Sousuke Sagara is a teenage soldier for Mithril, a secret anti-terrorist force, and he has never lived a normal day. Assigned to guard Kaname Chidori, a high school girl targeted for reasons she does not understand, he enrolls as a transfer student and treats every classroom problem like a combat zone, while the battles around them keep getting closer.
Plus 2 optional extras.
4 titles · 61 episodes · ~24.5 hours
Watch the four TV series in story order: the first season, Fumoffu, The Second Raid, then Invisible Victory. The short prologue and the Tessa OVA are optional and sit below the line, with a note on where each one fits.
Start here. 24 episodes adapting the first three light novels: Sousuke Sagara, a teenage Mithril soldier, is assigned to protect Kaname Chidori, and the season sets up Mithril, the submarine Tuatha de Danaan and its captain Tessa.
12 episodes of school comedy set between the first season and The Second Raid, adapted from the short story collections. The main plot does not move forward here, so you can go straight to The Second Raid if you only want the story.
13 episodes adapting light novel volumes 4 and 5. The story picks up after the first season and turns more serious as the conflict around Mithril escalates.
12 episodes adapting light novel volumes 7 to 9, released in 2018, 13 years after The Second Raid. This is where the anime stops; the light novels continue to volume 12.
⚠ Light novel volume 6 (Dancing Very Merry Christmas) was not animated, so Invisible Victory skips the events of that book.
A roughly five-minute prologue featuring Sousuke, Kurz and Mao, ending with a preview of The Second Raid. Watch it just before The Second Raid.
⚠ Not on streaming services. In English it is included as a bonus (Episode 000) on Funimation's The Second Raid DVD and Blu-ray sets.
A 30-minute comedy episode centered on Tessa, set after the final episode of The Second Raid. Watch it after The Second Raid.
⚠ Released in Japan on DVD in 2006. In English it is included as a bonus on Funimation's The Second Raid DVD and Blu-ray sets, titled Tessa's Eventful Day.
Full Metal Panic! is easy to follow because the four TV series were made in the same order the story happens. The first season adapts light novel volumes 1 to 3 and introduces everyone. Fumoffu comes next because it takes place between the first season and The Second Raid. It is a comedy series built from the short story collections, so it does not advance the plot, but it is the main source of the school-life side of Sousuke and Kaname. The Second Raid adapts volumes 4 and 5, and Invisible Victory adapts volumes 7 to 9.
Two short extras are listed under Optional Extras: a five-minute prologue that leads into The Second Raid, and a 30-minute comedy OVA about Tessa set after it. Neither changes the story, and neither is on streaming services.
The three Director's Cut movies from 2017 and 2018 are not in this list. They re-edit the first season into three films and have no official English release; the TV version covers the same story.
One gap to know about: light novel volume 6 was never animated, so Invisible Victory jumps from volume 5 to volume 7.
Full Metal Panic! has 4 seasons in the main run — 61 episodes altogether.
| Title | Type | Episodes | Aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full Metal Panic! | TV Series | 24 episodes | January 2002 |
| Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu | TV Series | 12 episodes | August 2003 |
| Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid | TV Series | 13 episodes | July 2005 |
| Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory | TV Series | 12 episodes | April 2018 |
| Title | Type | Episodes | Aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid: Zenyasai – Scene 00 | Special | 1 episode | July 2005 |
| Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid: A Relatively Leisurely Day in the Life of a Fleet Captain | OVA | 1 episode | May 2006 |
4 titles · 61 episodes · ~24.5 hours
Where each part of the anime lines up with the source, so you know where to pick up reading.
Only spin-offs that tie into the main story are listed here — anthologies, fan books and the like are left out.
The first season also draws on the short story collections, and Fumoffu is built almost entirely from them. Volume 6 (Dancing Very Merry Christmas), which falls between The Second Raid and Invisible Victory, was not animated; it was adapted as an audio drama instead. After Invisible Victory, continue with volume 10. The main series ends with volume 12, and the sequel Full Metal Panic! Family is ongoing.
Start with the first season, Full Metal Panic! (2002, 24 episodes). It introduces Sousuke, Kaname, Mithril and Tessa, and every later series builds on it.
Full Metal Panic! (2002), Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu (2003), Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid (2005), then Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory (2018). The order they came out in is also the story order. The optional prologue goes right before The Second Raid and the Tessa OVA right after it.
Not for the plot. Fumoffu is a 12-episode comedy series set between the first season and The Second Raid, adapted from the short story collections, and the main story does not move forward in it. If you only want the military storyline, you can go from the first season straight to The Second Raid.
No. Zenyasai Scene 00 is a roughly five-minute prologue to The Second Raid, and A Relatively Leisurely Day in the Life of a Fleet Captain is a 30-minute comedy episode about Tessa set after The Second Raid. Neither is on streaming services; in English both are bonuses on Funimation's The Second Raid DVD and Blu-ray sets.
Three films released in Japan in 2017 and 2018, Boy Meets Girl, One Night Stand and Into the Blue. Director Koichi Chigira re-edited the first season into three parts with retakes and some new cuts. They have no official English release, and the TV first season covers the same story, so they are not in the watch order.
Yes, for all four TV series. ADV Films dubbed the first season, Fumoffu and The Second Raid, and Funimation simulcast a dub of Invisible Victory starting May 6, 2018. Chris Patton (Sousuke), Luci Christian (Kaname) and Hilary Haag (Tessa) voice the leads in all four, so the main cast does not change.
The Second Raid and Invisible Victory follow the light novels (volumes 4 to 5 and 7 to 9). Fumoffu is a comedy series adapted from the short story collections rather than the main novels. Invisible Victory also aired two recap episodes, Intermission and Intermission 2, which are not counted in its 12 episodes. For the first season, sources disagree on which middle episodes are anime-original, so this page does not label any.
In the US, JustWatch lists Full Metal Panic! on Crunchyroll, including its Prime Video channel, and all four TV series are available to buy on Amazon. Availability differs by region.
The anime's last episodes aired on July 18, 2018, when the final two episodes of Invisible Victory were broadcast together. As of October 2026, no new anime has been announced. The light novel series finished with volume 12 in August 2010, while the anime stopped at volume 9. A sequel novel series, Full Metal Panic! Family, set about 20 years later, has been running since 2024, with no anime announced.
Invisible Victory adapts volumes 7 to 9, so continue with volume 10. The anime also skipped volume 6, Dancing Very Merry Christmas, which falls between The Second Raid and Invisible Victory, so anime-only viewers should read that volume too. The main series ends with volume 12.
Yes. J-Novel Club has published all 12 volumes of the main series and the 9 short story collections in English. An earlier Tokyopop edition stopped after four books.
The four TV series are 61 episodes of about 24 minutes each, roughly 24.5 hours. The two optional extras add about 35 minutes.
