Dragon Ball Talk

What makes a GOOD fight scene?

Dragon Ball is known for its fight scenes, but are those fight scenes good? Let's find out, shall we!

NOTE: This post was inspired by the following video! Check it out when you have the time!

A good, well-written fight has two components to it. The "technical narrative" and the "emotional narrative". 

Think of it like a game of chess. Each move a player makes is the "technical narrative". Both combatants are slowly analyzing each other's moves while also planning for their next attack. As the great Sir Issac Newton once said, for every action, there is a reaction. In a game a chess, as one player moves a piece, the other reacts by reformulating their plan and moves their piece. The same can be said for a fight. The fight between Goku and Cell during the Cell Games is a prime example of this. Every time Goku would attack, Cell would react and vice versa. This would go on until one of them has won this battle of tactics. 

This is what makes a fight visually appealing and memorable, but what about emotionally?

When comes to "emotional narrative", we must revisit our hypothetical chess match. The "emotional narrative" is what each player feels on the inside. What is at stake if they lose? Why are they here? These questions are answered through the fight. 

Take Majin Vegeta vs Goku. This fight had the best "emotional narrative" in the series. Why? Because if Vegeta loses, he'd lose all the pride he has left, but if Goku loses, not only is the whole world in danger but the entire universe. Each one is fighting for something they deem important. These characteristics are what made Majin Vegeta vs Goku one of the most memorable fights in all of Dragon Ball. 

Now that we've gone over the two things that make a good fight scene, you're probably thinking that the PERFECT fight scene is a mixture of the two. You'd be right. Fights like Naruto vs Sasuke at the end of Naruto Shippuden or All Might vs Nommu at the end of My Hero Academia season one. What about Dragon Ball? Does Dragon Ball have a "Perfect fight"? 

In my opinion, only one comes to mind. Without out a doubt the most influential and memorable fight in the history of Dragon Ball. Goku vs Frieza. The beginning of the fight was more "technical narrative" as Goku constantly had to change his plan of attack the more and more Frieza revealed his true power. Then, this tactically battle became an emotional fight to the death when Frieza killed Krillin. After Goku turned Super Saiyan, the fight between two of the strongest fighters in the universe evolves into a fight between a friend's rage and a tyrant's pride. Of course, as we all know, rage won this bout.

Can you name any more "Perfect" fights in Dragon Ball? Also, tell me what you think in the comments and have a nice day!

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HayleyDBZ
Gokuisthegreatest