'Haunted Hotel' & 4 Other Best Animated Series Released in 2025, Ranked by Rotten Tomatoes
Your guide to the most striking, talked-about, and highly acclaimed works of the past year.
In 2025, animation fans were presented with a feast, ranging from bold, original statements to large-scale franchises that captivate not only children, but also adult audiences.
Animated series have firmly established themselves as havens for complex plots, deep characters, and visual experimentation, breaking the boundaries of conventional genres.
5. 'Haunted Hotel', 2025-...
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 77%
Last year, Matt Roller, a writer for Rick and Morty, released his own animated series for adults who enjoy dark humor and eccentric characters.
Each episode takes place in a haunted hotel full of bloodthirsty and merciless ghosts. The strange hotel is run by Katherine, a single mother who inherited the establishment from her deceased brother.
Katherine's youngest daughter, Esther, is fascinated with black magic. Her eldest son, Ben, is in love with a ghost girl named Annabelle. Living with them is also the ancient demon of destruction, Abaddon, who is trapped in the body of a young boy.
4. 'Win or Lose', 2025
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 88%
Pixar Studios has made its mark with an original TV project that's worth checking out, even for viewers who don't know the difference between softball and baseball.
The plot follows a group of high school students preparing for an important match, each of whom faces their own challenges. Clumsy Laurie fears disappointing the team and her father, the coach, while the arrogant Yuwen hides a sensitive side.
Hyper-responsible Rochelle is looking for money to cover the competition's entry fee. The adults – coach Dan, referee Frank, and single mother Vanessa – are no better off.
3. 'Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man', 2025-...
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 97%
In 2025, Marvel continued to develop its animation division. Several series were released, but the one about Peter Parker from an alternate universe received the warmest reception.
Initially, Jeff Trammell's project was supposed to adhere to the original film universe. However, during development, Trammell wanted more freedom.
As a result, Peter's story unfolds in a world where things are slightly different. Instead of being mentored by Tony Stark, Peter finds himself under the guidance of Norman Osborn, and Nico Minoru becomes his best friend.
2. 'Long Story Short', 2025-...
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 100%
Avi Schwooper brings his girlfriend, Jen, to meet his parents. He chooses his brother Yoshi's bar mitzvah for the occasion so his mother can focus her frenzied energy on the celebration's preparations rather than on Jen.
Yet, Schwooper's mother still manages to make a lasting impression on her guest. By the end of the day, poor Jen still hasn't figured out how her boyfriend's relatives perceive her.
And that's Avi's family – they have a peculiar sense of humor, plenty of reasons to quarrel, and they're not good at expressing affection. And that's just the beginning.
1. 'Common Side Effects', 2025-...
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 100%
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A new series from Joe Bennett, one of the creators of Scavengers Reign. Set in the Peruvian mountains, the series follows mycologist Marshall as he discovers a remarkable blue mushroom that cures all ailments.
The idealistic main character dreams of sharing this mushroom with all of humanity, but he nearly dies in an attack by local criminals.
Because of his discovery, Marshall is constantly hunted by drug dealers, intelligence agencies, pharmaceutical corporations, and even other scientists.
