Sui Ishida’s Tokyo Ghoul became one of the most popular manga and anime of the 21st century. The strange and dark story of Ghouls and humans clashing in Tokyo captured the hearts of millions of fans among the world, yours truly being among them. Sure, the anime had its downsides and Ishida seemingly rushed the ending of the manga.
There will be no season five of Tokyo Ghoul, simply because the manga is over and the four anime seasons that have aired have adapted the whole manga and its storyline. There are additional stories that could be adapted in the form of an OVA or ONA, but that wouldn’t actually be a proper anime season. Tokyo Ghoul is over and there won’t be any season five.
Knowing this, we are going to give you a general overview of the franchise itself and explain just how and why it ended when it did.
Will There Be a Tokyo Ghoul Season 5?
We’re pretty sure that season four, i.e. the second season of Tokyo Ghoul:re, was the last season of Tokyo Ghoul and that there won’t be any additional seasons.
Sui Ishida finished his manga and knowing that he was quite fed up with it near the end, which accounts for the somewhat rushed and chaotic ending of the manga, we don’t think he’ll revisit it. At least not anytime soon.
As the anime series followed the manga – relatively, at least – the latter’s ending means that there is no additional material to adapt, meaning that the anime is also finished and that we won’t be seeing a fifth season of the show. Sure, things could change in the future, but as they stand now – there are neither plans nor hopes for a fifth season.
We shall, of course, give you an overview of the first four seasons of the anime series so you can get an idea on how it all evolved.
The first season of the anime was simply titled Tokyo Ghoul and it aired from July 4, 2014 to September 19, 2014. The season had a total of 12 episodes and it adapted roughly half of Sui Ishida’s manga.
A second season of the anime was titled Tokyo Ghoul √A was also released and it aired from January 9, 2015 to March 27, 2015; it had a total of 12 episodes, just like the first one.
Two OVA episodes were released after Tokyo Ghoul √A was done. Tokyo Ghoul: [Jack] is the first OVA episode released as part of the Tokyo Ghoul series. It was released on September 30, 2015, about six months after the second season of the anime ended. [Jack] has a total runtime of 30 minutes and is based on a manga written by Ishida himself.
After a three-year pause, Tokyo Ghoul finally returned with the first season of Tokyo Ghoul:re, which was a direct adaptation of the first half of Ishida’s sequel manga of the same name. With a total of 12 episodes, the first season of :re aired from April 3, 2018 to June 19, 2018.
The fourth and final season of Tokyo Ghoul, i.e., the second season of Tokyo Ghoul:re, was finally released on September 29, 2018 and aired on December 25, 2018. It also contained 12 episodes, just like all of the previous seasons.
To summarize the whole concept, the anime adaptation of Tokyo Ghoul began in 2014 and ended in 2018, with a three-year pause between seasons two and three, and with a total of four seasons and two OVA episodes.
The adaptation consists of a total of 48 episodes, 12 of which are original stories, while the remaining 36 are adaptations of the manga, although a lot of elements from the manga have been excluded from the anime.
In that respect, we can clearly state that the anime is also finished and that there remains no part of Ishida’s story that needs to be adapted, as the anime also ended in the same manner as the manga. This brings our study of the anime series to an end, which means that we can continue with the other questions.
Tokyo Ghoul Season 5 Release Date
Since the chances of new Tokyo Ghoul episodes are slim to none, we can assure you that a fifth season has no release date and it won’t have one, as things stand now.
There is no use in us speculating on a date since there are no indications that the franchise will ever continue. Instead, it’s better for us to give you an overview of what we’ve seen so far, along with the release dates.
This is a summary of the anime adaptations:
| Title | Season | Episodes | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tokyo Ghoul | 1 | 12 | July 4, 2014 | September 19, 2014 |
| Tokyo Ghoul √A | 2 | 12 | January 9, 2015 | March 27, 2015 |
| Tokyo Ghoul:re (I) | 3 | 12 | April 3, 2018 | June 19, 2018 |
| Tokyo Ghoul:re (II) | 4 | 12 | October 9, 2018 | December 25, 2018 |
As you can see, each season of Tokyo Ghoul has exactly 12 episodes, which amounts to a total of 48 episodes that you have to watch in order to complete the narrative.
Each episode is roughly 20 minutes long, which amounts to around 1000 minutes of material, i.e. a total of 16 hours. Unlike some other anime series, Tokyo Ghoul is relatively easy to follow and to watch, which is what we personally recommend you do.
You should also include the two released OVA episodes which expand upon the universe and reveal additional details about certain characters.
As for the two OVA episodes, they were released as follows:
| Title | Episodes | Release Date | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tokyo Ghoul: [Jack] | 1 | September 30, 2015 | 30 minutes |
| Tokyo Ghoul: PINTO | 1 | December 25, 2015 | 25 minutes |
Tokyo Ghoul Season 5 Trailer
There is no trailer for a fifth season of Tokyo Ghoul and, seeing how there probably won’t be a fifth season anyhow, we’re not going to see a trailer at all. Since there is nothing to announce, a trailer is completely unnecessary.
Tokyo Ghoul Season 5 Plot
The plot of a potential fifth season of Tokyo Ghoul is unknown since it would have to adapt a new story written by Ishida, and there is no such story. The four seasons adapted the manga (save for Tokyo Ghoul √A, but that is a completely different issue) and finished with it, meaning that there are no more manga stories to adapt.
Sure, we could see a manga-authentic remake of season two, which is unlikely since Ishida himself authored the story of Tokyo Ghoul √A , or some side-story being explored further, but that would probably be released in the form of an OVA, like [Jack] and PINTO.
As for the already released material, the plot follows the manga for the most part. The story of the first season follows Ken Kaneki, a college student who barely survives a fatal encounter with Rize Kamishiro, his date that turns out to be a ghoul.
He was taken to the hospital in critical condition. Once recovered, Kaneki discovers that he has undergone an operation that has turned him into a half-ghoul.
As for the second season, the story was an original one written by Ishida himself and although it has some similarities with the manga, it is mostly a reinterpretation of the second part of Ishida’s manga. It follows Ken Kaneki after the events that had him join Aogiri Tree.
As for the two OVA episodes, [Jack] is a prequel that chronicles the youth of Kishō Arima, before he joined the CCG and became its best enforcer. Tokyo Ghoul: PINTO is the second OVA episode from the Tokyo Ghoul series and is, like [Jack] part of the same narrative canon.
It was based on a story from the novel Tokyo Ghoul: Days and tells the story of how Shū Tsukiyama and Chie Hori met and became so close. It has a runtime of 25 minutes and was released on December 25, 2015, roughly three months after [Jack].
The second season of Tokyo Ghoul:re adapted the final part of Ishida’s sequel manga of the same name, continuing on the first season of the show, which adapted the first part of the manga, and it focused on Ken Kaneki’s path to becoming he true One-Eyed King and the leader of the ghouls who would establish a working relationship between them and the humans.
Tokyo Ghoul Season 5 Characters
We assume that Ken Kaneki would return for a fifth season, if there ever were one. There are a lot of characters that have survived Tokyo Ghoul‘s chaotic ending and they would probably return once more, along with a plethora of new characters. But, seeing how Ishida’s world won’t be getting any additional stories, there is nothing to discuss here, really.
