If there's one thing that anime as a whole is known for, it's epic fights. Regardless of its genre, an anime's super-powered duel between fighters or all-out clashes between armies is bound to be some of the most entertaining action ever put on screen. That being said, some anime fights are so good that they accidentally overshadow their story.

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For better and worse, these anime were defined by their fights, not their narratives. In fact, some of these fights are so good that they don't need context to resonate with admirers. That's not to say these anime are disposable or poorly written; it's just that their otherwise solid stories were unintentionally buried by their impressive action scenes.

10 Hellsing Ultimate Reveled In Its Schlocky Fights

Anderson Slashes Alucard In Hellsing Ultimate

Truth be told, Hellsing Ultimate is really more of an action OVA than a horror anime. The Hellsing Organization's fight against the supernatural and Nazi vampires has more in common with exploitation entertainment than brooding horror stories, but this isn't a problem. In fact, Hellsing Ultimate's love of big, gory fights is its selling point.

Hellsing Ultimate escalated its bloody brawls on an episodic basis, and this culminated in the multipart battle of London. Although it took three different studios (Satelight, Madhouse, and Graphinica) to complete Hellsing Ultimate over almost 12 years, the wait was worth it since it resulted in some of the best seinen anime fights ever made.

9 Baki The Grappler Pushed Anime Martial Arts To The Extreme

Baki Lands A Kick In Baki Hamma

Anime about intense contact sports aren't anything new, but Baki The Grappler holds the honor of having the edgiest and manliest sports fights ever animated. Baki Hamma's fight to prove himself to the world may follow a familiar narrative path, but the way it's executed cemented the series' reputation in viewers' minds.

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First animated by Group TAC then by TMS Entertainment, Baki The Grappler perfectly brought mangaka Keisuke Itagaki's imposing anatomy and detailed martial arts matches to life. Every blow is as bone-crushing and bloody as it should be, and it's because of this heightened violence that Baki The Grappler became a beloved niche anime.

8 Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song Brought Wit Studio To The Next Level

Vivy Defends Herself In Vivy Fluorite Eyes Song

Following Attack On Titan's breakout success, Wit Studio slowly shifted away from adapting other works to focus on making original shows. This culminated with Wit passing Attack On Titan to MAPPA just in time for its final season and airing Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song, an original sci-fi anime that is best known for boasting some of Wit's best fights yet.

Vivy may tell an otherwise familiar sci-fi story about artificial intelligence gaining sentience and emotions, but it's elevated by the titular android's beautifully animated and choreographed fights. Wit Studio made a name for itself with its unforgettable fights in Attack On Titan, but Vivy's gorgeous and hard-hitting fights are on another level.

7 One-Punch Man's First Season Is Legendary For A Reason

Saitama Dodges A Kick In One Punch Man

As a parody of superhero fiction, One-Punch Man is unsurprisingly filled with epic brawls between superheroes and supervillains. That being said, Saitama's battle against boredom and a lack of worthwhile opposition was so amazingly animated by Madhouse that his first season quickly became one of the most beloved debuts in recent anime history.

Even if Saitama can win every fight with one punch, Madhouse realized these satirical clashes with such extreme detail and effort that what should've been punchlines became epic. Madhouse did such a good job that, by pure accident, they set an impossible standard for the anime, and this doomed JC Staff's second season from the start.

6 Demon Slayer Was Ufotable At The Height Of Its Powers

Uzui Fights Gyutaro In Demon Slayer

For the longest time, Fate/Zero and Unlimited Blade Works were considered Ufotable's best and most insurmountable works, but then Demon Slayer began airing in 2019. Tanjiro's determination to protect his sister was compelling enough, but Ufotable's animation is what really catapulted the hit anime into stardom.

Demon Slayer's claim to fame were its gorgeous and intense fights, and every succeeding cour topped its predecessor's impressive feats of animation. The Infinity Train and Entertainment District Arcs (especially Uzui's fight against Gyutaro) are currently considered to be Ufotable's peaks, but expect the studio to surpass these soon.

5 The Fate Series Hit Its Zenith With The Heaven's Feel Movies

Rider Attacks Saber In Fate Stay Night Heavens Feel III Spring Song

As deep as its lore and characterizations are, the Fate series' main appeal to veterans and newcomers is its battle royale. Every Fate show and movie centers on an all-out brawl between history's greatest heroes (mythological or otherwise), and they all deliver the promised spectacle. That being said, the Heaven's Feel trilogy is Fate at its peak.

Based on the visual novel's third and darkest route, Heaven's Feel boasts some of the long-running franchise's most elaborate and visually stunning fights yet. Ufotable never slacked off when animating Fate ever since they took over in Fate/Zero, and their work on Heaven's Feel (specifically in the third chapter) is the best Fate has ever looked.

4 Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann Reaffirmed The Power Of Super Robot Fights

Team Dai Gurren Fights The Anti Spiral In The Lights in the Sky Are Stars

When it comes to epic mecha fights, fans can always look to the super robot genre to satisfy their needs. That said, the genre arguably peaked with Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. Studio Trigger's most beloved anime may not deviate from the classic super robot formula, but it more than made up for this with the genre's greatest fights.

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It's no exaggeration to say that Gurren Lagann's brawls are the biggest in the genre, since it famously ended with a duel between giants who towered over the cosmos. What's more, these epic brawls embodied humanity's undying fighting spirit, and this genuine sincerity cemented Team Dai-Gurren's battle for mankind's future in fans' hearts.

3 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Revolutionized The Classic Shonen Fighting Formula

The World And Star Platinum Clash In JoJos Bizarre Adventure Stardust Crusaders

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is regarded by its fans as the pinnacle of the shonen battle anime, and the long-running series certainly earned this lofty praise. The Joestars' generational saga codified many shonen battle tropes in its manga form, and David Production reaffirmed the title's historic significance through the hit anime.

Every chapter of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is filled to the brim with iconic super-powered brawls fought by unforgettable characters, so much so that every fight (whether they're minor encounters or decisive duels) is someone's favorite. Whether it's a Hamon-based clash or an epic Stand showdown, the Joestars' fights are known and respected by all anime fans.

2 Fist Of The North Star Created The Fighting Anime

Kenshiro Attacks in Fist Of The North Star.

Although it's little more than a meme these days, the original Fist Of The North Star from Toei Animation is arguably the battle anime that started it all. If not for Kenshiro's post-apocalyptic journey and his ability to punch people until they explode, the current battle anime (and even just the way anime fights are executed) wouldn't even exist.

Fist Of The North Star is what would happen if Bruce Lee were given actual superpowers and fought in a post-nuclear war world, and it's as epic and bloody as it sounds. Fist Of The North Star rarely deviated from its formula over its 109 episodes, and this is why few remember its details, but cherish the memory of Kenshiro making enemies explode into gore.

1 Dragon Ball Z Cemented Its Legacy With Epic Brawls

Goku Punches Vegeta In Dragon Ball Z

There's no anime as synonymous to legendary fights as Dragon Ball Z. Toei Animation did such a good job at bringing the Z Fighters' epic clashes with galactic villains to life that not only did Dragon Ball Z bury its preceding series (the original Dragon Ball), but it also completely revolutionized what anime fights can and should be.

Dragon Ball Z's legendary fights codified everything from beam attacks to fast-paced martial arts in 1989, and Toei outdid itself with the movies, Dragon Ball Z Kai, and Dragon Ball Super. Even people who never watched one Dragon Ball Z episode recognize its fighting hallmarks and iconography, and this is a testament to the anime's undying impact.

NEXT: 5 Differences Between Dragon Ball Z and Kai (& 5 Things That Are The Same)