- Overlord is one of the most popular Isekai anime that has catered the fandom since 2015.
- Overlord has blessed us with four seasons and two movies so far. The third movie will arrive in theatres on September 20, 2024.
- Overlord follows Momonga, a gamer who gets stuck in a game even after it gets discontinued.
Overlord is one of the most popular Isekai anime of all time. In its final moments, Momonga, Ainz Ooal Gown’s guild master, decides to stay in the Multiplayer RPG. However, when Momonga logs out of the game with a heavy heart, he senses that something went wrong. The boy finds himself stuck in the game, and shockingly, he’s confronted by the other characters. Instead of panicking, Momonga decides to navigate the new world and build his own empire with the help of some loyal allies. So, follow the Overlord watch order, both release date and chronological, in this guide.
How to Watch Overlord in Chronological Order
Well, despite boasting a straightforward storyline, the anime often perplexes the fandom when it comes to the Overlord chronological watch order. So, here’s something to help you out.
- Overlord Season 1 (July 7, 2015 – September 25, 2015)
- Overlord Movie 1: The Undead King (25 February 2017)
- Overlord Movie 2: The Dark Hero (11 March 2017)
- Overlord Season 2 (January 10, 2018 – April 4, 2018)
- Overlord Season 3 (July 11, 2018 – October 10, 2018)
- Overlord Season 4; Episodes 1-8 (July 5, 2022 – August 23, 2022)
- Overlord Movie 3: The Sacred Kingdom (September 20, 2024)
- Overlord Season 4; Episodes 9-13 (August 30, 2022 – September 27, 2022)
Overlord Season 1
Overlord Season 1 introduced us to Momonga, the series’ main protagonist. His obsession with a multiplayer role-playing game keeps him playing it even after it is discontinued. With its fantastic animation and unique storyline, Overlord succeeded in winning millions of hearts.
Well, the first season of the anime couldn’t stay true to the source material, but if you are someone who hasn’t read the manga yet, you won’t feel there are some skipped parts in the anime.
Overlord Movie 1: The Undead King
Overlord: The Undead King is the first movie that re-tells the events of the first season, and is the next in watch order. Besides that, it gives us some extended sequences to watch. So, it is a recap along with some additional scenes. If you are a massive fan of the series, you shouldn’t miss out on the extended cut.
Overlord Movie 2: The Dark Hero
Overlord: The Dark Hero retells the events that happen in episodes 8 to 13 of the first season. If you’ve watched the first season in its entirety, you can very well skip this movie and proceed to the second season.
Overlord Season 2
Overlord Season 2 was released in 2018, and it was listed for 13 episodes. Picking up directly after the events of the first season, Season 2 continues Ainz Ooal Gown’s story. In fact, fans appreciated this season more than the previous one as it gave the side characters their share of opportunity to shine.
Overlord Season 3
Overlord Season 3 was released three months after the concluding episode of Season 2. While the first and second series gave us an introduction to the significant characters of the anime, Season 3 sees Ainz Ooal Gown in action.
Overlord Season 4 (Up to Episode 8)
The Sorcerer Kingdom’s capital city, E-Rantel, sees a shortage in goods. To help the city overcome this scarcity, Ainz Ooal Gown sent one of his trustworthy allies. Later, we see him challenging the empire’s most skilled fighter, the Warrior King, for a one-on-one fight.
Like the previous three seasons, the fourth season also delivers fantastic animation and incredible character growth.
Overlord Movie 3: The Sacred Kingdom
The third Overlord movie will be released in theaters on September 20, 2024. The movie was greenlit alongside the fourth season in 2021. The official announcement also revealed that the movie will adapt the content from Volumes 12 and 13, while Season 4 will adapt Volumes 10, 11, and 14.
This means the movie takes place after the events of Season 4 Episode 8, so it would be a great deal to watch the film before proceeding to the ninth episode. It fits into the Overlord watch order right before the Season 4 Episode 9.
Overlord Season 4 (Episodes 9-13)
As mentioned above, The Sacred Kingdom movie takes place after Season 4 Episode 8. So, after watching the fourth season up to episode 8, you need to watch the fourth movie. Then, you can proceed to watch the season from episode 9.
Note: There are several Overlord OVAs and ONAs, but they aren’t crucial to watch so we haven’t included them in the list here.
How to Watch Overlord in Release Order
While we suggest the chronological order to better understand the storyline, you can also follow the Overlord watch order based on the release dates:
- Overlord Season 1 ( July 7, 2015 – September 25, 2015)
- Overlord Movie 1: The Undead King (25 February 2017)
- Overlord Movie 2: The Dark Hero (11 March 2017)
- Overlord Season 2 (January 10, 2018 – April 4, 2018)
- Overlord Season 3 (July 11, 2018 – October 10, 2018)
- Overlord Season 4 (July 5, 2022 – September 27, 2022)
- Overlord Movie 3: The Sacred Kingdom (September 20, 2024)
Where to Watch All The Seasons of Overlord
All the amazing seasons of Overlord can be watched on Crunchyroll, the go-to destination for every anime enthusiast, and Hulu. Both platforms offer the series in dubbed and subbed versions, so you can watch it in the language that is convenient for you.
As mentioned above, you can follow either the release order or the chronological order. However, I suggest that you follow the chronological order. Experiencing the story in a linear pattern gives you a much better context for the events that unfold in the series.
