Anime fans all over the world have come to absolutely love the phenomenal action series known as Solo Leveling. Known to feature some of the most flashy battles, Solo Leveling has caught the attention of millions all over the world. Solo Leveling’s success surprised many, and its popularity is definitely not dropping anytime soon. Solo Leveling also won the title of Anime of the Year in 2025, and many expect it to be the winner once more in 2026.
While that’s definitely a possibility, seeing its humongous popularity, the real anime of the year could actually be a Chinese anime — To Be Hero X. To Be Hero X is a fresh and unique story that has, overall, received better ratings than Solo Leveling. Solo Leveling will also face some tough competition in 2026.
To Be Hero X Is Higher Rated Than Solo Leveling Overall
Solo Leveling has been a huge success, but it’s very far from being 2025’s highest-rated anime. Solo Leveling Season 2 was a hit, and it managed to produce some very highly rated episodes. But, on MAL, it ended with a score of 8.61/10. This is a great score, but many series performed better in that regard. One such anime is actually a new hit Chinese series, known as To Be Hero X. To Be Hero X scored an 8.72/10, beating Solo Leveling completely.
To Be Hero X isn’t as mainstream as Solo Leveling, but it’s definitely growing in popularity all around the world. The story is interesting, and the art style is definitely eye-catching.
Naturally, many fans think it’s even worthy of being called Anime of the Year, ahead of Solo Leveling. If To Be Hero X is nominated for the awards in 2026, it definitely has a shot at winning. If it does win, it would even make history as the first Chinese anime to win at the Crunchyroll Awards.
To Be Hero X Offers A Fresh Story, While Solo Leveling Can Feel Generic
What makes To Be Hero X stand out from the rest, aside from its unique animation and art style, is of course, its story. The Superhero genre is, surprisingly, quite underdone in anime. Aside from To Be Hero X, the only relevant Super Hero anime is My Hero Academia.
Even then, To Be Hero X is quite distinct from My Hero Academia, even though they share a few similarities. To Be Hero X’s heroes get their powers from fame and popularity, something that has fascinated many viewers.
To Be Hero X has many interesting concepts, and while Solo Leveling also has its interesting moments, it’s not exactly known for its standout story. Solo Leveling is a simple story, at the end of the day, and it has unique things to offer. To Be Hero X offers something else entirely, but it is just as worthy of being the anime of the year, especially.
Solo Leveling Will Face Tough Competition In 2026 For The Title of Anime of the Year
To Be Hero X will not be the only competition Solo Leveling faces. 2026 is going to be stacked, as many big hits dropped this year. In early 2025, fans got The Apothecary Diaries Season 2, as well as Dandadan Season 2. Later on, Takopi’s Original Sin was released, and it became insanely popular.
More recently, f ans saw My Hero Academia Season 8 and Gachiakuta blow up. It's quite clear to see that Crunchyroll’s 2026 Awards might be even more competitive than 2025’s.