Solo Leveling No Longer #1 — Takopi’s Original Sin Joins IMDb’s Highest Anime Episode Score Of 2025

Takopi’s Original Sin joins Solo Leveling becoming the highest-rated anime episode of 2025. More details about emotional summer standout inside!

- July 12, 2025 | 5:53 PM IST

Both Solo Leveling & Takopi’s Original Sin Top IMDb’s Highest-Rated Anime Episode Of 2025 List! (Photo Credit – Netflix/Prime video)

Takopi’s Original Sin has taken everyone by surprise. The anime premiered on June 27, 2025, and its first episode now holds the joint-highest IMDb rating of the year, sitting at 9.7 with around 2.8K votes, as of July 10.

According to CBR, about 84 percent of viewers gave it a full 10, pushing it to the same level as Solo Leveling Season 2’s twelfth episode, which had also been at the top with a 9.7 score. Even the second episode of Takopi’s anime impressed with a solid 9.6.

‘Takopi’s Original Sin’ Episode #01 Debuted with 9.7/10 on iMDb making it one of the highest rated Anime Episodes of the year. pic.twitter.com/WCfKU7XcEB

— Anime Rave (@AniRave) July 1, 2025

What Makes Takopi’s Original Sin So Special?

The original manga had already earned a reputation for being brutally emotional, and the anime has not held back when it comes to delivering. Viewers are already calling it one of the most painful yet powerful series of the season, and tone and impact are being compared to titles like Madoka Magica.

Solo Leveling Still Dominates In Popularity

However, despite the surprising development, Solo Leveling hasn’t lost its massive fanbase or momentum. Its second season continued to dominate streaming platforms and has gathered over 828K ratings on Crunchyroll, making it the most-rated anime ever on that service. It also won multiple awards, including Anime of the Year, at the 2025 Crunchyroll Anime Awards.

Solo Leveling reached an almost perfect 10 (9.9) when Episode 12 of the popular anime’s second season premiered back in March. It gradually dropped to 9.7 as more ratings poured in. A drop like that is not unusual, and Takopi’s debut episode might follow the same pattern over time but as of now, Takopi’s start is undeniably strong.

‘Solo Leveling’ has won Crunchyroll’s Anime of the Year Award for 2025! pic.twitter.com/N7xpsb3zAr

— Anime Updates (@animeupdates__) May 25, 2025

What is Takopi’s Original Sin About?

In 2016, Nnu-Anu-Kf, an alien from the Happy Planet, crash-lands on Earth to spread happiness. Taking the name Takopi from a bullied 9-year-old girl, Shizuka, they try to cheer her up using Happy Gadgets.

Shizuka suffers daily abuse from her classmate Marina and finds comfort only in her dog, Chappy. After Marina manipulates events to have Chappy taken away, Shizuka, being devastated, uses one of Takopi’s gadgets to end her life.

Takopi, shocked and guilt-ridden, realizes the depth of human pain and uses a time-travel device to go back and try to change the course of Shizuka’s tragic fate. Whether Takopi can keep up this momentum or match Solo Leveling’s reach is still unclear. But for now, its emotional punch and unexpected popularity have firmly placed it at the top of 2025’s anime ratings.