Full Metal Panic! or FMP is a series of light novels written by Shōji Gatō and illustrated by Shiki Doji published by Fujimi Shobō. The series was first published in Dragon Magazine. The series has seen several adaptations in manga and then in television series, produced by Gonzo, Kyoto Animation and Xebec studios. An OVA and several movies have also been released. Full Metal Panic! is a long-lasting series and in honor of that fact, we have decided to give you a full watch order of the Full Metal Panic! anime series.
Full Metal Panic! watch order by release date
In this section, we are going to bring you an overview of Full Metal Panic! works in the proper release order:
- Full Metal Panic!, Season 1 (anime, 2002)
- Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu (anime, 2003)
- Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid, Season 2 (anime, 2005)
- “A Relatively Leisurely Day in the Life of a Fleet Captain” (OVA, 2006)
- Full Metal Panic!, Part 1: Boy Meets Girl (movie, 2017)
- Full Metal Panic!, Part 2: One Night Stand (movie, 2018)
- Full Metal Panic!, Part 3: Into the Blue (movie, 2018)
- Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory, Season 3 (anime, 2018)
In the next part of this article, we are going to tell you how you should watch the series in chronological order.
How many Full Metal Panic! seasons and episodes are there?
As you can see, the overall structure of the Full Metal Panic! series is not that simple. Namely, there are four anime series in total, a special OVA released in 2006 and a series of three feature-length anime movies that comprise the whole series, which is quite a lot. In total, there are 61 episodes distributed unevenly over four different series, one OVA episode released alongside season two of the main anime series, and three feature-length movies, adding up to a total of 65 Full Metal Panic! works.
In what order should you watch Full Metal Panic!?
Fans of Full Metal Panic! will need to start with the first season of the anime, but they will then have to follow the release order of all the works in order to normally follow the evolution of the plot. It’s a lot of material, we know, but the best way to approach it is to simply follow the release order, as it coincides with the evolution of the plot.
Full Metal Panic! watch order by release date:
Full Metal Panic!, Season 1 (anime, 2002)
The young sergeant Sousuke Sagara is assigned by the international organization Mithril to protect the high school student Kaname Chidori from terrorists. But since Sousuke was a mercenary in Helmajistan (the equivalent of Afghanistan in Full Metal Panic) as a child, he lacks common sense. So it happens that Sousuke, who is an excellent arm slave pilot in the military, often misinterprets situations and tries to solve them with the force of arms or explosives. The plot repeatedly shows the contrasts between Kaname’s world, school, and “normal” life, and Sousuke’s world, the military, and war. While Kaname is often of great use in Sousuke’s world (due to her exceptional talent), Sousuke has massive problems finding her way in the “normal world”.
However, school life is only part of the anime and will be explored in the sequel series Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu presented in a comedy-heavy way. Sousuke spends most of the series as a soldier and pilot of the Arbalest, an armed slave equipped with a lambda driver. He repeatedly encounters Gauron, an opponent he fought in Helmajistan as a child and who has an equally equipped arm slave. Eventually, Gauron manages to take over Mithril’s command submarine, the Tuatha De Danann (named after a legendary Irish people, the Túatha Dé Danann), which is commanded by Teletha (Tessa) Testarossa and serves as a mobile base. However, together with his team – Sergeant Weber and Sergeant Major Mao – and with the help of Kaname, Sousuke manages to reclaim the submarine and eventually defeat Gauron.
The first season had a total of 24 episodes that aired back in 2002. The series later received a spin-off and several additional seasons, as well as a remake in the form of a three-part anime film series. Funimation and Crunchyroll own the broadcasting rights for the series.
Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu (anime, 2003)
The series is particularly focused on the sentimental relationship Sagara-Chidori and in some episodes on the sentimental relationship Sagara-Testarossa. Having abandoned the sci-fi and “serious” atmospheres of the previous episodes, it embraces a comedy made up of repeating gags based on Sōsuke Sagara’s inability to live like a normal teenager instead of a soldier. Thus every seemingly common situation turns into a possible threat to his schoolmate in the eyes of the boy who, for her part, tries in every way to bring her friend back down to earth without however being successful.
To better protect Chidori, Sōsuke also takes possession of a costume depicting Bonta-kun (mascot of the Fumo Fumo Land amusement park) transforming it into a high-tech exoskeleton to be used as camouflage in the “civilian” environment. The result? Maniacs and mobsters will later find themselves having to face this extremely dangerous puppet.
This complementary spin-off series aired as a supplement to the main story. It had a total of 13 episodes. The series is also owned by Funimation and Crunchyroll.
Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid, Season 2 (anime, 2005)
After the events of the previous series, Sōsuke Sagara continues his mission to protect Kaname Chidori, while the Mithril continues its principles to maintain world peace. This intervenes to quell a mysterious group of rioters who have kidnapped the ambassadors of North China and South China, gathered to try to find an agreement that could end the civil war. During the mission, however, the Mithril soldiers fall into a trap: their communications are intercepted and transmitted to the enemy by the traitor Vincent Blueno, who was responsible for them.
Thanks to a clever ruse almost everyone manages to get out safely. Kurz and Melissa set out to capture the traitor in Sicily, in Canicattì, but are discovered during their escape. Reached shortly after by Sōsuke, they begin a daring escape managing to save themselves only thanks to a mysterious AS who helps them escape. Later during the interrogation, Blueno admits that he was corrupted by the Amalgam, a secret organization with the aim of developing and field-testing new military technologies. Meanwhile, Sōsuke receives the signed (albeit reluctantly) order from Colonel Teresa “Tessa” Testarossa on behalf of Mithril to return to the Merida base and to leave Kaname in the secret custody of another agent named Wraith.
Upset and angry, he leaves his apartment without saying anything to Kaname, per his orders. Back at the base, Tessa in tears explains to Sōsuke that the reason for the recall is her AS: in fact, against the Amalgam technologies, the Arbalest is the only effective weapon. Just with the Arbalest Sōsuke engages in combat with Clouzot, the new commander of the SRT as well as the pilot of the AS who intervened during the flight to Sicily. Groseaux wins even though Sōsuke used the Lambda Driver, explaining that the reason for his defeat lay in the low trust he placed in the Arbalest.
The second season of the Full Metal Panic! anime series continues the story from season one and was not related to the spin-off anime series we’ve talked about before. It had a total of 13 episodes. As with the first season, Funimation and Crunchyroll own the streaming rights.
“A Relatively Leisurely Day in the Life of a Fleet Captain” (OVA, 2006)
The story begins with the TDD-1 under heavy missile attack, but right in the middle of the sequence, Tessa realizes that her underling Mardiukas is actually Sosuke, as are all of his crew! Sosuke also militarily declares her love for her. Of course, this is a dream, and Tessa wakes up semi-naked in the TDD-1 command post, stationary at the base. Still drowsy (and still undressed), she heads outside, where she meets Sosuke as he runs military simulations alongside his ARX-7 Arbalest’s AI. Tessa, unable at the moment to distinguish dream from reality, throws herself on Sousuke’s chest, asking him what on earth he should do to create intimacy between the two.
In a game of misunderstandings, the ARX-7 also seems to be giving tips on how to handle the situation to an embarrassed Sosuke. When Tessa comes completely out of half-sleep, she is embarrassed to run away but stumbles revealing the underwear to Sosuke, who obviously turns his head, more and more embarrassed, and while Tessa runs away, the Arbalest advises Sosuke to follow her. After a shower, Tessa gets dressed and prepares to have a day off, after all the work done the night before.
As she goes out she realizes she has lost something she holds dear, and she must evidently have lost it that strange night of which she has no recollection; they then start searching for the Merida base. She goes to Melissa Mao, who remembers perfectly the object in question, a stuffed animal with the features of Bonta-Kun, and also the fact that she secretly gave the Colonel a beer. No time to get angry about this, Melissa starts an important experiment: Two M-9s start dancing to the rhythm of the tango. The experiment fails and the two M-9s need to be repaired. Mao’s salary is cut in half.
This is the only OVA episode released as part of the Full Metal Panic! anime series. Although it can be considered as a standalone OVA episode, narratively, it is considered to be part of Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid, i.e., the second season of the anime series. The broadcasting rights, as before, were owned by Funimation and Crunchyroll.
Full Metal Panic!, Part 1: Boy Meets Girl (movie, 2017), Full Metal Panic!, Part 2: One Night Stand (movie, 2018), and Full Metal Panic!, Part 3: Into the Blue (movie, 2018)
The three Full Metal Panic! anime movies were actually a reworking of the first season of the anime. The 24 episodes of the first season were made into a three-part movie which was also a Director’s Cut version of the season with several added scenes, but no changes to the plot and the characters, which is why they can be skipped.
Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory, Season 3 (anime, 2018)
The fourth season is essentially based on the 7th volume of the light novel series. The first 10 episodes were broadcast from April 13 to June 29, 2018, on AT-X, as well as on Tokyo MX, Sun TV and BS11 with a delay of up to one day. The two final episodes followed on July 18, 2018, on AT-X and up to a week later on the other channels. Funimation and Crunchyroll streamed the series as a simulcast in English-speaking countries.
Liked this article? Join us on Reddit for the latest Marvel & DC news!