprises rather than the norm. There was a time, usually around the time each of us first got into anime, when there was nothing but quality. So, rather than write off the stunners we’re currently getting, let’s break down why it feels like we’re getting fewer good shows. When, in fact, we’re not.

While the anime industry has its share of troubles that will likely never go away, the number of anime being made has increased drastically. Full Frontal Moe crunched the numbers a couple years ago, tracing annual anime production starting from 1995. In 2018, a whopping five hundred new TV, movie, and OVA anime projects came out. That’s more than twice as many as aired in 2001, the year Cowboy Bebop premiered.

While we haven’t peaked out again yet, we’re still resting in the 300s. And, by the numbers, more of anything doesn’t mean more of it will be good. (Ask anyone who’s had satellite TV.) Even if the same number of good anime came out 20 years apart, much of it would be awash in other titles.

More Anime Is Being Licensed

Older fans remember a time when getting any anime other what aired on Saturday morning TV was a feat. You could get a few series on VHS, then DVD, as the US anime industry cast its eye more toward home video. But for a long time, it was really only safe to license shows that would offer an immediate return on investment. (Read: shows with connected merch and video games.) Some studios specialized in cult releases. But even then, it was nothing like the fire hose we have now.

In 2025, we find it strange if a show isn’t licensed. 20 or even 10 years ago, a show getting an official release was a lovely surprise. Couple this with the increase in production, and you have more anime than you’ll ever be able to watch. Of course it’s hard to find good anime in the flood. That doesn’t mean it isn’t made.

“Good” Is Subjective

Some shows—like Cowboy Bebop—seem to circumvent all issues of taste and simply become Good Anime. But by and large, everything is subject to taste. I would argue that Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End is one of the best series of recent years and a classic in the making. But I have talked to people who can’t stand it, who feel it’s too slow-paced or that the worldbuilding isn’t interesting. And it’s a fair reminder that “good” can only stretch so far objectively. We can see the line between “bad” and “good” art, storytelling, and directing. But what makes a show good to one person beyond that may be insufficient for another.

It’s true that there have been few universally beloved and critically acclaimed anime in a while. But there have always been years between those, because they’re rare in any medium. It’s a gold standard that we can’t meet every season. If we did, we would grow used to it and shift what that gold standard is. Moreover, it can often take years or decades for us to “canonize” a show: for it to actively stand the test of time. No matter how well-made DAN DA DAN is, we won’t know if it’s timeless until more time has passed.

The truth is, we’re likely seeing just as many good, memorable anime this year as we did 20 or 30 years ago. And it’s also likely that what those “good” anime are differ from person to person. But when time has passed and a few anime remain classics, it will be easier to see that yes, Good Anime is airing as we speak.