What is a battle shonen without great fights?
Evidently not all shonen must involve fights and heroes confronting evil. This is just a stereotype that doesn't necessarily have to be a key element in these stories. However, when it comes to One Piece it is not only a feature but Oda is excellent at it. If you want to know which are the best
15. Whitebeard vs. Roger
Roger and Whitebeard showing off
Starting strong, we have two titans in One Piece: Edward Newgate “Whitebeard”, an Emperor of the Sea, and Gol D. Roger, the King of the Pirates. Although, they were not known by those epithets yet during this fight.
Wano country has given us the best animation in One Piece, and the animators didn’t disappoint with this scene. The clash between two monsters is beautifully executed to the point where the viewer understands the mighty strength of these legends. It’s impossible not to feel hyped watching this fight.
Even though it’s short, the weight of the characters and the craft behind the animation puts this scene at the beginning of this top. Besides, I just love how Oden gets smacked by Roger with one simple hit.
14. The Straw Hats vs. Oars
When your captain asks you to toss him, you have to
There aren’t many fights in One Piece between the whole Straw Hat crew and one enemy, which makes the fight against Oars a very important one. Thriller Bark is often remembered as a light and comedic arc with people mostly holding in their memories Brook’s backstory or Zoro's “nothing happened” moment in the end. However, the fight against Oars deserves a place on this list.
For the first time, we get to see the entire crew coordinate and struggle together to fight someone. As the fight goes on you cheer for them, Oars seems to be undefeatable, everyone is tired and hurt and the hype just continues to increase as we see each of the Straw Hats working together until we get to a satisfactory final blow by Luffy that just feels amazing.
There’s also Robin refusing to join the docking sequence because it would hurt her human pride which is hilarious.
13. Zoro vs. Kamazo the Manslayer
To be honest, it wasn't even a fair fight for Kamazo
It's no coincidence that Zoro is one of the fandom’s favorite characters, after all, he has delivered several of One Piece’s coolest and most important fights. In Wano, Toei Animation put some effort into this battle.
While in the manga this fight isn’t that epic, in the anime the animation elevated it to the point of being one of the best scenes in all of One Piece. Kamazo proves to be a strong rival, but Zoro is in a completely different league and with a bestial aura he beats the Manslayer with one of his classic moves in one of Zoro’s few but great moments after the time skip. However, it’s a small taste of what the Wano arc holds for a stellar Zoro.
Additional points because the Killer’s design as Kamazo is fire.
12. Franky vs. Senor Pink
Two hard-boiled men
Hot take: this is the best fight in the Desdrossa arc. Few times an antagonist has made fans feel so many emotions. This is a fight about manliness and will. In a very Franky way, this fight is similar to those standoffs that Zoro and Sanji have had.
Senor Pink has a very tragic story that we get to know as the fights unfold. We learn about his wife and the son he lost and how he became so hard-boiled. We see how each of them, Franky and Senor Pink, understand the character of the other.
I just want to see them grab a drink.
11. Luffy vs. Crocodile
Luffy finally manages to defeat Crocodile
The Alabasta arc is the first big arc of One Piece. For that very same reason, it contains several important events. We get to know about the Ancestral Weapons, the poneglyphs, we meet Nico Robin, and we have a lot of amazing fights. Luffy’s final fight against Crocodile is one of those and it doesn’t disappoint.
Not only is the first important enemy that Luffy defeats, catapulting the reward over his head and his name over the Grand Line but what I think is the most impressive feat of this fight is that shows really how smart Luffy is when it comes to using his abilities and his rivals' weaknesses. The silly rubber pirate defeated a Warlord of the Sea.
10. Ace vs. Blackbeard
Whitebeard should have stopped Ace
This fight was the key moment that ended up triggering, like a butterfly effect, several of the most important moments of One Piece, completely changing the story. After being on the hunt for Blackbeard for a while, Ace finally manages to find him and his crew.
Not only is it beautifully choreographed, but this fight is also the first time that we get to see the strength of Fire Fist Ace. We already knew that Luffy’s older brother was someone strong, after all, he’s Whitebeard's second division commander, an Emperor of the Sea. We needed to see a demonstration of his abilities. It’s a pity that Oda decided to introduce one of the most broken skills in One Piece too: Blackbeard’s yami yami no mi.
With the power of his fruit, Black beard nullified Ace’s powers and ended up defeating him, thus setting him on the path to eventually becoming a donut.
9. Sanji vs. Jabra
Sanji's first use of the Diable Jambe is very sexy.
Sanji is indeed supposed to be at the top of the strongest Straw Hat crew members, and in fact, he’s supposed to be parallel to Zoro. However, he doesn’t have many iconic fights. That’s what makes Enies Lobby such a good arc, everyone had their moment under the spotlight and Sanji didn’t disappoint and gave one of the best fights in the series.
Fighting Jabra, one of the CP-9 strongest members, Sanji suffered a lot. However, he also had some fire in him and showed everyone why he was part of the monster trio.
Let’s just say that is not only in the kitchen where he put things on fire.
8. Luffy vs. Doflamingo
Luffy is the smartest MC in the Big 3, I'm not going to debate this.
Doflamingo is a villain with an amazing build-up. He’s evil, powerful and an immense fountain of terror for his enemies. With a drug and weapons empire, slaves doing his work, there’s no limit to how merciless Doflamingo is. Not even his family is safe.
With all three forms of haki and an awakened fruit, he puts Luffy through hell during this fight. He’s the one to make Luffy struggle after the time skip and show that he can step up in the race to become the Pirate King. In front of another Warlord, Luffy shows how smart he is and we get another iconic moment as we’re introduced to the Fourth Gear.
You have to love Bounce Man.
7. Whitebeard vs. Akainu
If you tell me Akainu doesn't have plot armor....
There are things that you just don’t do in the world of One Piece. One of those is executing one of Whitebeard's crewmates. The Strongest Man in the World went to war against the whole navy to save the captain of his second division and in front of him is one of the most hated characters of the series: the admiral Akainu.
Akainu puts a real challenge to Whitebeard, being the person who caused more damage to him during the war. In the same way, Whitebeard almost made Sakazuki see the heavenly gates several times. Fast-paced, really dynamic, and with amazing punches from each, this is one of the best fights.
Honestly, I just love to see Akainu being stomped by an old man.
6. Zoro vs. Mr. 1
Zoro becomes capable of cutting steel
Zoro is the second in command of the Straw Hats. That’s why usually he fights the second strongest antagonist of the arcs or the seconds in command. While Luffy fights Mr. 0, Crocodile, Zoro faces one on one against Mr. 1, Daz Bones.
There are some points for which this fight is one of the best. Daz Bones is a blade man, thanks to his devil fruit the Dice Dice fruit, which means that his body is made out of steel. Being able to cut Daz Bones was a crucial moment for Zoro’s swordsman abilities. The fight that follows between is a gorgeous over-the-top battle in which we see them cut everything around them.
5. Luffy, Law & Kidd vs The Beast Pirates
Kaido should be ashamed that his crew members are so weak.
These three captains are supposed to be equals, at least that’s what narratively Oda always tries to show when they’re together. For that reason, it is not a surprise that they shared a few amazing moments where they showed their abilities. The Wan Country arc is the one where we’ve seen the most of them together and this moment is right at the top.
The quality of the animation and the choreography shows how much effort Toei Animation has been putting into the last arc. This fight parallels the one in Sabaody where the trio fights the marines and in the same way we get to see how over-power they are as they humiliate Kaido’s forces effortlessly.
You’ll be rewatching this fight over and over.
4. Luffy vs. Usopp
This one hurts personally
This fight is not one of those that will hype you as you see the characters do amazing moves and use incredible powers. This is one of those fights where Oda’s writing carries everything. The amount of emotions makes this fight one of the most personal ones in One Piece.
Luffy decided to leave the Going Merry behind since it was impossible to repair it, something that hurt Usopp who challenged Luffy to a duel. The possibility of the crew leaving him the moment he wasn’t helpful triggered Usopp, but Luffy had to take a stand as a captain. It is so heartbreaking to see their friendship break as they hit each other, and even more horrible: that the rest of the crew has to watch without doing anything.
One of the emotional gaslight moments from Oda.
3. Luffy, Law & Kidd vs the marines
Imagine it's your first day and you get to arrest these three
The Sabaody Archipelago arc is a key arc on One Piece since viewers are introduced to various important details of the story. We’re also introduced to the Supernovas, the eleven rookies with rewards over 100 million, of which Luffy and Zoro are part of. Two of these are Eustass Kidd and Trafalgar Law.
Alongside Luffy, they have the highest rewards over their heads, and this fight allowed Oda to show them equals to Luffy. Let me describe the scene to you:
After Luffy punches a Celestial Dragon, the navy raids the auction house where our beloved characters were and demands they surrender. However, the three captains have other plans. They go out, taking their time as they walk, arguing with each other about not interfering in their way, and with an absolute demonstration of power, the trio destroys the navy’s forces.
2. Luffy vs. Rob Lucci
Okay, I admit that this one could easily be in first place.
Rob Lucci continues to be one of the fan-favorite antagonists until today. Not without reason. This man is completely evil and a killing machine. Oda has a formula when it comes to fights and it’s very common for Luffy to lose the first encounter. However, the way Lucci pushed the Straw Hat’s captain is undoubtedly one of the best fights ever in anime.
The whole confrontation against CP-9 made the entire crew evolve, and Luffy understood the assignment. Being as smart as he is when it comes to using his abilities, Luffy came up with different techniques that help him overcome what appeared to be an immovable object. This fight was one of those that ended up catapulting his fame all over the world.
My favorite part has to be Luffy being little after using the third gear, he was so cute.
1. Luffy vs. Katakuri
The most significant One Piece fight so far.
Oda is a master at creating ridiculously strong antagonists. However, I have never doubted that Luffy or any of the Straw Hat will eventually win out. That way, the differences in strength eventually end up blurring. That’s why this fight is the best.
Luffy may have escaped Big Mom’s territory, but there are certainly not many fans who believe that Katakuri lost to Luffy or that our protagonist was stronger. This was a battle of wills, and Katakuri understood very well that no matter what happened Luffy would not stop and ended up conceding victory. However, the truth is that victory didn’t matter. It was the will that both of them showed, their characters, their development, that made this fight so well written.
That’s why Katakuri is a fan favorite (and because he loves donuts).
