@chrundle said:

Hey SuperBoy, glad you finally decided this was worth a smidgen of your attention again, but unfortunately it seems like you're still deflecting instead of acknowledging the actual issue. Since my last reply was buried under a whopping 11 or so replies, you probably didn't read it, but I'm going to repost it, since I still think that it's the most concise post in this thread so far demonstrating how little sense your rules actually make.

You enforce your decision by stating "The rules are designed to respect the studio's creative decisions in numbering the first episode of Season 2 as Episode #13, indicating they want it to be seen as a single, continuous season of television" while plugging your ears and going "LALALALA I CAN'T HEAR YOU" whenever it's pointed out how the studio has referred to the 2nd Season as such, labelling it as Season 2 on their website and even in the opening credits among other places, because those creative decisions don't fit your rigid and nonsensical rules. The decisions you decide are worth respecting are entirely at the whim of which decisions support your prior decisions, and any that don't are disregarded as irrelevant to the discussion.

If you really cared about making sure your database respects the decision of continuously numbered episodes as much as you claim, I would think you would have prioritized correcting the breadth of anime on your database that are divided into seasons despite being continuously numbered - you mentioned that there was only one guy who can do it, but given your intense commitment to respecting the creative decision of continuously numbering episodes, you'd think it would be a top priority to make sure that Attack on Titan is listed as one continuous season as the creators intended (while, of course, ignoring the constant seasonal breaks and branding, such as Attack on Titan: The Final Season or the big message on the official website stating "Seasons 1-3 are now available on all streaming sites"). I mean, otherwise, if it's not a big deal, then why can't the rules be adjusted, or exceptions be made when the studio clearly considers it to be an individual season? Get on it, Travis, this is a really big deal with zero room for flexibility!!!!

I'll also reiterate that your own Anime Guidelines are contradictory.

Original Order

The main guidelines for animes are the same as with any other type of series. Our goal is to replicate how the TV series were originally released on their original network.

My understanding of this is that your main goal is to make sure it's reflected on the database as it was released - naturally, shows like Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z should be presented as you are trying to present Solo Leveling - they should not only be separate show entries, but one continuous season for each - this makes sense, given they were presented with separate titles and as separate shows, despite airing only a week apart, but also that there were no breaks and the shows both aired continuously from start to finish, as was how most anime was produced at this time.

On the other hand, the episode numbering has no impact on how the show was released - Yes, S2E1 of Solo Leveling is listed as Episode #13, however was released months after the conclusion of season 1, and was released under the banner and title of Solo Leveling Season 2. Your decision on this matter is contradicting what your anime guidelines state to be the guidelines goal. It didn't seem to follow any of the Cour formats you list, instead following more like the Western seasonal release schedule, airing during the Jan - Mar Cour and not returning until the same time the following year, so it wouldn't make sense to insist that it is one continuous season divided up by Cours - and if we can call skipping 3 Cours in a row "Split Cour", then we can call skipping 8 Cours before return "Split Cour", and at that point the term has lost all meaning, making that rule useless and always in favour of listing anime as a single season no matter what.

On another note, after reviewing these rules more closely, you've gotta merge Naruto and Naruto Shippūden as per the rules regarding "Sequel series" while you're taking care of all the other continuously numbered anime. Also, everything I said above about Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z should be ignored, those have to be one series because Z is a direct continuation. (If you haven't noticed yet, your rules are nonsensical and self-contradicting, and need serious adjusting. This issue is far from resolved.)

Has it ever been considered that maybe the fact that S2E1 of Solo Leveling is listed as Episode 13 is simply because that is how things are typically done in Japan, and while many anime have more recently embraced the Seasonal release model of the west, they prefer to ensure that it's clear what number of the overall episode of a series is for any given episode in a season?

I do just find it funny how a studio can say "This is Season 2. We took nearly a full year between the end of Season 1 and the start of Season 2. Our website lists it as Season 2. The intro lists it as Season 2. It has a special subtitle to distinguish it from Season 1 as another, distinct chunk of the story. But our website it going to list the first episode of this second season as the 13th overall episode so that it's place in the series is clear" and you guys just go "NONE OF THAT MATTERS EXCEPT FOR THAT SMALL INSIGNIFICANT DETAIL AT THE END THAT PROVES OUR POINT AND JUSTIFIES OUR STUBBORNNESS"

---

Addendum - previously in this thread, you guys previously seemed absolutely dumbfounded in at how you could possibly reconcile the fact that there are multiple seasons, but Season 2 Episode 1 is listed as Episode #13, acting as if this was some kind of impossible task we were asking of you -

"Per the regular TV guidelines, the first episode of a season is always episode 1 and nothing else. How can the first episode of "Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow-" be the 13th episode of the season if it's the first episode of the season?"

"And once again, TV anime entries are not exempt from the regular TV guidelines, which say the first episode of a season is always episode 1. Episode #13 can't be the first episode of a season if it's episode #13."

I would like to direct your attention to Hunter x Hunter, where it's quite literally a non-issue and you guys have already accomplished this. Season 2 of Hunter x Hunter spans episode #63 - #136. This is doable, it's been done, you guys are just being insanely weird about this for seemingly no reason. I'm sure that literally nobody has ever gone in Season 2 of Hunter x Hunter and assumed that Season 2 alone had 136 episodes and that the database was missing 62 of them.

We're begging you, amend the rules - they are backwards, self contradictory, and there has not been a single user of your site that has defended them, only the mod team, and it's seemingly out of nothing but stubbornness as opposed to a desire to actually have the site function efficiently. This entire thread only exists because of ego

Hi superboy and the rest of the mod team,

Still awaiting a response. Thank you!

@chrundle said:

Hey SuperBoy, glad you finally decided this was worth a smidgen of your attention again, but unfortunately it seems like you're still deflecting instead of acknowledging the actual issue. Since my last reply was buried under a whopping 11 or so replies, you probably didn't read it, but I'm going to repost it, since I still think that it's the most concise post in this thread so far demonstrating how little sense your rules actually make.

You enforce your decision by stating "The rules are designed to respect the studio's creative decisions in numbering the first episode of Season 2 as Episode #13, indicating they want it to be seen as a single, continuous season of television" while plugging your ears and going "LALALALA I CAN'T HEAR YOU" whenever it's pointed out how the studio has referred to the 2nd Season as such, labelling it as Season 2 on their website and even in the opening credits among other places, because those creative decisions don't fit your rigid and nonsensical rules. The decisions you decide are worth respecting are entirely at the whim of which decisions support your prior decisions, and any that don't are disregarded as irrelevant to the discussion.

It's not actually a second season, it's a sequel series / second part that has "season 2" in the title but continues from the numbering of the first series. The anime guidelines mention what to do with sequel series and anime released in two or more parts:

• Sequels series (i.e. a direct continuation of the story) are added within the same entry. When the episodes numbers are continuous, all episodes are added to the same season. When the episode count is restarted (i.e. the first episode is Episode 1), the new episodes are added as a new season.
• When a series is released in two or more parts, the new episodes should also be added to the same season when the episode number are continuous. Sometimes the production of new episodes is halted for a year or more.

If you really cared about making sure your database respects the decision of continuously numbered episodes as much as you claim, I would think you would have prioritized correcting the breadth of anime on your database that are divided into seasons despite being continuously numbered - you mentioned that there was only one guy who can do it, but given your intense commitment to respecting the creative decision of continuously numbering episodes, you'd think it would be a top priority to make sure that Attack on Titan is listed as one continuous season as the creators intended (while, of course, ignoring the constant seasonal breaks and branding, such as Attack on Titan: The Final Season or the big message on the official website stating "Seasons 1-3 are now available on all streaming sites"). I mean, otherwise, if it's not a big deal, then why can't the rules be adjusted, or exceptions be made when the studio clearly considers it to be an individual season? Get on it, Travis, this is a really big deal with zero room for flexibility!!!!

Travis is the only one that can automate the merges and he develops and maintains TMDB. Merging some anime entries maybe is not that big of a priority compared to continuously developing and maintaining TMDB and making sure it doesn't go down.

I'll also reiterate that your own Anime Guidelines are contradictory.

Original Order

The main guidelines for animes are the same as with any other type of series. Our goal is to replicate how the TV series were originally released on their original network.

My understanding of this is that your main goal is to make sure it's reflected on the database as it was released - naturally, shows like Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z should be presented as you are trying to present Solo Leveling - they should not only be separate show entries, but one continuous season for each - this makes sense, given they were presented with separate titles and as separate shows, despite airing only a week apart, but also that there were no breaks and the shows both aired continuously from start to finish, as was how most anime was produced at this time.

On the other hand, the episode numbering has no impact on how the show was released - Yes, S2E1 of Solo Leveling is listed as Episode #13, however was released months after the conclusion of season 1, and was released under the banner and title of Solo Leveling Season 2. Your decision on this matter is contradicting what your anime guidelines state to be the guidelines goal. It didn't seem to follow any of the Cour formats you list, instead following more like the Western seasonal release schedule, airing during the Jan - Mar Cour and not returning until the same time the following year, so it wouldn't make sense to insist that it is one continuous season divided up by Cours - and if we can call skipping 3 Cours in a row "Split Cour", then we can call skipping 8 Cours before return "Split Cour", and at that point the term has lost all meaning, making that rule useless and always in favour of listing anime as a single season no matter what.

Solo Leveling is not split cour; Solo Leveling Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow- is either a sequel series or a second part. The anime guidelines mention what to do with sequel series and anime released in parts:

• Sequels series (i.e. a direct continuation of the story) are added within the same entry. When the episodes numbers are continuous, all episodes are added to the same season. When the episode count is restarted (i.e. the first episode is Episode 1), the new episodes are added as a new season.
• When a series is released in two or more parts, the new episodes should also be added to the same season when the episode number are continuous. Sometimes the production of new episodes is halted for a year or more.

On another note, after reviewing these rules more closely, you've gotta merge Naruto and Naruto Shippūden as per the rules regarding "Sequel series" while you're taking care of all the other continuously numbered anime.

Both Naruto and Naruto Shippuden are actually mentioned in the anime guidelines as examples of anime released in two or more parts. Naruto Shippuden is on our merge list and it'll be merged into the Naruto entry, where all 720 episodes will be listed in a single season.

Also, everything I said above about Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z should be ignored, those have to be one series because Z is a direct continuation. (If you haven't noticed yet, your rules are nonsensical and self-contradicting, and need serious adjusting. This issue is far from resolved.)

Then please submit a report for it on either entry.

Has it ever been considered that maybe the fact that S2E1 of Solo Leveling is listed as Episode 13 is simply because that is how things are typically done in Japan, and while many anime have more recently embraced the Seasonal release model of the west, they prefer to ensure that it's clear what number of the overall episode of a series is for any given episode in a season?

Where are you getting that S02E01 is episode 13? According to the official website, the Season 2 tab starts with episode 13; episodes 1-12 don't appear to exist. And yes, it's been considered, that's why the anime guidelines have a "Should I add new episodes to the existing season, to a new season, or as a new series?" subsection.

I do just find it funny how a studio can say "This is Season 2. We took nearly a full year between the end of Season 1 and the start of Season 2. Our website lists it as Season 2. The intro lists it as Season 2. It has a special subtitle to distinguish it from Season 1 as another, distinct chunk of the story. But our website it going to list the first episode of this second season as the 13th overall episode so that it's place in the series is clear" and you guys just go "NONE OF THAT MATTERS EXCEPT FOR THAT SMALL INSIGNIFICANT DETAIL AT THE END THAT PROVES OUR POINT AND JUSTIFIES OUR STUBBORNNESS"

The studio can literally do whatever it wants and number it however it wants since it makes the show, but it decided to only use continuous numbers. If the studio wanted to restart the numbering from 1 and have that be the main numbering, with a separate overall number, it could've done that and we would've list the anime as the second season. We are simply copying the official website as best we can, and the website makes no mention of the first episode of Solo Leveling Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow- being numbered as S02E01; it's simply numbered as #13 in the Season 2 tab. But where are the first 12 episode of Season 2?

Addendum - previously in this thread, you guys previously seemed absolutely dumbfounded in at how you could possibly reconcile the fact that there are multiple seasons, but Season 2 Episode 1 is listed as Episode #13, acting as if this was some kind of impossible task we were asking of you -

"Per the regular TV guidelines, the first episode of a season is always episode 1 and nothing else. How can the first episode of "Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow-" be the 13th episode of the season if it's the first episode of the season?"

"And once again, TV anime entries are not exempt from the regular TV guidelines, which say the first episode of a season is always episode 1. Episode #13 can't be the first episode of a season if it's episode #13."

I would like to direct your attention to Hunter x Hunter, where it's quite literally a non-issue and you guys have already accomplished this. Season 2 of Hunter x Hunter spans episode #63 - #136.

The current Hunter x Hunter season split, including the episode numbers, is actually extremely wrong, just like Naruto's and Naruto Shippuden's. The seasons and episodes were either created incorrectly and no one bothered to report them or the entry was created before the anime guidelines existed. I couldn't tell you which reason since I joined the database in 2020 but the anime is already on the merge list and all episodes will be merged into a single season whenever Travis has the time.

This is doable, it's been done, you guys are just being insanely weird about this for seemingly no reason.

Yeah it can be done, technically speaking, but it actually can't be done because it's against the guidelines.

I'm sure that literally nobody has ever gone in Season 2 of Hunter x Hunter and assumed that Season 2 alone had 136 episodes and that the database was missing 62 of them.

Then I'm the only one.

There is no need to close this discussion. We are addressing a serious and debatable issue regarding your credibility and reliability as an "open source" database. Multiple individuals have pointed out a significant lack of consideration, and no statement has yet been issued by Travis. This is not a trivial matter. We unanimously agree that your policy on this issue is misguided and detrimental to the user experience. As the only public database adopting this approach, you seem convinced that your method is superior, despite the fact that, as a UX developer myself, I am certain most UX professionals would disagree. By proceeding with your planned full integration, you risk undermining your own success, potentially driving many users to alternative APIs.

Why ignore our detailed explanations that this policy needs revision? A simple adjustment to a single line of code could resolve the issue and satisfy the majority (with the possible exception of Travis). You have acknowledged that significant work remains before Travis implements the full integration. Given this, why burden yourselves further, especially when numerous voices are clearly stating that this is not a sound decision? I strongly recommend abandoning this integration project entirely.

Thank you.

This^ Mods just keep defending the guidelines, but ignore our wish for changing the rules. Why does this need to be so difficult?

Both Naruto and Naruto Shippuden are actually mentioned in the anime guidelines as examples of anime released in two or more parts. Naruto Shippuden is on our merge list and it'll be merged into the Naruto entry, where all 720 episodes will be listed in a single season.

Jesus. I give up. If that's actually your plan (thank God "plan" means "when Travis gets around to it in 8-11 years) then you guys are more delusional than I thought. You guys genuinely think that's the best course of action? One 720-episode season with absolutely no way to find what you're looking for without sifting through hundreds of episodes, despite them otherwise being clearly defined and easily navigable on every other platform? In what world does that make your database an effective one?

This website sucks for TV, lmao.

@chrundle said:

Jesus. I give up. If that's actually your plan (thank God "plan" means "when Travis gets around to it in 8-11 years) then you guys are more delusional than I thought. You guys genuinely think that's the best course of action? One 720-episode season with absolutely no way to find what you're looking for without sifting through hundreds of episodes, despite them otherwise being clearly defined and easily navigable on every other platform? In what world does that make your database an effective one?

This website sucks for TV, lmao.

Maybe Im wrong but maybe theres a conversation about whether the purpose of this database is about information (archiving history) or about functionality (app usage). This database can have different purposes that fall into two broad categories imo. One is to create a database trying to accurately record tv and movie history. The other is creating a database for the functionality of certain apps or programs that choose to use this database. I believe the purpose of the site is to serve both purposes generally speaking.

So maybe with that perspective maybe the rules make more sense? (Yes, combining the episodes into one season may be confusing for certain apps' functionality, but perhaps a more accurate recording of tv history).

You may argue that the database should be only (or primarily) concerned with the happiness of users using it for their apps but if you consider that might not be the sites only purpose then it makes some sense?

imo from what Ive read following conversations around this topic with back and forth arguing from mods and users it seems users are primiarly only concerned with certain functionality while mods support the rules because they prioritise the recording of accurate tv history (which you may also disagree with their interpretation of whats accurate but at least understand the distinction being made that there is another purpose for a database).

EDIT: it is a problem though that things like this do get left un-changed/unresolved for years and years so the database permanently looks like a mess- which leads to a lot of confusion and arguing about whether the rules are actually legit or just for show.

Yeah it can be done, technically speaking, but it actually can't be done because it's against the guidelines.

Well yes, against the goofy guidelines you stubborn corncobs made and refuse to sensibly amend. That is in fact the entire issue people are now arguing in here about, you stubborn corncob. I see this same conversation across multiple anime series on this site and this site alone and mods like you seem pretty content with that.

Clearly this back and forth will never go anywhere as long as these particular mods are making decisions so at this point I'm just forced to do what others have been doing and switch to TVDB for anything anime-related, because this site seemingly just can't be trusted as a metadata custodian for that medium.

Raze464, your bald faced statement, "It's not actually a second season, it's a sequel series / second part that has "season 2" in the title but continues from the numbering of the first series.", is only correct on one point... That is that the designers did in fact decide to call the second season "season 2". Everything else is just wrong.

It's not a sequel series "-Arise from the Shadow-" is a cour name and it's not a continuation\split-cour/release in two or more parts, the designers literally call it Season 2. Look at Mushoku Tensei for actual correct split-cours.

Should I add new episodes to the existing season, to a new season, or as a new series?

-The answer lies with the original Japanese data.

One would naturally assume that the first point in a list is the most important so how can you disregard that and only focus on a single data point, i.e. the episode number.

Your guidelines are not a "bible" and are clearly wrong and need to be rewritten to accommodate multiple facts that designers choose.

Isn't this suppose to be a community supported website, well listen to the community and fix it.

@G.Desmond said:

Raze464, your bald faced statement, "It's not actually a second season, it's a sequel series / second part that has "season 2" in the title but continues from the numbering of the first series.", is only correct on one point... That is that the designers did in fact decide to call the second season "season 2". Everything else is just wrong.

Well, the first installment is just called "Solo Leveling" / "俺だけレベルアップな件" and the second installment is called "Solo Leveling Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow-" / "俺だけレベルアップな件 Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow-." How is that not a sequel series / second part with "season 2" in the title?

It's not a sequel series "-Arise from the Shadow-" is a cour name and it's not a continuation\split-cour/release in two or more parts, the designers literally call it Season 2.

It's not a cour name because the title for episodes 13-25 is literally "俺だけレベルアップな件 Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow-." It's a sequel series / second part that has "season 2" in the title.

Look at Mushoku Tensei for actual correct split-cours.

I know what split cour is (which is different than being released in multiple parts, BTW) and Solo Leveling definitely isn't split cour and I never said it was. But you know what Mushoku Tensei did that Solo Leveling didn't? It restarted its episode numbers from 1 with the release of its sequel series: "Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 2" / "無職転生 II 〜異世界行ったら本気だす〜" begins with episode #0 (which is added as a special because it's numbered as 0 instead of 1), followed by episode #1.

Answer me this, Sunrise calls Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury's second cour "Season2" but continues the numbering of the previous cour. Does that use of "Season2" then make it an actual second season instead of the second cour of the split cour broadcast is was announced to be?

Should I add new episodes to the existing season, to a new season, or as a new series?

-The answer lies with the original Japanese data.

One would naturally assume that the first point in a list is the most important so how can you disregard that and only focus on a single data point, i.e. the episode number.

Your guidelines are not a "bible" and are clearly wrong and need to be rewritten to accommodate multiple facts that designers choose.

They're listed in the Contribution Bible so yes, they are a bible of everything that can, can't, should be, and shouldn't be done on the database.

BTW, are you also reaching out to aniDB, MAL, AniList, and ANN about not respecting the multiple facts that designers choose with regards Solo Leveling? Solo Leveling and Solo Leveling Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow- are listed on their databases as two separate anime instead of seasons of the same anime.

Isn't this suppose to be a community supported website, well listen to the community and fix it.

How would you change the rules, then? Please keep in mind that TV anime entries are not exempt from the regular TV guidelines, which say the first episode of a season is always episode 1 and this absolutely cannot be changed.

Well, the first installment is just called "Solo Leveling" / "俺だけレベルアップな件" and the second installment is called "Solo Leveling Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow-" / "俺だけレベルアップな件 Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow-." How is that not a sequel series / second part with "season 2" in the title?

this is the single most disingenous statement I've heard from the mod team yet, lol

They're listed in the Contribution Bible so yes, they are a bible of everything that can, can't, should be, and shouldn't be done on the database.

you guys are power-tripping nerds

I believe TMDB's decision to merge both seasons of Solo Leveling into a single season is not reasonable, for the following reasons:

1. It contradicts the official season structure The production team clearly split Solo Leveling into two seasons:

   Season 1: Episodes 1–12 (released in early 2024)

   Season 2: Begins with Episode 13 and is officially titled “Solo Leveling -Arise from the Shadow-“

   Merging them ignores the creators' clear intent and naming.

2. It goes against user expectations and standard media organization Most users and media management tools (like Plex or Kodi) depend on season-based organization. Combining two distinct seasons causes:

   Confusion in episode sorting

   Metadata matching issues

   Inability to identify when a new season starts

3. It creates technical problems in media libraries

A proper media file structure would look like:

/Solo Leveling/Season 01/S01E01.mkv
/Solo Leveling/Season 02/S02E01.mkv

But TMDB’s format would force users to name files like:

/Solo Leveling/Season 01/S01E13.mkv

which is inconsistent with both the official labeling and user expectations.

TMDB’s argument of “continuous numbering” is not appropriate here Solo Leveling is clearly split into separate seasons by the studio. The second season has a new title, distinct marketing, and aired in a separate broadcast cycle.

Recommended solution TMDB should respect the official season split and list them separately, even if the episode numbers continue. An explanation about the numbering can be added in the notes instead.

While the merged format may help data normalization, it harms usability and clarity. TMDB should prioritize reflecting the show’s official structure and improving the user experience. Guidelines are not set in stone — if there are flaws, it's our responsibility to fix them, not to perpetuate them.

@hardy_sheng said:

I believe TMDB's decision to merge both seasons of Solo Leveling into a single season is not reasonable, for the following reasons:

1. It contradicts the official season structure The production team clearly split Solo Leveling into two seasons:

   Season 1: Episodes 1–12 (released in early 2024)

   Season 2: Begins with Episode 13 and is officially titled “Solo Leveling -Arise from the Shadow-“

   Merging them ignores the creators' clear intent and naming.

2. It goes against user expectations and standard media organization Most users and media management tools (like Plex or Kodi) depend on season-based organization. Combining two distinct seasons causes:

   Confusion in episode sorting

   Metadata matching issues

   Inability to identify when a new season starts

3. It creates technical problems in media libraries

A proper media file structure would look like:

/Solo Leveling/Season 01/S01E01.mkv
/Solo Leveling/Season 02/S02E01.mkv

But TMDB’s format would force users to name files like:

/Solo Leveling/Season 01/S01E13.mkv

which is inconsistent with both the official labeling and user expectations.

TMDB’s argument of “continuous numbering” is not appropriate here Solo Leveling is clearly split into separate seasons by the studio. The second season has a new title, distinct marketing, and aired in a separate broadcast cycle.

Recommended solution TMDB should respect the official season split and list them separately, even if the episode numbers continue. An explanation about the numbering can be added in the notes instead.

While the merged format may help data normalization, it harms usability and clarity. TMDB should prioritize reflecting the show’s official structure and improving the user experience. Guidelines are not set in stone — if there are flaws, it's our responsibility to fix them, not to perpetuate them.

Great response, thank you for your support.

@hardy_sheng said:

I believe TMDB's decision to merge both seasons of Solo Leveling into a single season is not reasonable, for the following reasons:

1. It contradicts the official season structure The production team clearly split Solo Leveling into two seasons:

   Season 1: Episodes 1–12 (released in early 2024)

   Season 2: Begins with Episode 13 and is officially titled “Solo Leveling -Arise from the Shadow-“

   Merging them ignores the creators' clear intent and naming.

So having all episodes in a single season doesn't apply to Solo Leveling despite both series / parts using continuous episode numbers because "the creators said so?" Do you want each and every single TV anime on TMDB to have its own specific episode numbering based on whatever the creators say instead of having a rule that applies uniformly and fairly to all TV anime? You do realize doing that would be unfeasible and unsustainable, right? Not even anime-specific databases do that; they just add cours (even split cours) and sequels as completely separate and distinct entries, which coincidentally also contradicts the official season structure, ignores the creators' clear intent and naming, and is a rule that applies uniformly and fairly to all TV anime.

Keeping with the previously brought up Mushoku Tensei example, is it really the creators' intent that the anime consists of 4 different anime (Mushoku Tensei, Mushoku Tensei cour 2, Mushoku Tensei II, Mushoku Tensei II cour 2) like AniDB, MAL, and AniList say it is? Does that not contradict the official structure of the anime being 2 "seasons?"

I guess that means it's OK when anime-specific databases follow their rules and "contradict the official season structure" and "ignore the creators' clear intent and naming" by having a rule that applies uniformly and fairly to all TV anime like listing each cour as a separate entry but it's not OK when TMDB follows its rules adds all episodes to a single season when anime use continuous episode numbers.

1. It goes against user expectations and standard media organization Most users and media management tools (like Plex or Kodi) depend on season-based organization. Combining two distinct seasons causes:

   Confusion in episode sorting

   Metadata matching issues

   Inability to identify when a new season starts

2. It creates technical problems in media libraries

A proper media file structure would look like:

/Solo Leveling/Season 01/S01E01.mkv
/Solo Leveling/Season 02/S02E01.mkv

But TMDB’s format would force users to name files like:

/Solo Leveling/Season 01/S01E13.mkv

which is inconsistent with both the official labeling and user expectations.

TMDB has APIs that can be used for media organization but the database is meant to mirror official websites as best as possible and that sometimes means having a different episode and/or season order with TV shows. And where are you getting that Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow- has a S02E01? The website clearly says it starts with S02E13, with S02E01-E12 being nonexistent.

TMDB’s argument of “continuous numbering” is not appropriate here Solo Leveling is clearly split into separate seasons by the studio. The second season has a new title, distinct marketing, and aired in a separate broadcast cycle.

Recommended solution TMDB should respect the official season split and list them separately, even if the episode numbers continue. An explanation about the numbering can be added in the notes instead.

How would that be possible when the first episode is S02E13, S02E01-E12 don't even exist, and new seasons need to start with an episode numbered as #1, something Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow- doesn't have?

While the merged format may help data normalization, it harms usability and clarity. TMDB should prioritize reflecting the show’s official structure and improving the user experience.

The official structure is reflected because the website says the first episode is episode 13 and we have it as episode 13.

Guidelines are not set in stone — if there are flaws, it's our responsibility to fix them, not to perpetuate them.

How would you change them? Please keep in mind that TV anime entries are not exempt from the regular TV guidelines, which say the first episode of a season is always episode 1 and this absolutely cannot be changed.

@raze464 said: How would you change them? Please keep in mind that TV anime entries are not exempt from the regular TV guidelines, which say the first episode of a season is always episode 1 and this absolutely cannot be changed.

You mentioned that before. We don't understand why though. Why can't it be changed? This doesn't even make sense. It's your (you as a mod represent tmdb) site, just change it. It's just text.

@ukqv6 said:

@raze464 said: How would you change them? Please keep in mind that TV anime entries are not exempt from the regular TV guidelines, which say the first episode of a season is always episode 1 and this absolutely cannot be changed.

You mentioned that before. We don't understand why though. Why can't it be changed? This doesn't even make sense. It's your (you as a mod represent tmdb) site, just change it. It's just text.

Because I can't just change it. Other mods and Travis need to be consulted with so a consensus of what should be changed and what it should be changed with is reached. In all of the reports where this issue comes up, I've asked this same question and, so far, either no one has suggested anything or what they've suggested breaks the regular TV guidelines of the first episode of a season always being episode 1.