All 8 ‘The Garden of Sinners’ Movies in Order (Including Shorts & Specials)

‘The Garden of Sinners,’ also known as ‘Kara no Kyōkai,’ is a series of Japanese light novels written by Kinoko Nasu and illustrated by Takashi Takeuchi. The novels were later adapted into an anime film series produced by ufotable.

The story revolves around Shiki Ryougi, a teenage girl who can perceive death and kill lines on everything. She becomes involved in several supernatural events and mysteries, often dealing with paranormal and supernatural happenings. So far, the ‘The Garden of Sinners’ franchise consists of eight feature-length movies and three specials and shorts. Today, we’re going to tell you how to watch them in order.

Editor’s Note: This watch order was updated in December 2023.

All 8 ‘The Garden of Sinners’ movies in release date order

The first ‘The Garden of Sinners’ movie was released in 2007, and it was praised for its storytelling, animation, and soundtrack. The non-linear approach to storytelling also caught a lot of fans off-guard, and they loved it. Since that first debut, ‘The Garden of Sinners’ became a massive franchise, and here are all installments in release date order:

1. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Overlooking View’ (2007 (original) / 2013 (3D remake)
2. ‘The Garden of Sinners: A Study in Murder’ – Part 1 (2007)
3. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Remaining Sense of Pain‘ (2008)
4. ‘The Garden of Sinners: The Hollow Shrine‘ (2008)
5. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Paradox Spiral‘ (2008)
6. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Oblivion Recording‘ (2008)
7. ‘Gate of Seventh Heaven'(2009; remix edition)
8. ‘The Garden of Sinners: A Study in Murder‘ – Part 2 (2009)
9. ‘Epilogue’ (2011; OVA)
10. ‘Future Gospel: Extra Chorus’ (2013; short film)
11. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Future Gospel ‘(2013)

Are all ‘The Garden of Sinners’ movies connected? What’s the best way to watch them?

All the movies in ‘The Garden of Sinners’ series are connected and contribute to an overarching narrative. The series follows the protagonist, Shiki Ryougi, through a series of supernatural and mysterious events. The movies are not presented in chronological order, and this non-linear storytelling adds an extra layer of complexity to the overall narrative.

To fully understand the story, it’s recommended to watch the movies in the order of their release, as that is the order in which the creators intended the audience to experience the series. The non-linear structure gradually reveals key aspects of the plot and character development. But the film series was eventually reconstructed in chronological order, so for the fans that want to experience the story in this way, we got you covered.

‘The Garden of Sinners’ all movies in chronological watch order

As we’ve mentioned before, a bit part of the series was the fact that it wasn’t exactly released in chronological order which massively affected its complexity. Even though it’s recommended to watch the series in release date order, for fans wanting to break the rules, here’s the correct chronology of ‘The Garden of Sinners.’

1. ‘The Garden of Sinners: A Study in Murder’ – Part 1 (2007)
2. ‘The Garden of Sinners: The Hollow Shrine’ (2008)
3. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Remaining Sense of Pain’ (2008)
4. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Overlooking View’ (2007)
5. ‘Future Gospel: Extra Chorus’ (2013)
6. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Paradox Spiral’ (2008)
7. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Oblivion Recording’ (2008)
8. ‘The Garden of Sinners: A Study in Murder’ – Part 2 (2009)
9. ‘Epilogue’ (2011)
10. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Future Gospel’ (2013)

1. ‘The Garden of Sinners: A Study in Murder’ – Part 1 (2007)

In 1995, Mikiya Kokutō befriended Shiki Ryōgi, though she seems to have forgotten their initial encounter. When a series of brutal murders occur, Mikiya discusses them with Shiki, leading to tension in their friendship. As the mysterious killings continue, involving cryptic warnings and encounters, Shiki’s enigmatic behavior unfolds against the backdrop of Mifune City’s dark secrets.

2. ‘The Garden of Sinners: The Hollow Shrine’ (2008)

In this installment, following the events of ‘A Study in Murder, Part 1, The movie starts with an exploration of Shiki’s experiences within the void alongside her male counterpart, SHIKI, granting her the ability to ‘perceive’ and ‘touch’ the ‘death’ of things through visible cracks.

3. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Remaining Sense of Pain’ (2008)

A teenage girl Fujino Asagami is raped in an abandoned bar, and Mikiya Kokuto finds her unconscious. After Mikiya discovers Fujino has left, news of dismembered murder victims emerges. Tōko tasks Shiki with capturing a suspect, relying on her confidence in recognizing them without reading the dossier. Meanwhile, Mikiya seeks financial help from Gakutō, agreeing to assist in finding Keita Minato, linking their paths with Fujino’s disturbing quest for normalcy amid a brutal murder spree.

4. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Overlooking View’ (2007)

In September 1998, Shiki Ryōgi shared a close friendship with Mikiya Kokutō, who brought her strawberry Häagen-Dazs ice cream during a visit to her sparsely furnished apartment. They engage in friendly banter. Later, Shiki discusses a series of mysterious suicides involving high school girls with magus Tōko Aozaki, head of the Garan no Dou detective agency where Shiki and Mikiya work. The suicides, lacking suicide notes and occurring atop the soon-to-be-demolished Fujō Building, lead to a deeper investigation, especially after Mikiya falls into a coma believed to be linked to the unusual deaths.

5. ‘Future Gospel: Extra Chorus’ (2013)

A short film that is an adaptation of the manga by Takashi Takeuchi, which collects several short stories. Premiered alongside Future Gospel. A compilation of short stories occurring in between the original chapters: ‘Feline’ after ‘Remaining Sense of Pain,’ ‘Daylight’ after ‘Overlooking View,’ and ‘Say Grace’ after ‘Paradox Spiral.’

6. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Paradox Spiral’ (2008)

High school dropout Tomoe Enjō, after a night of being rescued by Shiki from a fight with former classmates, experiences recurring dreams of his family’s tragic demise. He stays with Shiki during Mikiya’s absence, realizing she is being followed but indifferent to the danger. Tomoe confesses his love, and when Shiki asks for permission to kill him, he agrees.

After Tomoe’s departure and Mikiya’s return, Shiki and Mikiya’s sister Azaka reunite, but Mikiya chooses to stay with Shiki, leading Azaka to depart again for further studies in magic. Simultaneously, Mikiya investigates mysterious murders at a house, discovering an illusion created by Sōren Araya, the mastermind behind previous incidents involving Fujino Asagami and Kirie Fujō.

7. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Oblivion Recording’ (2008)

Tōko assigns Azaka to investigate a peculiar incident at her school involving two girls attacking each other with knives, while the teacher forgets the event immediately. Azaka, despite harboring grudges against Shiki, seeks her help in tracking down fairies due to her ability to see them. During the investigation, Azaka discovers the disappearance of a class teacher after a school fire, and her encounter with Misaya leads to memory loss, unraveling a story of illness, pregnancy, and the missing teacher, Hideo Hayama.

8. ‘The Garden of Sinners: A Study in Murder’ – Part 2 (2009)

Despite Shiki’s near-fatal attack on him two years ago, Mikiya believes she is not responsible for the recent murders. The true culprit, Lio Shirazumi, resembling Shiki, emerges as the killer, influenced by Sōren’s awakening of his true nature. Shiki, in her quest for justice, decides to target Lio, leading to a falling out with Mikiya, and she discovers Lio’s hideout, where he grows and sells drugs to induce madness in others.

9. ‘Epilogue’ (2011)

On a snowy day in March, Mikiya thoughtlessly sees Shiki standing in the street. Her third personality is directly connected to the origins of everything Sōren had been searching for in vain. She tells the drawn Mikiya the connections between the origins and the three personalities in Shiki. As she says, she now also has the ability to restore his remaining injuries, his lost eye and limping leg.

He refuses as Shiki’s abilities only bring destruction and he fears it will be worse than before. In the end, Shiki’s third personality says goodbye to him and disappears without a trace. She says that they will see each other again the next day anyway. Mikiya then continues walking normally, without a limp leg.

10. ‘The Garden of Sinners: Future Gospel’ (2013)

A bomber shakes the city with his commissioned explosions. His skills in evaluating the future allow him to be infallible until his fate crosses that of Shiki. In the meantime, Mikiya meets a girl capable of predicting the future.

Where to watch the above-mentioned movies?

‘The Garden of Sinners’ can be watched on Crunchyroll; you can also rent or buy individual movies on the Apple TV store.

Will there be more ‘The Garden of Sinners’ movies?

There is one more chapter left to be adapted, ‘The Final Record,’ but the studio already cleared up that it has no plans to animate it. So, it looks like ‘The Garden of Sinners’ franchise is over.

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