The 20 Most Breathtaking Sakuga Scenes In All Of Anime

Mob Psycho 100's sakuga scenes are predicted by the percentage counter that ticks off the the main character's increasing emotional instability. When the counter reaches 100%, his psychic powers burst forth, and the cheerful tone of the anime changes completely. Instead of clearly defined figures, the bodies become scribbles and outlines. Instead of bright colors, the characters contrast starkly with the backgrounds. Scenes like this remind viewers Mob Psycho 100 is far more serious than its innocent animation suggests.

Naruto's animation is really hit-or-miss, but when Studio Pierrot puts the effort in, the show offers some of the most spectacular sakuga scenes ever made. The fight between Kakashi and Obito, two former best friends who now find themselves on the opposite sides of a war, is a prime example of the studio's heights. With no elaborate jutsu, no verbal interruptions, and no background, the scene shows the two of them swinging their fists in sharp, masterful movements.

The inital fight between Naruto and Sasuke marks one of the first times Naruto really shows off its sakuga capabilities. While in motion, many of the characters' finer details fall away—the folds in Sasuke's shirt are gone, for example. This allows for quicker, frenetic actions that make the scene come alive.

The final fight in Sword Of The Stranger conveys a badass duel, pure and simple. The two combatants clash, sparks flashing off their swords as they battle for their lives. Other details, like the disturbance of the snow beneath their feet, add a sense of gritty realism to the fight.

If the strongest person in the world is going to finally take on someone who challenges him, the animation needs to keep up. Luckily, Saitama's battle with Boros is as epic as it ought to be. Many of their moves involve flashy, colorful bursts of light moving at top speed. These create excitement, but the animation layers multiple moods with detailed shots of the setting and calmer scenes of the characters stopping to gather their wits.

Whether it's animated by Wit Studio or MAPPA, Attack on Titan is littered with great sakuga moments. It's not easy to choose just one, but one of our favorites is Levi's showdown with his uncle Kenny. The scene makes full use of the background, sending the characters crashing across rooftops, through bars, and through the air. Their moves have a strong sense of physicality to them - there's one part where Kenny's feet are screeching across the floor in a remarkably human way. The animation makes the fight believable - which makes it that much more exciting.

During the battle between Spike Spiegel and Vincent Volaju, Spike tells Vincent about his eye for detail. Clearly, whoever animated this scene share's Spike's talent, as far more happens than just exchanging blows. The punches possess realistic human impact—spit flies from Spike's mouth when he's hit in the face, and the characters routinely catch their breath and struggle to regain balance. What's more, thanks to the festival surrounding them, the backdrop comes alive with fireworks and balloons, adding to the atmosphere of the scene.

The animation in Demon Slayer is so off-the-chain that some people accuse fans of only liking the series for the animation. That's unfair, since it also has great characters and an exciting plot - but it is true that the animation truly shines. One of the best scenes is the fight between Tanjiro, Nezuko, and Rui. The characters' quick, decisive movements keeps the scene full of energy. The heavy black outlines surrounding the flames from Tanjiro's Hinokami Dance make the whole thing feel like an ancient Japanese scroll come to life. If you love sakuga, you cannot miss this show.

Akira remains one of the best animated films ever made, and its gritty, hand-drawn animation is one of its biggest selling-points. While every scene offers a different type of visual spectacle, the most gruesome and powerful one by happens when Tetsuo's powers rage out of control, causing him to grow massive multi-colored slabs of flesh that eventually destroy his physical body. Simultaneously monstrous and awesome, this scene sticks with you long after the movie ends.

The Monogatari series features plenty of stellar animation, but the fight between Koyomi and Kiss Shot in Kizumonogatari stands tall among the finest. In the battle, Koyomi squares off against the vampire he once felt he owed his life to. The hero gets his head repeatedly knocked off, but he's always able to grow it back. Eventually, he uses his body as a projectile weapon to pierce Kiss Shot's chest. The imagery is startlingly brutal, and the fluidity of motion makes it even more intense to watch.

What's the easiest way to get people invested in a movie? By opening with a scene of mounting tension conveyed through animation. Escaflowne: The Movie starts off with calm blue skies and goats ambling up a mountain. Suddenly, the sky darkens and a threatening ship looms; on the ship, Van fights for his life. Animators made each movement fluidly detailed and the micro-expressions on characters' faces give the scene a little extra realism.

Summer Wars features stunning animation throughout its run, but the moments preceding the fight between King Kazma and Love Machine takes it to another level. The scene alternates between real-world activities such as kids dog-piling a teenager and online actions that involve flying through a series of household objects. A lot happens at once and the more fantastical parts can be hard to track visually, but the scene pulls it together to create a beautiful effect you won't soon forget.

As the name implies, The Animatrix is a compilation of short animated films based on the Wachowski sisters' Matrix trilogy. In terms of beauty, the skateboard scene stands out from the rest. The art looks deliberately sketchy, which provides great contrast to the finely detailed movements. The protagonist repeatedly stumbles and catches himself during his escape, swiveling his neck and darting his eyes around just like someone on the run. This allows the audience to feel the physical effort in a tangibly visceral way.

If you want to know the premise of Space Dandy, the dance-off between Ton Jravolta and Dandy will give you a pretty good idea. Against the backdrop of outer space – with explosions going off around them – the pair's dance is eye-catching enough to make you forget about the intergalactic booms occurring all over the place. It's a pretty amazing feat when you think about it.

If you're going to draw a monster exploding out of a young girl's face, you're obligated to make the process look cool. FLCL blatantly disregards logic and expected behavior, instead choosing to get the audience invested using slick, frenetic animation and art so detailed you can see individual grains of rice flying from Takkun's lunch into the monster's mouth.

The 1998 film Spriggann revolves around one group's attempts to stop a powerful piece of technology called Noah's Ark from falling into US control. In this scene, the main character, Yu Ominae, finds himself engaged in a car chase. The scene starts off dreamy and relaxed with beautiful scenery rolling by, only to increase in tension as Yu kills his driver and starts trying to elude the car behind him. The climax occurs when the back of the car shatters; it smashes into multiple textured pieces that actually look like real-life glass.

For a lot of people, the most memorable thing about Gojo's Infinite Void is the sheer power of the move or the unexpected beauty of his eyes. But the high quality animation also deserves a shoutout. From the fluidity of Gojo's movements to the warping background as they enter the domain, it's a gorgeous scene that does a great job of representing the rest of the series.

One Piece has well over 1,000 episodes to its name, and like any long shonen the animation quality varies. But one of the reasons that the series is so beloved is that many of the scenes are absolute visual spectacles. Among the most noteworthy is Luffy's fight with Katakuri. The fluidity of their movements works perfectly for Luffy's Gum-Gum Fruit and Katakuri's Mochi-Mochi Fruit - but their attacks are still fast, sharp, and determined. It might be one of the longest fights in the series, but because of the animation quality, it's tough to look away.

Kyoto Animation is known for a uniquely beautiful animation style that highlights that cuteness of its characters. While it's hard to pick just one scene that encapsulates this, we're going to go with one from an underrated series called Hyouka. The series follows Hotarou Oreki, a teen genius who wants to do as little as humanly possible, and Eru Chitanda, an enthusiastic girl who drafts him into solving mysteries for her. One of the scenes where she asks him for a favor involves a close-up of her sparkling eyes, flowers and vines sprouting around her, and her hair moving as if it's alive. It's not only lovely, but it does a great job of getting the mood of the scene across.

Ping pong doesn't strike most people as a particularly exciting sport. Ping Pong: The Animation is here to prove that notion wrong. While the whole series is brimming with amazing animation, this scene, which depicts a match between Smile and Kazama, stands out. The art, which is sometimes sketchy and sometimes finely detailed, gives the whole scene a surreal quality. The characters sometimes move like real humans, and sometimes like mythical creatures. It's clear that the animators have a strong grip on both realistic and fantastical elements, and know just when to utilize each one.