arr-mcp

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Look up a title externally

lookup_media

Read-only

Look up media titles, years, and external IDs across Radarr, Sonarr, Whisparr, Lidarr, Seerr, and Shelfmark. Resolve IMDb IDs to TMDB IDs and fetch metadata for adding or requesting media.

Instructions

Metadata for something you may not have: title, year, and external ids, from Radarr, Sonarr, Whisparr, Lidarr and Seerr, plus books from Shelfmark (kind: book, whose id get_releases takes). A Lidarr hit is an artist, keyed by its MusicBrainz id under ids.mbid, which is what add_media takes for Lidarr. Query imdb:tt… to turn an IMDb id into a TMDB id; a bare tt… misses Seerr. Reads only — nothing is added, requested or monitored.

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`limit`	No	Maximum items to return. Defaults to 50, hard maximum 500.
`query`	Yes	What to look up.
`detail`	No	How much per-item detail to return. Defaults to standard.	standard
`offset`	No	Items to skip: page two of 50 is `offset: 50`. Pair it with `sort`, or items can move between pages.

Output Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`items`	Yes
`total`	Yes
`counts`	No
`offset`	Yes
`degraded`	Yes
`returned`	Yes
`truncated`	Yes

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed17 schema fields changedv1.74.0Nov 9, 2026

removedInput schema / $schema

Removed value: -"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"

changedInput schema / properties / offset / description

Previous value: -"How many items to skip before the window `limit` returns — page two of 50 is `offset: 50`. `total` always counts the whole list, so `offset + returned < total` is how you know there is another page. Pair it with `sort` for a stable walk: without one the order is whatever the services returned, and an item can move between pages."New value: +"Items to skip: page two of 50 is `offset: 50`. Pair it with `sort`, or items can move between pages."

removedInput schema / properties / offset / maximum
```
Removed value: -9007199254740991
```

removedOutput schema / $schema

Removed value: -"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"

removedOutput schema / properties / counts / description

Removed value: -"How many results each service contributed."

removedOutput schema / properties / degraded / description

Removed value: -"Services that could not be reached. Their contribution is missing from `items`, so a short list may be an outage rather than an answer."

removedOutput schema / properties / items / description

Removed value: -"The window of results. What an item carries depends on the tool and on `detail`."

removedOutput schema / properties / offset / description

Removed value: -"How many were skipped. `offset + returned < total` means there is another page."

removedOutput schema / properties / offset / maximum
```
Removed value: -9007199254740991
```
removedOutput schema / properties / offset / minimum
```
Removed value: --9007199254740991
```
removedOutput schema / properties / returned / description
```
Removed value: -"How many are in `items`."
```
removedOutput schema / properties / returned / maximum
```
Removed value: -9007199254740991
```
removedOutput schema / properties / returned / minimum
```
Removed value: --9007199254740991
```

removedOutput schema / properties / total / description

Removed value: -"How many matched in total — the whole list, never the window. Compare against `returned` before reporting a count to anyone."

removedOutput schema / properties / total / maximum
```
Removed value: -9007199254740991
```
removedOutput schema / properties / total / minimum
```
Removed value: --9007199254740991
```

removedOutput schema / properties / truncated / description

Removed value: -"True when this is not the whole list — including on the last page of a paged walk, where the rest is behind you rather than ahead."

First observedv0.1.0Nov 9, 2026

TDQS

A4.3/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Goes beyond the readOnlyHint by spelling out the consequence ('nothing is added, requested or monitored') and by disclosing per-source quirks — Lidarr hits are artists keyed under `ids.mbid`, and id-prefix handling changes coverage. No contradiction with annotations; it reinforces them.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness4/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Front-loaded with the core purpose, then tight clauses on source-specific caveats; nearly every sentence carries operational weight. It is dense with backticked syntax and cross-references, which costs a little readability but not correctness.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

An output schema exists and all four parameters are documented, so the description only needs to cover multi-source semantics and id handoffs — which it does. Minor gaps remain: nothing about behavior on ambiguous or zero-hit queries, and the relationship to search_media is unstated.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters4/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema coverage is 100%, so baseline is 3, but the description adds real meaning to `query` by documenting prefix syntax (`imdb:tt…`), the `kind: book` selector, and how returned ids feed get_releases and add_media. `limit`, `offset`, and `detail` are left entirely to the schema.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

Names a specific operation and resource ('Metadata for something you may not have: title, year, and external ids') and enumerates the backing sources (Radarr, Sonarr, Whisparr, Lidarr, Seerr, Shelfmark). The 'something you may not have' framing separates it from library/detail tools like get_library or get_media_details without needing to name them.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines4/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Gives concrete usage conditions: use `kind: book` for Shelfmark results, query `imdb:tt…` to resolve an IMDb id to a TMDB id, and note that a bare `tt…` will miss Seerr. It does not explicitly contrast with search_media or discover_media, so the when-to-use-vs-siblings case is only implied.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.