All 10 ‘Gintama’ Series in Order (Including Movies & OVAs)

‘Gintama’ is a Japanese manga series penned and illustrated by Hideaki Sorachi. Serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump from 2003 to 2018, it continued in Jump Giga until February 2019, concluding on the Gintama app in June 2019, spanning 77 tankōbon volumes. The story unfolds in Edo, overtaken by alien conquerors called Amanto, following the adventures of samurai Gintoki Sakata and his comrades as freelancers striving to cover their monthly rent. Sorachi’s creative twist includes a science fiction backdrop, a deviation from the historical series initially suggested by his editor.

‘Gintama’ manga was so successful that the franchise gave rise to 10 series spanning 367 episodes in total, 2 OVAs, 3 Specials, 4 Jump Festa Specials, and three movies. And because ‘Gintama’ is quite a big anime franchise, we’re going to tell you how to watch it in the correct order.

Editor’s Note: Editor’s Note: This post was updated in November 2023, and includes all seasons, OVAs, and movies released so far.

‘Gintama’ all 10 anime series, OVAs, movies & specials in release date order

The ‘Gintama’ franchise started in 2006 with the release of the first season of ‘Gintama’ which eventually gave rise to numerous follow-up series with over 350 episodes. The franchise is still ongoing today, and here is the release date order:

1. ‘Jump Festa Specials: Gintama’ (2005)
2. ‘Gintama’ Season 1 – (2006-2007)
3. ‘Gintama’ Season 2 – (2007-2008)
4. ‘Jump Festa Specials: White Demon’s Birth’ (2008)
5. ‘Gintama’ Season 3 – (2008 – 2009)
6. ‘Gintama’ Season 4 – (2009-2010)
7. ‘Gintama: The Movie: Benizakura Chapter’ (2010)
8. ‘Gintama” – (2011-2012)
9. ‘Gintama’ – Enchosen’ (2012-2013)
10. ‘Gintama: The Movie: The Final Chapter: Be Forever Yorozuya’ (2013)
11. ‘Jump Festa Specials: The Input of This Super Move Is Too Hard And I Can’t Pull It Off’ (2014)
12. ‘Jump Festa Specials: Delicious Goods Are Preempted After Being Postponed, So Be Sure To Eat Them First’ (2015)
13. ‘Gintama°‘ – (2015-2016)
14. ‘Gintama°: Love Incense Arc’ (OVA) (2 episodes, 2016)
15. ‘Gintama.’ – (2017)
16. ‘Gintama. Porori-hen’ – (2017)
17. ‘Gintama. Shirogane no Tamashii-he’ – (2018)
18. ‘Gintama: The Semi-Final’ (Special) (2 episodes – 2021)
19. ‘Gintama: The Very Final’ (2021)
20. ‘Class 3Z Ginpachi-sensei’ (Upcoming)

Are all ‘Gintama’ series connected? What’s the best way to watch them?

The various “Gintama” anime series are connected and follow the same overarching storyline. The anime adapts the manga faithfully, and while there are some filler episodes and comedic arcs, they still contribute to the overall narrative and character development. The anime series includes both the main story arcs and comedic episodes, providing a comprehensive adaptation of Hideaki Sorachi’s manga.

If you’re new to the franchise, the best course of action is to watch the ‘Gintama’ franchise in release date order. However, if you’re already familiar with the world as well as its timeline, there is a chronological order to follow.

‘Gintama’ anime, movies & OVAs in chronological order

Now that we’ve covered that there is a chronological order to follow, you should know that not all episodes are necessary. Some elements of the franchise are comedic takes on the main premise, and some arcs are completely filler in nature. The following is the entire ‘Gintama’ franchise in chronological order.

1. ‘Jump Festa Specials: Gintama’
2. ‘Gintama‘ Season 1 (Episodes 3 to 57)
3. ‘Gintama: The Movie‘ (remake of the episodes 58-61 with better animation)
4. ‘Gintama Season 2’
5. ‘Gintama Season 3’
6. ‘White Demon’s Birth’ – Jump Fest Special
7. ‘Gintama Season 4’
8. ‘Gintama” – Sequel to the original anime
9. ‘Gintama‘: Enchōsen’ – Sequel to ‘Gintama”
10. ‘Gintama°’ – Sequel to ‘Gintama‘: Enchōsen’ (Episodes 266 – 299)
11. ‘Gintama°: Love Incense Arc‘
12. ‘The Input of This Super Move Is Too Hard And I Can’t Pull It Off’ – Jump Festa Special
13. ‘Delicious Goods Are Preempted After Being Postponed, So Be Sure To Eat Them First’ – Jump Festa Special
14. ‘Gintama: The Movie: The Final Chapter: Be Forever Yorozuya‘
15. Gintama. Porori-hen – Takes place before ‘Shogun Assassination Arc’
16. ‘Gintama°’ (Episodes 299 – 316)
17. ‘Gintama.‘ – Sequel to ‘Gintama°’
18. ‘Gintama. Shirogane no Tamashii-hen‘
19. ‘Gintama: The Semi-Final’
20. ‘Gintama: The Very Final’

As a general rule, you can skip the specials and OVAs as well as the first movie. ‘White Demon’s Birth’ Special is more of a comedic fake-trailer type of episode, while the first movie remakes several episodes of the first season and adds nothing new to the story. ‘Gintama. Porori-hen’ is a filler arc and can be skipped as well, along with ‘Love Incense Arc’ and the rest of the Jump Festa Specials. If you’re having trouble following the watch order, just skip to the mainline anime release date in order and throw in the last two movies on the list for good measure, and you should be alright.

Where to watch all above-mentioned seasons, movies & OVAs?

Crunchyroll has 200 Episodes of the ‘Gintama’ anime, and Hulu has one season, but the other entries to the franchise are considerably harder to find, and some of them aren’t available in the West on mainstream streaming services and digital marketplaces.

‘Jump Festa Special: Gintama’ can be found on YouTube. ‘Gintama: The Movie: The Final Chapter: Be Forever Yorozuya’ can be rented on Amazon. ‘Jump Festa Special: Delicious Goods Are Preempted After Being Postponed, So Be Sure To Eat Them First’ can also be found on YouTube, and ‘Gintama: The Very Final’ can be watched on Crunchyroll once again.

So what about the rest of the entries on the list? Well, you can’t find them legally on major sites, even on YouTube.

Will there be more ‘Gintama’ anime?

In March 2023, the spinoff light novel ‘Class 3Z Ginpachi-sensei’ will be getting an anime adaptation, so yes, there will be more ‘Gintama’ anime. There are a few details available regarding the show, and we don’t have a release date, but we will update this as soon as we have more info.

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