One of the things that anime tends to do well is set up two characters (or two groups) that hold opposing views, making their inevitable showdown not just one about who’s stronger, but who’s able to convince the other than their views are wrong. The protagonists aren’t always victorious in anime. Indeed, they taste defeat more often than not. But whether they’re fighting for fame, for friends, or for a dream, they always get back up and fight again. Which anime series has the best fights? We’ll answer that with some of the best anime fights of all time, along with why these fights are so great and why they stand out against others. We can’t talk about most of these fights without a few spoilers, so skip any of the ones that involve anime series you aren’t caught up on.
7. Vetto vs. Black Bulls (Black Clover)
Vetto the Despair is one of the Third Eye—the three strongest fighters in the Eye of the Midnight Sun organization—in the Black Clover anime series. In this iconic anime fight scene, he’s pinned down most of the Black Bulls in the Seabed Temple. The way this fight plays out shows how teamwork has an advantage against formidable opponents. The Black Bulls’ battle strategy is like a puppeteer: when Asta loses his mobility, he relies on Vanessa’s thread magic and Finral’s spatial magic for locomotion.
6. Asta vs. Sekke (Black Clover)
Another satisfying fight in Black Clover involves Asta during his first step as a Magic Knight. Prior to this, he was humiliated by someone whom he thought was a good man during the exam. Because of his lack of mana and being magicless, Sekke thinks of Asta as an easy one. He plans to show off his spells to the captains—but he’s the one who’s dropped dead with Asta’s Anti-Magic sword.
5. Escanor vs. Estarossa (Seven Deadly Sins)
Escanor of the Seven Deadly Sins and Estarossa of The Ten Commandments are two characters linked by fate in the Seven Deadly Sins (Nanatsu no Taizai) anime series. Their first bout begins when Estarossa is surprised to see Escanor unaffected by his Commandment of Love. Their duel reaches a climax when Escanor burns Estarossa away with his Cruel Sun skill. Despite Estarossa’s passive skill—that no one can bear hatred towards him and loses all will to fight against him—Escanor manages to face down the enemy that defeated Meliodas. Escanor fights with pride and bears no hatred against his opponent until the very end. It’s his composed nature and resolute pride as Lion’s Sin of Pride that makes the scene one of a kind.
4. Finral vs. Langris (Black Clover)
In Black Clover, Finral and Langris are siblings who have dark family backgrounds. Their conflict arises during the Royal Knights Selection, where the tournament becomes their arena of rivalry. Although Finral never intends to hurt his younger brother, Langris isn’t the same—he casts powerful spells against him. What makes this scene one of the best anime fights is seeing the Black Bulls’ resolve to help a comrade in danger. Even though Langris’ team is declared the winner, he exhibits evil intent as he readies another spell to finish off his brother. Just as he’s about to land the blow, the Black Bulls fling themselves at him and pincer him with their weapons.
3. Luffy vs. Celestial Dragon (One Piece)
In the world of One Piece, Tenryuubito—also known as the Celestial Dragons—are god-like beings who get whatever they want, whenever they want, in any way they want. That’s why this anime fight scene, which involves the captain of the Strawhat Pirates Crew punching and bringing down a Celestial Dragon, is one of the most satisfying moments in the series. Many One Piece fans have come to really hate the characters of the Tenryuubito by this point, so that scene earns big cries of “Yes!” and “Serves you right!” from the viewers.
2. Luck vs. Captain Rill (Black Clover)
One more fight from Black Clover: Luck Voltia of the Black Bulls is one of the more cunning characters, and he’s up against the captain of of the Azure Deer, Rill Boismortier. Luck versus Captain Rill is one of the best fights in the Royal Knights Selection Exam arc. Without a clear idea of each fighter’s capabilities, we aren’t sure how they’ll defeat the other. Luck uses spells with Lightning attributes, while Captain Rill uses Painting Creation Magic. The bout starts with Luck’s team preparing a Compound Magic: Lightning Arrow, an idea spawned by seeing the combination magic used by other teams before. His arrow has lightning speed, further enhanced by Puli’s flight and Klaus’s steel. Meanwhile, Captain Rill prepares a counterattack with his Painting Magic: he doesn’t plan to block it, but rather relay the spell back for an additional power, which was also inspired by teams that fought before.
1. Attack Titan vs. Jaw Titan (Attack on Titan)
In the Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) series, episode 66 brings us one of the most epic and intense fights of the entire story. By this point, the titan shifter Eren Jaeger is in Attack Titan form and holds captive the Warhammer Titan of the Tybur family. Just as he’s about to devour her and absorb her powers, Porco Galliard in Jaw Titan form sneaks up and attacks him. With the aid of Levi and Mikasa, Eren is able to pin down the Jaw Titan and use its incredibly strong jaws to crush the encased Warhammer Titan and drink her blood. It may be brutal, but it’s a badass scene that results in Eren being the only one with three Titan powers. Read next: The darkest and most epic anime series
