The long-runningMonogatariseries is an anime franchise based on a collection of light novels written by Nisio Isin.It’s a very distinctive supernatural anime, with a very bizarre, avant-garde style and a large focus on witty banter and rambling dialogue characteristic of Isin’s writing. The first series (Bakemonogatari) aired in 2009, and since then, the franchise has grown into a massive property with multiple entries, including a film series.
Newcomers to theMonogatariseries may find themselves confused about how to start watching. Unlike most anime, theMonogatariseries does not follow the regular seasonal structure of 12 to 13 or 24 to 26 episodes. Instead, its “seasons” are split up into mini-series structured around the story arcs established in the novels. While this can make keeping track of all of these series somewhat bothersome, they can also be easily grouped into three main seasons.
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Monogatari Series: First Season
New fans should naturally start at the first entry in the series,Bakemonogatari(15 episodes). It is an important series that introduces the majority of the major characters in the series, including main character Koyomi Araragi, as well as major characters Hitagi Senjogahara, Tsubasa Hanekawa, Mayoi Hachikuji, Suruga Kanbaru, and Nadeko Sengoku. Supporting characters Meme Oshino and the mysterious Shinobu Oshino also appear. The series introduces Koyomi as a pseudo-vampire who often finds himself having to deal with the supernatural “oddities” that plague nearly everyone he meets.
AfterBakemonogatari, it is generally recommended that viewersproceed to the film seriesKizumonogatari. The trilogy takes place beforeBakemonogatari, and it concerns Koyomi Araragi’s first encounter with the vampire Kiss-shot Acerola-orion Heart-under-blade, who would eventually become major character Shinobu Oshino. This film trilogy came very late into the series' run, and it was released long after the first two seasons ofMonogatariwere, but based on the novel order, the trilogy should come right afterBakemonogatari.
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Monogatari Series: Second Season
The second season is composed entirely of mini-series, each one covering a different novel in the series. Instead of introducing new characters, this season mostly concerns itself with exploring previously established major charactersin easy-to-watch chunks. Despite its detached nature, there is an overarching plotline that threads between the various mini-series and connects them together. TheSecond Seasonalso features several mini-series that do not have Koyomi Araragi as the narrator.
The mini-series contained in theSecond Seasonare as follows;
It is around this time that the chronological order of events can start to become a bit confusing. This is because the series often jumps back and forth between the timeline, with multiple stories occurring at the same time. While some viewers may wish to watch the series in chronological order, it may be best to save such attempts for a later re-watch.
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Monogatari Series: Final Season
Compared toSecond Season, the third season of theMonogatariseries is somewhat more structured. The season starts with the 4 episode mini-seriesTsukimonogatari, which revolves around the recurring character Yotsugi Ononoki. It is followed in novel order byKoyomimonogatari, which is actually a 12-episode collection of various stories that occur throughout theMonogataritimeline.
Theremainder of the season is composedofOwarimonogatari, which is split into two parts (13 and 7 episodes long, respectively).Owarimonogatariconcerns itself with the mysterious Ougi Oshino, a character that initially appeared inSecond Seasonas a side character. This season is capped off byZoku Owarimonogatari, which acts as an epilogue to the previous arc. It is 6 episodes long.
Although the story continues in the novels, this is the end of theMonogatariseries when it comes to the anime. It’s entirely possible that new projects will appear in time, but fans thirsting for more of Koyomi Araragi and his friends will have to wait for Verical to publishOrokamonogatariin English, though that might take some time. On the bright side, theFinal Seasonserves as a great closer for theMonogatariseries, andit’s a good place for the series to endif no more anime end up being produced.
