To watch Overlord in order and follow the main story smoothly, watch the four seasons in order and slot the Holy Kingdom movie between episodes 7 and 8 of season 4.

Main story watch order

Follow this if you just want the core plot without worrying about every extra:

  1. Overlord (Season 1 – TV series, 2015)
  2. Overlord II (Season 2 – TV series, 2018)
  3. Overlord III (Season 3 – TV series, 2018)
  4. Overlord IV (Season 4 – TV series, 2022) – episodes 1–7
  5. Overlord Movie 3 / The Sacred Kingdom / Holy Kingdom Arc (2024 film)
  6. Overlord IV – episodes 8–13

This order matches the light novel chronology as far as the anime has adapted, with the Holy Kingdom movie occurring in the middle of season 4 after episode 7.

Movies vs season 1

If you want to speed‑run the beginning:

  • Movie 1: The Undead King – Recap of episodes 1–4 of season 1, plus a few extra scenes.
  • Movie 2: The Dark Warrior – Recap of the rest of season 1, again with some added moments.

You can either:

  • Watch Season 1 only , and skip both recap movies, or
  • Watch Movie 1 + Movie 2 instead of Season 1 if you prefer a faster recap with some bonus content.

Recommended “simple” orders

Here are two easy paths depending on how completionist you feel:

A. Clean story-focused order (no recaps)

  1. Overlord (Season 1)
  2. Overlord II
  3. Overlord III
  4. Overlord IV episodes 1–7
  5. Overlord Movie 3: The Sacred Kingdom
  6. Overlord IV episodes 8–13

This keeps everything non‑redundant and follows the internal timeline used by multiple guides.

B. “Fast start” order (using movies)

  1. Overlord Movie 1: The Undead King
  2. Overlord Movie 2: The Dark Warrior
  3. Overlord II
  4. Overlord III
  5. Overlord IV episodes 1–7
  6. Overlord Movie 3: The Sacred Kingdom
  7. Overlord IV episodes 8–13

Guides note there is no single “right” order, but these are the most commonly recommended paths for new viewers.

What about OVAs, ONAs, and shorts?

Overlord also has comedy shorts and side content (like the Ple Ple Pleiades mini‑episodes) and other specials.

  • They are mostly gag/skit material and not crucial to understanding the main story.
  • Many watch orders list them as optional “dessert” to watch after each season, or all at the end once you finish the main anime.

If you want everything, a common approach is:

  • After each season, watch the corresponding Ple Ple Pleiades mini‑series and any listed specials, but treat them as non‑essential extras.

TL;DR: For a clean, story‑first path, watch Seasons 1–4 in order and insert the Holy Kingdom movie between episodes 7 and 8 of Season 4; the first two movies are optional recaps, not new arcs.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.