[Top 10] Sword Art Online Best Fights of All Time (Ranked)

Sword Art Online, Death Game, Fight Game, Anime, Fight Series

Updated:

23 Jan 2022

[Top 10] Sword Art Online Best Fights of All Time (Ranked)

Top 10 Sword Art Online Fights- It has been almost a decade since the first airing of Sword Art Online. The original series, spin-offs, and the recent release of Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night have kept viewers enthralled for the past 9 years, with a second Sword Art Online Progressive movie coming out in 2022, leading into the 10 year anniversary of “Sword Art Online Alicization: War of Underworld.” Kirito and Asuna lead their way through some amazing fights, which is part of what makes this series so amazing. Today we will be looking at the Top 10 fights of the Sword Art Online universe.

10. Angel Asuna and Yuuki vs. PoH

Very rarely through this series do viewers get to see Asuna fight by herself, or with another strong female lead. This is not the case when it comes to this specific fight. PoH is an incredibly strong character to fight, thus showcasing the capabilities that Asuna really has. This fight becomes very intense, yet Asuna prevails in the end, with Angel Yuuki only making an appearance before the fight and the fight seemingly freeing Yuuki once the battle is won.

9. Kirito vs. Integrity Knight Eugeo

Once Eugeo turns into an Integrity Knight, it changes the relationship that Kirito and Eugeo seem to have. At the beginning of this fight, it does not really seem like Kirito has the same advantages as Eugeo, and Eugeo definitely shows how powerful he is since his transformation, though I do not believe this fight would have the same intensity if Eugeo had not become an Integrity Knight. It would have been amazing to see a battle of best friends before Eugeo had changed.

8. Kirito and Leafa vs. Eugene (Salamanders)

The Salamanders force Kirito and Leafa to fight them by blocking them from entering Lugru. Throughout the SAO series, we do not see a lot of female lead fights, as it mostly focuses on Kirito and his power. However, Kirito does have a number of supporting female partners to help him get through his fights. This is an instance of that. Leafa initially teaches Kirito an Illusion spell, which he would go on to use to defeat the Salamanders. However, Leafa ultimately sacrifices herself to use all of her magic to heal Kirito while he is chanting the Illusion spell to ward off the Salamanders. The Illusion spell itself should not have aided in killing Eugene in general, but viewers would come to understand that this was more of a transformation spell that would transform him into a monster. This fight showcases how resourceful Kirito can be in making sure that he has good supporting characters to battle alongside him. Kirito is always one step ahead of the people he battles as he is a strong character both physically and mentally.

7. Kirito and Eugeo vs. The Goblins

This fight was one of the first truly intense fights that I personally enjoyed, though it was a complete nail-biting experience. Kirito and Eugeo are undoubtedly an iconic duo throughout the series, coming in second to the Kirito-Asuna duo dynamic. The Goblin fight comes fairly early in the series, and before The Gleam Eyes fight , so although viewers know that Kirito is a strong character, his full potential has yet to be demonstrated. Eugeo is seemingly terrified as they encounter the Goblins, so it is hard to know yet if Kirito is going to have a strong battle partner, which is especially critical with this fight since there are a significant number of Goblins and only the two to battle them. But as usual, Kirito demonstrates not only his physical strength, but his mental strength as well, as Kirito helps instill confidence in Eugeo and tells Eugeo his plan to take the Goblins down. Kirito takes on the larger Goblins while Eugeo takes on the smaller ones, allowing the pair to gain weapons from the Goblins’ stockpile. In this fight, we see a momentary sign of weakness from Kirito as he celebrates a victory before he should, allowing Ugachi to strike Kirito. The fight ends in victory, of course, but it also showcases how although a character can be strong in multiple ways, there are still weaknesses for each character that they must work to overcome or else it may be fatal. This fight is a perfect example of how mental strength and confidence are just as important as physical skill.

6. Kirito vs. Heathcliff

When Kirito accepts the battle with Heathcliff, Heathcliff is the strongest character within the game. This causes a vast amount of tension between him and Asuna, as Asuna is (understandably) annoyed that Kirito is participating. Much like Kirito, viewers come to find out, through Asuna, that Heathcliff is famous because he has the Unique Skill called “Holy Sword.” This skill increased his offense and defense tremendously, though we know that Kirito is incredibly powerful with his Unique Skill: “Dual Blades.” This is how Kirito assumed he would win the battle, yet Heathcliff is easily able to block the skill. This forces Kirito to activate “Starburst Stream,” allowing Kirito to knock Heathcliff’s shield temporarily. This was not the end-all-be-all move, however, and Kirito still had to intensely fight the all-powerful Heathcliff. This would not be the last time he would encounter Heathcliff, however, ultimately allowing him to strengthen his character which would later allow him to clear the game and free the remaining players.

5. Asuna vs. Yuuki

Seeing Asuna demonstrate her fighting power is an incredibly exciting part of the SAO series. Asuna is a healer and a supporting character for Kirito’s battles. This is not all she is capable of, however, which viewers see in the Asuna vs. Yuuki fight. She mixes her two personas, both healer and fighter, in order to rebrand herself and show that she is just as important of a fighter as Kirito is. This is not a fight that Asuna wins, but hey, Kirito lost to Yuuki as well. The important part of this fight is how intensely Asuna fights against Yuuki. She demonstrates just how strong of a fighter she is while also gaining skills, as well as proving herself to Yuuki, which will later be important when Yuuki decides to choose a battle partner against the Sleeping Knights.

4. Kirito vs Integrity Knight Lady Fanation

The opening of this scene leaves much to the imagination when it comes to just who this Integrity Knight is going to be, but we do know one thing for sure, this Integrity Knight is incredibly powerful. The loss ofthe helmet, revealing that Fanatio is a lady, seems to be a power move within the creators, and creates one of the first female villains of that strength. Kirito and Eugeo struggle with the battle against her, to the point where it is questionable whether or not he is even still alive. Kirito gives a speech to Eugeo about how his mentality is important when it comes to the defeat of the Integrity Knight, which makes it an incredibly powerful fight as it is not just about physical capabilities but mental capabilities as well.

3. Kirito vs. Quinella

The loss of Eugeo is intensified by Kirito’s speech and use of Eugeo as a sword (yes you read that right- Eugeo transforms into a sword) in the fight against Quinella, or the Administrator. The importance of Kirito and Eugeo’s quest was to bring Alice back, something that Kirito hopes to achieve through the battle against Quinella. This drawn out fight has so many ups and downs it is hard to see who the victory will actually go to, however our beloved Kirito prevails nonetheless. This is one of the most intense fights throughout the SAO series, as so much seems to ride on the defeat of Quinella, especially when it comes to Alice and the restoration of her true self. This fight has a balance of love, heartbreak, and battle that ends in the best way for Alice and Kirito.

2. Everyone vs. 100 Floor Boss

The SAO series does an excellent job of highlighting certain character’s strengths, especially when it comes to main characters Kirito and Asuna. This group fight becomes essential in the completion of the game and the release of these characters from Aincrad. This Boss is huge and he has every strength that would make a terrifying monster. The Boss has weapons in his hands, laser eyes, and can add blood after beating a certain number of people. This overly-powered boss required every main character to use their strengths, but also showed the importance of the supporting characters of the group.

1. Kirito vs. The Gleam Eyes

Arguably, this is the best fight within the SAO series to date. Asuna and Kirito stumble upon The Gleam Eyes monster in the 74th Floor Boss Room. The Gleam Eyes boss was the first demon-type in the game, creating a new battle on its own. This fight started out as Asuna, Kirito, and Klein actively attempted to fight the boss in order to save the Aincrad Liberation Force. This is not how this fight would play out, however. Asuna’s first attack on The Gleam Eyes would demonstrate just how strong of a boss he is, but never fear, Kirito would demonstrate a unique skill that would take the boss down. He ends up defeating The Gleam Eyes using his Dual Blade skill, which is also the first time viewers would see him use this skill. Kirito would single-handedly take down the boss, saving The Army and Asuna in the process. This fight had me on the edge of my seat the entire time.