This Is The Correct Order To Watch Haikyuu!!

While like the majority of animated series, volleyball anime "Haikyuu!!" sometimes sacrifices realism for the sake of dramatic flair, its volleyball scenes are nevertheless relatively realistic by anime standards. Fans of "Haikyuu!!" then, can appreciate both its large cast of characters, each with their own compelling personalities, in addition to a decent approximation of the sport of volleyball.

Currently, "Haikyuu!!" is comprised of four full seasons, four movies, and five OVAS — or, original video animations, which amount to single-episode length specials. Because the entirety of its run is spread across various media, those interested in "Haikyuu!!" who maybe have yet to start the series might be wondering what the best approach might be. Fortunately, although an upcoming "Haikyuu!!" Season 5 is practically a foregone conclusion, it has yet to be officially announced, meaning that it should be some time before new episodes are released. Newcomers to the series, then, have time to catch up on everything the anime has to offer before the Season 5 premiere. Here's how to watch "Haikyuu!!" in order, both for total newcomers and periodic viewers looking for a comprehensive viewing experience.

Watching Seasons 1 through 4 of "Haikyuu!!" is straightforward enough, since they take entirely place in order. The various OVAs released throughout the anime's run, however, can't simply be viewed one after another by viewers looking for a chronological viewing experience.

The first OVA is titled "The Arrival of Lev" and takes place during the events of Season 1. It should be viewed after that season's conclusion. Next is "Falling Grades," which bookends Season 2. Then comes an OVA titled "Betting on the Spring High Volleyball" which follows the events of Season 3. Finally, the last two are titled "Land vs. Air" and "The Path of the Ball." These take place concurrently with Season 4 Part 1, which concludes after Episode 13, so between Episodes 13 and 14 of Season 4 is the ideal time to watch those.

Finally, the four "Haikyuu!!" movies are largely inessential, since they simply summarize events depicted in the mainline series — the first two movies are a compressed version of Season 1, while movies three and four are feature-length versions of matches from Seasons 2 and 3 respectively. That said, each movie contains a scene or two not featured in the show, so completionists may want to either tune in for those scenes specifically or find a way to watch them in isolation.

All four seasons of "Haikyuu!!" as well as two movies and all five OVAs are available through Crunchyroll.