When it comes to Shonen Battle Anime, the Dragon Ball franchise has reigned supreme for decades. Every installment in Akira Toriyama's long-running series - from the original 1984 manga to Dragon Ball Super - features truly incredible battles. Some of the deadliest characters in the entire series are the Androids; robotic combatants that resemble humans to an uncanny degree.
Androids have become increasingly more prevalent in Dragon Ball over the years. Both in the mangas and the animes, Androids have fought in some of the series' craziest battles! One could spend days reading about all of Dragon Ball's momentous mechanical melees. One could also take the TLDR route and read CBR's breakdown of the 10 most vicious Android fights in the franchise's history.
10 Android 21 (Good) vs. Android 21 (Evil)
Dragon Ball FighterZ is a fighting game created by the same folks who made Guilty Gear and BlazBlue. Android 21 is an entirely new character who first debuted in FighterZ. She's a strong fighter, capable of giving even the toughest Super Saiyan a run for their money. However, her most vicious battle isn't against the likes of Goku or Vegeta - it's against herself!
Near the end of her story arc, Android 21 separates her Good side from her Evil side. The two beings then battle it out while Goku and the others try to stop Evil Android 21. After a knock-down, drag-out fight with her Evil counterpart, Good Android 21 realizes how outmatched the heroes are and sacrifices herself to save the day.
9 Major Metalitron vs. Kid Goku
Major Metalitorn is a mean fighting machine created by the Red Ribbon Army. This perpetually angry Android shares many similarities with the Terminator, both in terms of appearance and personality. Goku first encountered Metalitorn when he was still a kid, during the 1980s Dragon Ball series.
While ascending Muscle Tower, Kid Goku eventually reaches Major Metalitron's floor. At the behest of General White, Metalitron picks up Goku and tries to crush the kid in his bare hands! Goku escapes, then blasts off Metalitron's head with a Kamehameha beam and impales him with his Power Pole. The Major still keeps on trucking until his batteries finally run out.
8 Android 19 vs. Vegeta
Near the beginning of Dragon Ball Z's "Android Saga," many truths are revealed about these mechanical menaces. When Androids 19 & 20 first hit the scene, the Dragon Team learns that Goku is prophesized to perish via a Heart Virus. Android 19 was specifically created by Android 20, better known as Dr. Gero, to assassinate Goku while the Heart Virus weakens the latter.
Unable to fight at full power, Android 19 nearly kills Goku until Vegeta intervenes! Vegeta handily beats the sprockets out of Android 19, forcing the latter to restrain the Prince of all Saiyans with an arm lock. Smugly, Vegeta tears off 19's arms and finishes him off with a Big Bang Attack.
7 Future Androids 17 & 18 vs. Future Gohan
This fight doesn't represent what is but what could have been. In the animated film Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks, we see an alternate reality in which Goku succumbed to the previously mentioned Heart Virus. The Androids attack, the world descends into chaos, and Gohan and Trunks are the only two Z Fighters left standing.
This changes when Androids 17 & 18 find Gohan & Trunks. Trunks wants to stay and help Gohan fight, but Gohan refuses to take that chance and knocks out Trunks for his good. A one-armed Gohan then goes Super Saiyan and gives Androids 17 & 18 the fight of their lives! Gohan ultimately gets overpowered, beaten to a pulp, and incinerated by the Androids' Accel Dance attack.
6 Android 17 vs. Piccolo
At one point in time, Android 17 was considered one of the most dangerous Androids in all of Dragon Ball. 17 laid testament to this claim in Dragon Ball Z by fighting some of the mightiest characters that show had to offer - including Piccolo. 17 initially writes Piccolo off, believing that the Namekian's strength pales in comparison to a Saiyan's.
Eager to prove him wrong and shut him up, Piccolo challenges Android 17 to a one-on-one battle. The two of them cut loose - trading bone-breaking blows and Earth-shattering strikes with complete reckless abandon! To Android 17's surprise, Piccolo matches his strength evenly - a feat that Goku couldn't even pull off at the time!
5 Arale vs. General Blue
Dragon Ball isn't the first series created by Akira Toriyama - that distinction belongs to Dr. Slump. Arale Norimaki is the main character of that series. Though Arale looks like a little girl, she's really an incredibly powerful Android created by Senbei Norimaki. Goku first encounters Arale as a child, during his war with the Red Ribbon Army.
Goku pursues General Blue, eventually chasing him into Penguin Village - Arale's hometown. When Goku corners Blue, the General uses his Psychic Eyes ability to stun the young Saiyan and take Arale hostage. This attempt proves to be Blue's undoing, as Arale hits the General hard enough to send him flying all the way over to Egypt!
4 Anilaza vs. Team Universe 7
First debuting in Dragon Ball Super during the "Tournament of Power" story arc, Anilaza is one of the strongest enemies that Dragon Team has ever faced! Anilza is a Fusion Warrior that's comprised of multiple members from Team Universe 3. He possesses all of his predecessors' strengths, none of their weaknesses, and a host of deadly abilities.
Anilaza quickly overpowered Goku in single combat, prompting Vegeta, Gohan, Android 17 and Android 18 to enter the fray. The combined might of these warriors still wasn't enough to beat Anilza - even after Freiza joined in the battle! The heroes barely managed to scrub out a victory thanks to Android 17 launching a dangerous surprise attack that removed Anilaza from the battlefield.
3 Perfect Cell vs. Future Trunks
Trunks' saga comes full circle in this brutal battle from Dragon Ball Z. Cell, an Android from an alternate timeline, has just achieved his Perfect Form. Eager to avenge the fallen and prevent any more innocent lives from being lost, Trunks turns into a Super Saiyan Third Grade before blitzing Cell. Trunks' sheer strength and rage initially overwhelm Perfect Cell, causing the Android to wonder if Trunks is truly capable of killing him.
Due to his increased bulk, Trunks gasses out - giving Cell the prime opportunity to strike back. Cell first humiliates Trunks - kicking him around like a hacky sack and parodying the powers that the Saiyan just displayed. Perfect Cell then breaks Trunks' body and will but decides to let him live for the sake of fighting another day.
2 Super Perfect Cell vs. Gohan
This cataclysmic conflict takes place all the way at the end of the "Cell Games Saga," after most of the Z-Fighters have been beaten, Cell has just achieved his Super Perfect Form, and Goku has just sacrificed his life in vain. In the end, Teen Gohan is called upon to step up to the plate and finish his father's fight.
Wracked with guilt and remorse, Gohan transforms into a Super Saiyan 2 and gives Super Perfect Cell Hell! The tide of battle constantly changes throughout Gohan and Cell's fight, with both parties dead set on obliterating one another. Battered and bloodied, Gohan finishes Cell off - once and for all - by performing the Father-Son Kamehameha with Goku's spirit.
1 Super Android 13 vs. Goku
Despite being a relatively small scale conflict, Goku's battle against Super Android 13 in the latter's self-titled DBZ movie is perhaps the most vicious fight in all of Dragon Ball for one simple reason; Super Android 13 punches Goku in his groin so hard that he forces Kakarot out of his Super Saiyan form!
Most of the fights on this list and many of the fights that aren't included here are brutal for different reasons; in a typical Dragon Ball fight entire landscapes get reduced to rubble and bodies are broken and bent out of shape. Goku's encounter with Super Android 13 is brutal because of how close to home it hits.