Hello everyone and welcome to another edition of The Anime Pulse!
I’m sure that when everyone was a kid, people thought about their dream match-ups. Whether it was in sports, pro-wrestling, video games, etc. You often wondered what it would be like if your favorite franchises battled each other? You found yourself asking “What if Mortal Kombat took on Street Fighter?” or “What if Batman took on Iron Man?” These dream and fantasy match-ups kept us awake at night and filled us with a sense of wonder in a world where anything is possible (as long as money, contracts, and legal rights are involved).
The same could be said about anime as well. I have seen countless threads on forums talking about and asking who would win between a battle of someone versus someone. That spirit of curiosity is alive and well today among the otaku community and even I, myself, have often wondered what would happen if worlds collided.
I do have to admit, though, that this curiosity was sparked by the Sword Art Online vs Accel World game that is slated to come out later this year. Not only that, but games such as Dengeki Bunko Fighting Climax also, have often, sparked my imagination. So I figured I would give you guys five of my personal dream matches from the world of anime!
5) Ippo (Hajime no Ippo) vs Kenichi (History’s Strongest Disciple Kenichi)
Okay, so I’m mixing boxing with street fighting here and while Kenichi does have several martial arts masters teaching him, Ippo is one really clever boxer. If you have been keeping up with the manga, Ippo is beginning to master an all-new Dempsey Roll which comes at you from all angles and is highly unpredictable.
Being a boxer means that Ippo has a very high reaction time to incoming strikes. I could see him using this ability to create good separation between himself and Kenichi. With that distance, he could use his boxer’s mind to analyze Kenichi’s attack patterns and maybe lure him into a favorable scenario where he can close the gap and unleash his new Dempsey Roll! Another strategy I could see being implemented here is to tire each other out before going in for the final strike. Both of them have very intense and rigorous training programs that they put their body through. A battle of stamina may seem like an endless battle, but it would also answer the question of whose training is better as well!
Either way, it would be an interesting slug fest to say the least!
4) Netto Hikari (Rockman.EXE) vs Subaru Hoshikawa (Ryuusei no Rockman)
These may be video game characters, but they each had their own respective anime series so I’m throwing them on my list!
Battle Chips vs Battle Cards! With the Cross Fusion ability, Netto would take the form of Rockman in the real world while Subaru would use Denpa Henkan to assume his form of Rockman. After that, it’s a battle of chips versus cards and with their high ability swapping speeds, this could be an amazing battle for the ages!
While some of the chips and cards are similar between the two of them, there are some differences on each side. While Netto can utilize Program Advances for heavy damage, Subaru has the AM Life Force forms as well as the Tribe King powers on his side as a counterbalance.
Either way, it would be one hell of a dream match (at least on my end) to witness. Now we only need a studio other than Xebec to animate it, if it were to happen! Ufotable? Please!?
3) Guts (Berserk) vs No Name (Sword of the Stranger)
Who doesn’t love a good sword fight? The power, strength and brute force of Guts versus the very nimble and skilled swordplay of No Name. While speed would be on No Name’s side, Guts does have the credibility of fighting and defeating 100 trained soldiers all by himself. I don’t believe the fight would be as one-sided as it looks on paper.
Guts has a very natural talent for using the sword, even without any training. I think No Name would have his hands full in a one on one battle; however, I think with No Name’s ability to stay calm and rational in a fight, that would give him a bit of an edge. On the other hand, Guts’ power and brute force may not allow No Name enough time to sit back and think about his moves, putting him on edge and disrupting his thought process. It would be an interesting fight, neverthless!
2) Madara Uchiha (Naruto) vs Natsu Dragneel (Fairy Tail)
Okay, so on the surface, this seems like a one-sided fight. Madara’s power is insanely high and many have likened him akin to a god. Seems like Madara would have the upper hand here; however, it may not be as one-sided as you would think. We all know that Madara’s main element is fire, which Natsu is a perfect counterbalance for. Natsu could eat any fire Madara throws his way and use it to empower himself. It would be interesting to see what happens if Natsu eats Madara’s Majestic Destroyer Flame!
Madara also has the power of the Rinnegan, which can absorb any jutsu thrown at him. This is true if the jutsu is made of chakra, but Natsu’s power comes from ethernano energy. Since it’s a completely different type of energy, that would render the RInnegan’s absorption ability useless. Madara also has the power to craft a perfect Susano’o for defense; however, Natsu’s Roar of the Thunder Flame Dragon has been seen to carve holes through mountains and has the power to possibly break through Madara’s ultimate defense.
One would believe Genjutsu would give Madara the upper hand here, but as of the last couple of chapters in the manga, Natsu was able to overcome death from a coma-like state. That might (or might not) allow him to break out of a genjutsu. When you think about it, this would end up being a tremendous fight
1) Akatsuki (Naruto) vs The Noah Clan (D.Gray-man)
I’m going for a battle royal here to end my column. This was the original “What if?” scenario that played out in my head and is my personal, ultimate dream match up. Just imagining something like Tyki Mikk vs Tobi/Obito with their abilities to pass through space and time or Road vs Itachi in a battle of Genjutsu vs Dreams, gets me all giddy and excited. Some don’t match up well against others, but that’s what makes it interesting!
Throw in the fact that this is a team effort and we could see double teams and combination attacks only to be countered the same way with the opposing team’s abilities. Like with Jasdero shot a bullet into Itachi’s eyes and blinded him? Or Skin Boric electrifying Kisame’s water sphere? A clash between these two factions would be one for the ages and it’s one that I would love to see play out! Someone get on this and make an OVA!
With that in mind, my personal favorite match-ups may not be yours. Maybe you find mine interesting, maybe you don’t. I’d love to hear your feedback on mine as well as some of your own dream matches!
Send your thoughts and suggestions to joshpiedra@theouterhaven.net or leave a reply in the comments section betow. If you feel inclined to do so, consider following me on Twitter @TheAnimePulse.
Until next time,
Ja ne!
