The 5 Best And Worst Fight Scenes In 2018's Marvel And DC Superhero Movies

It's been a mind-blowing year for superhero movies, & every single release featured epic fight scenes as well as... some not so epic efforts! Here, we take a look at the five best ones and the five worst.

By JoshWilding - Dec 18, 2018 07:12 AM EST

Filed Under: Aquaman

2018 has been an exciting year for superhero movie fans. We kicked things off with Black Panther (which could very well end up being Oscar-nominated) before moving on to the game-changing Avengers: Infinity War. Then, Deadpool 2 came along to deliver some big laughs, while Ant-Man and The Wasp proved to be an effective sequel for the pint-sized hero.

As we moved into the Fall, Venom arrived to break box office records no one could have guessed would be shattered, while that was followed by the amazing and spectacular animated feature Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

Finally, we have Aquaman; a great DC Comics adaptation which helps put Warner Bros. on the right track ahead of Shazam!'s release next year. Now, with 2018 nearing its end, we're turning our attention to the best and worst things about Marvel and DC's movies, this time putting the spotlight on the most amazing fight scenes - as well as the most disappointing!

Pretty much every single one of the aforementioned releases boasted some great fights, but not all of them were winners and they let us down for reasons you might not expect! So, to check them out, all you have to do is click the "View List" button down below.

THE BEST

Black Panther Vs. Erik Killmonger

Ryan Coogler massively exceeded expectations with the action scenes in Black Panther but considering the fact that he blew us all away with Creed, perhaps that shouldn't have surprised us!

Regardless, in a movie full of incredible action, the final fight between T'Challa and his cousin Erik Killmonger was an edge of your seat affair that was full of spectacular choreography and an ending which packed a real emotional punch as the villain died in Black Panther's arms making a point that struck a chord with both us and the titular hero.

It's going to be interesting seeing how Coogler tops this in the sequel but don't be surprised if he ends up choosing a totally different sort of bad guy for the follow-up.

Avengers/Guardians Vs. Thanos

Man, this was a tough one.

The final battle between Thanos and Earth's Mightiest Heroes in Wakanda was obviously incredible and Captain America managing to hold off the Mad Titan was a moment I'll never forget.

Despite that, I think I have to give the edge to the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy teaming up on Titan to fight Thanos. Once again, there was a lot of emotion here and a huge number of standout moments. Star-Lord losing his sh*t with the villain is one example, while that confrontation between him and Iron Man still gives me chills.

The stakes here weren't quite as high as right at the end of Avengers: Infinity War but Thanos pulled a freaking moon down from the sky! It was epic from start to finish and truly excellent.

Venom Vs. Riot

I had my issues with Venom but look, even I can't deny that it was awesome seeing the symbiote in action. That's something Sony Pictures definitely got right and the final fight between Eddie Brock and Riot was a visual spectacle which was very much like a comic book come to life.

The special effects were admittedly questionable at times here but when it worked, it worked.

Because so many of Riot's powers were similar to Carnage's, this was a glimpse at what may be to come down the line and I can only imagine that the fight between Cletus Kasady and Venom will be even better. Regardless, this was a lot of fun and definitely a highlight of a bad film.

Aquaman Vs. Orm

I won't get too specific here but Aquaman (obviously) wraps up with a battle between Arthur Curry and Orm which is nothing short of spectacular. Beautifully shot and a nice contrast to the gladiatorial battle a little earlier in the movie, this is a killer fight scene which serves as a nice exclamation point on the huge underwater battle which precedes it.

The ending is also great (again, I won't delve into what happens) and very unexpected.

Aquaman features a lot of mind-blowing action scenes and Arthur and Mera's fight with Black Manta very nearly pipped this to the post. Despite that, I have to give Aquaman vs. Orm the edge and both Jason Momoa and Patrick Wilson really killed it in this scene.

Ant-Man And The Wasp Vs. Ghost

I really enjoyed Ant-Man and The Wasp but it was a somewhat unremarkable sequel which was fun at the time but didn't really have much of a lasting impact.

Despite that, the movie featured a fantastic chase sequence which saw both Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne battling Ghost while being pursued by some of Sonny Burch's goons. It was a really well put together piece of filmmaking that just so happened to include a great Stan Lee cameo.

As both a fight and chase scene, this worked perfectly. It's a shame the rest of the movie couldn't quite live up to that (our trip into the Quantum Realm was a tad underwhelming) but it's hard to fault this and it definitely deserves a place on this list.

...And THE WORST

Venom Vs. Carlton Drake's Thugs

Whereas Venom vs. Riot was a lot of fun, this was just...is "the drizzling sh*ts" a little too harsh?

Maybe the fact that it was mostly spoiled in the trailers is the issue here but Eddie Brock discovering his powers while riding his motorbike through San Fransisco was nowhere near as exciting as it probably should have been and it ultimately fell flat thanks to subpar special effects and an underwhelming chase sequence which didn't get good until Venom made a (brief) appearance.

We know that this movie was made fairly cheaply and Sony obviously had to spend a lot of money on special effects but this grounded sequence felt completely out of place and just wasn't that good. Simply put, it was a bore to sit through for ten minutes.

Peter Parker Vs. The Kingpin

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was a masterpiece but if I have one nitpick it was this fight scene. After Peter Parker squared off with the Green Goblin, he was left defeated and at the mercy of the Kingpin. While I appreciate that the wall-crawler was badly injured, to see him just killed by the villain in such short order felt underwhelming and a bit of a waste.

Perhaps this is just personal preference but I would have been much happier seeing Peter struggle to his feet and maybe get off a few punches before being taken down for good.

Peter needed to die in order for Miles Morales' story to begin but as fight scenes go, this wasn't the best way to show the original Spider-Man in action! Luckily, it's only a very minor issue in an otherwise spectacular animated feature which may not bother others as much as it did me.

"The Hulk" Vs. Cull Obsidian

I'm reluctant to say anything bad about Avengers: Infinity War because it's so damn good but there are two moments in the final act which really bugged me. The first was how quickly Proxima Midnight was dispatched during that fight with Black Widow and Okoye but even worse than that was the confrontation featuring Bruce Banner suited up as the Hulkbuster and Cull Obsidian.

It was already disappointing not seeing The Hulk unleash in this movie but even worse was a supposedly powerful warrior like Cull who earned himself a place by Thanos' side being taken out like a chump!

In the grand scheme of things, this was a very small fight scene and one which doesn't really hurt the movie. However, I think Marvel Studios could have done better but time constraints probably stopped that.

X-Force Vs. Cable

Deadpool 2 did deliver in terms of action and there were a couple of scenes that I could have easily included in "The Best" section of this feature. However, while I appreciate how funny killing off X-Force was, I can't help but be disappointed by the way this fight scene played out.

After all, we never got to see X-Force square off with Cable as the trailers promised!

Throw in the fact that the fight on the truck that followed was pretty underwhelming (especially from the co-director of John Wick), and I definitely don't think this lived up to expectations. That's not to say it was bad, however, but I really don't think David Leitch managed to deliver on what should have been a truly memorable sequence.

Deadpool Vs. The Juggernaut

I am nitpicking here to be totally honest but I really wanted something more than this.

Deadpool's fight with The Juggernaut was played for laughs and saw the Merc with the Mouth torn in half immediately by the CGI baddie. It was a cool nod to the comic books but...that was it.

The final act somewhat made up for this and I can see what they were going for but these two have crossed paths a few times in the source material and it's been a whole lot better than this.

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182 Comments

1 2 3 4 5

LongMayHeReign - 12/18/2018, 7:35 AM

Fckdcfanboys - 12/18/2018, 12:45 PM

@LongMayHeReign - a bit of a whiney bitch arent you Josh

LongMayHeReign - 12/18/2018, 12:50 PM

@Fckdcfanboys - ?

JonC - 12/18/2018, 1:19 PM

@LongMayHeReign - Black Panther vs Killmonger has some of the most cringe worthy CGI in any of these... including comparing to Venom... if that section of the fight was left then i would include the fight... but with that CGI. Nope.

LongMayHeReign - 12/18/2018, 4:55 PM

@JonC - Bruh why are you saying this to me? I never disputed that FACT, my gif was strictly regarding the fact that Josh has made yet ANOTHER list article, and purposely put the one main scene all BP detractors love to harp on in a contradictory light in order to drive clicks and comments.

And as expected you fools took the bait hook, line, and sinker.

LongMayHeReign - 12/18/2018, 5:04 PM

@Fckdcfanboys - Wait you think I'M JOSH?

Don't you EVER insult me like that again or we are throwing hands.

Pantherpool - 12/18/2018, 7:37 AM

Another one?

MosquitoFarmer - 12/18/2018, 7:37 AM

Jesus this list is all over the place.

whynot - 12/18/2018, 12:32 PM

@MosquitoFarmer - I lost interest when I didn’t see Batman and/or captain America on the list that includes best fights
Cap Bucky vs IM
Batman warehouse
Both of these are beautiful

JonC - 12/18/2018, 1:20 PM

@whynot - for this past year?

fanboy03191 - 12/18/2018, 1:25 PM

@whynot - this is for this year. That warehouse fight was like two and a half years ago.

whynot - 12/18/2018, 1:41 PM

@JonC - your right wasn’t paying attention

whynot - 12/18/2018, 1:42 PM

@sharkman03191 - absolutely right misread thanks

fanboy03191 - 12/29/2018, 8:43 PM

@whynot - All good. Those were indeed fantastic fight scenes so I get it.

bkmeijer2 - 12/18/2018, 7:38 AM

Black Panther vs Erik Killmonger had well choreography, but it was just way too CGI-y which ruined it for me. The same goes for Venom vs Riot. Venom vs the thugs on the hand was quite enjoyable

GhostDog - 12/18/2018, 7:49 AM

@MalseMarcel - waterfall fight was far more superior

ThaIllest89 - 12/18/2018, 7:40 AM

You literally picked the worst-looking scene in Black Panther, the most awful-looking scene in Venom, and the single most forgettable scene in Ant-Man & The Wasp as the best fight scenes.................

DoubleD - 12/18/2018, 7:41 AM

OFF TOPIC Can't just ignore Rotten Tomatoes their everywhere.

Rotten Tomatoes is huge and successful business making lots of money. Rotten Tomatoes is everywhere can't rent movies on-line anywhere without having Rotten Tomatoes score next to it.

Rotten Tomatoes has become a household name.

KWilly - 12/18/2018, 7:42 AM

The BP vs Killmonger fight in the water was amazing. That had me on the edge of my seat. But the one in the third act was pure CGI-crap. No tension, just felt like a Wii video game.

Also, the Spider-Verse fight scene in the Aunt May's house and boss battles at the end were golden. Never in a million years would I think Aunt May could knock the snot out of Tombstone with a bat.

1 2 3 4 5

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The 5 Best And Worst Fight Scenes In 2018's Marvel And DC Superhero Movies

It's been a mind-blowing year for superhero movies, & every single release featured epic fight scenes as well as... some not so epic efforts! Here, we take a look at the five best ones and the five worst.

THE BEST Black Panther Vs. Erik Killmonger

Avengers/Guardians Vs. Thanos

Venom Vs. Riot

Aquaman Vs. Orm

Ant-Man And The Wasp Vs. Ghost

...And THE WORST Venom Vs. Carlton Drake's Thugs

Peter Parker Vs. The Kingpin

"The Hulk" Vs. Cull Obsidian

X-Force Vs. Cable

Deadpool Vs. The Juggernaut

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THE BEST

Black Panther Vs. Erik Killmonger

...And THE WORST

Venom Vs. Carlton Drake's Thugs