Full Metal Panic! watch order
Sousuke Sagara, a teenage mercenary who pilots giant robots for the secret anti-terrorist group Mithril, is sent undercover to a Tokyo high school to protect classmate Kaname Chidori, who has no idea she's a target. Based on Shōji Gatō's light novels, the anime mixes military action with school comedy across three studios and four series.
First time? Watch in release order: Full Metal Panic! (2002), Fumoffu, The Second Raid, then Invisible Victory. The short Second Raid prologue, the OVA and the three Director's Cut films are all optional.
Story order
Fumoffu is set between the first season and The Second Raid, and the OVA after The Second Raid, so story order is release order minus the Director's Cut films, which retell Season 1.
- Full Metal Panic!
Gonzo's first season adapts light novel volumes 1–3: Kaname's school trip hijacked, Sousuke's running fight with the terrorist Gauron, and a final arc aboard Mithril's submarine, the Tuatha de Danaan. Episodes 14 and 15 are anime-original; sources disagree on how much of the stretch around them (13–19) comes from the novels.
- Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu
A pure school comedy by Kyoto Animation, from the novels' short-story collections: Sousuke treats everyday school life like a war zone. Set between the first season and The Second Raid, but nothing in it is needed for the main plot. Watch it anytime after Season 1.
- Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid: Scene 00 (optional)
Optional. A five-minute prologue that aired a week before The Second Raid as a lead-in to it.
- Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid
Kyoto Animation's serious sequel, set about three months after Season 1. Adapts volumes 4–5 (Ending Day by Day): a new enemy organization, Amalgam, and the pressure on Sousuke to choose between Mithril and his life with Kaname.
- Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid: A Relatively Leisurely Day in the Life of a Fleet Captain (optional)
Optional. A comedy episode from the Japanese DVDs following Captain Tessa through an ordinary day, set after The Second Raid.
- Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory
Thirteen years after The Second Raid, by a new studio, Xebec. Adapts volumes 7–9: Amalgam goes on the attack and Sousuke's two lives fall apart. Two recap episodes, Intermission and Intermission 2, aired after episodes 4 and 8; skip them if you're binging.
Release order
The three Director's Cut films came out in 2017–18 to lead into Invisible Victory. They retell the 2002 series, so watch them instead of it, not as well.
- Full Metal Panic!
Gonzo's first season adapts light novel volumes 1–3: Kaname's school trip hijacked, Sousuke's running fight with the terrorist Gauron, and a final arc aboard Mithril's submarine, the Tuatha de Danaan. Episodes 14 and 15 are anime-original; sources disagree on how much of the stretch around them (13–19) comes from the novels.
- Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu
A pure school comedy by Kyoto Animation, from the novels' short-story collections: Sousuke treats everyday school life like a war zone. Set between the first season and The Second Raid, but nothing in it is needed for the main plot. Watch it anytime after Season 1.
- Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid: Scene 00 (optional)
Optional. A five-minute prologue that aired a week before The Second Raid as a lead-in to it.
- Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid
Kyoto Animation's serious sequel, set about three months after Season 1. Adapts volumes 4–5 (Ending Day by Day): a new enemy organization, Amalgam, and the pressure on Sousuke to choose between Mithril and his life with Kaname.
- Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid: A Relatively Leisurely Day in the Life of a Fleet Captain (optional)
Optional. A comedy episode from the Japanese DVDs following Captain Tessa through an ordinary day, set after The Second Raid.
- Full Metal Panic! Director's Cut: Boy Meets Girl (optional)
Skippable if you've seen the 2002 series. The first of three compilation films that re-edit the first season, with some new footage, made before Invisible Victory. Covers the first arc.
- Full Metal Panic! Director's Cut: One Night Stand (optional)
The second compilation film, re-editing the first season's middle arc. Skippable if you've seen the series.
- Full Metal Panic! Director's Cut: Into the Blue (optional)
The last compilation film, re-editing the first season's final arc aboard the Tuatha de Danaan. Skippable if you've seen the series.
- Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory
Thirteen years after The Second Raid, by a new studio, Xebec. Adapts volumes 7–9: Amalgam goes on the attack and Sousuke's two lives fall apart. Two recap episodes, Intermission and Intermission 2, aired after episodes 4 and 8; skip them if you're binging.
Explained
Do I need Fumoffu?
Not for the plot. It's an all-comedy side series, and The Second Raid doesn't depend on it. But it's many fans' favourite part, and it fleshes out Sousuke and Kaname's school life. It's set after the first season, so watch it then or anytime later.
Can I watch the Director's Cut films instead of the 2002 series?
They cover the same story with the same plot, cut down to about five and a half hours with some new footage, so they work as a faster way in. If you've already seen the series, skip them.
Is there filler in the first season?
A little. MyAnimeList and Anime Filler List both mark episodes 14 and 15 as anime-original, and they disagree on a few episodes around them (13 to 19). The main arcs, the ones the Director's Cut films are named after, adapt the novels.
Why does the animation keep changing?
Three studios made it: Gonzo did the 2002 series (and the films), Kyoto Animation did Fumoffu and The Second Raid, and Xebec did Invisible Victory. Invisible Victory also had production trouble: it aired two recap episodes, and its last two episodes were shown together about three weeks after episode 10.
Does the anime finish the story?
No. Invisible Victory ends at light novel volume 9 of 12, and volume 6 was skipped, so some of its events happen off screen. No new anime has been announced as of October 2026. A sequel novel series, Full Metal Panic! Family, set 20 years later, began in 2024.