User blog:LucidPigeons/The Top Fifteen Animated Fight Sequences

(in progress)

We all love a good fight, don't we?

It's something that gets the blood boiling and raises the tension. The end result usually changes the course of the plot, and by hell they're usually pretty awesome. Today, I'll be counting down what I feel are the top fifteen greatest animated fight sequences. This includes animated movies and series; I won't include anime because there's way too many choices to pick from and my knowledge of it is fairly vague, so for now I'll stick with western cartoons.

Keep in mind this is all my opinion. I haven't seen every cartoon in the world, so feel free to make suggestions.

15. Qilby vs. Yugo and the Eliatropes (Wakfu): I have to give this one major credits almost solely on visual appeal. While there isn't actually much in the way of fighting, Wakfu is one of the most beautifully animated cartoons I have ever seen, and it is at its finest during the final battle with traitorous villain Qilby and King Yugo in the climax of Wakfu's second season. You also have to feel for a villain who'd likely otherwise be a Complete Monster; the final shot genuinely establishes some sympathy for a pure evil character. The fight is here.

14. Lil' Gideon vs. Dipper (Gravity Falls): This was some serious catharsis. To elaborate, false prodigy Lil' Gideon Gleeful has just discovered the presence of a third journal (or first, under the circumstances) that he believes Dipper has possession of. Dipper and Mabel, currently on a bus back to their own home due to Gideon's previous victory, are ambushed by Gideon in his gigantic mechanical construct of his own likeness, and proceeds to hassle Dipper for the journal. The fight's an intense capper for a season finale which had actually been pretty tense up to now and seeing Gideon getting punched and eventually arrested is seriously satisfying. Never is the bond between the two twins more apparent than here. I'm sure the inevitable final battle with Bill will top it, but for now, here the fight is. The fight is here.

13. Jenner vs. Justin (The Secret of NIMH): Don Bluth's finest film is capped off by a bloody duel between the scheming Jenner and his rival Justin, which sees Jenner lose all form of civility after his plans take a nosedive and devolve into feral barbarism where he attempts to kill everyone he sees. The otherwise-advanced rats of the rosebush, Justin primarily, go into a straight-up sword duel which ends with Jenner's henchrat finally snapping and hurling a dagger into Jenner's back. It's arguably the darkest part of the movie aside from the flashbacks to the experimentation, and it's a straight-up sword fight that really challenges the G rating the movie has. As I said, it's bloody, or as much as it can be given as it's a family-friendly (mostly) movie. It'd probably be higher if it didn't also serve as the moment where Jenner's character was completely ruined; all it takes is one complication to his plan and Jenner does a Scar and goes nuts, being ousted as Nicodemus' murderer in the process. Jenner's plan was doomed from the start, but he could have handled it with some dignity. The fight is here.

12. The Bear vs. Balto and Jenna (Balto)

11. Ronno vs Bambi (Bambi)

10. Jasper  vs.  Garnet  ( Steven Universe )

9. Owlman vs. Batman (Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths)

8. Grievous vs. Ki Adi Mundi and accompanying Jedi (Star Wars: Clone Wars)

7.   Fire Lord Ozai  vs.  Avatar Aang  ( Avatar: The Last Airbender )

6. The Final Battle of Marshank (Martin the Warrior/Redwall Season 3)

5. Claudandus/Pascal vs. Francis (Felidae)

4. Sharptooth vs. Mama Longneck (The Land Before Time)

3. Tai Lung vs. Shifu (Kung Fu Panda)

2. The Bear vs. Todd, Copper, and Amos Slade (The Fox and the Hound)

1. Bryagh vs Sir Orrin, Giles, Danielle, and Aragh (The Flight of Dragons)