Summary
When theYu Yu Hakushoanime was airing, it was one of the only shows capable of rivalingDragon Ball Z’s ratings, and10 of its best fightsexplain why. Author Yoshihiro Togashi has beenhard at work withHunter x Hunter’s new chapters, but before that, he createdYu Yu Hakusho, whose manga and anime millions of fans will never forget. It’s a series filled with unlikely heroes and intense battles against demonic foes that make up some of the best anime battles of the 1990s.
The story ofYu Yu Hakushois about the exploits of a delinquent teenager named Yusuke Urameshi and his friends, who become tasked by rulers in heaven with fighting demons after a series of unfortunate events. Spiritual and demonic energies clash, while comedy and drama are balanced excellently in the beloved series, which continues to grow a fanbase thirty years after its conclusion.
Throughout Yusuke’s journey, he and his loveable oaf of a friend, Kuwabara, befriend demons Hiei and Kurama while fighting intimidating forces across several intense story arcs. Each character is brought to life with the help ofYu Yu Hakusho’s incredibly talented voice cast, including Justin Cookand Christopher Sabat, who’ve both moved on to voice other iconic characters in series likeDragon Ball ZandMy Hero Academia. Their voices played a role in helping create some of thebest fights inYu Yu Hakusho’s anime.
10Yusuke Out Smarts A Mind-Reader With His Fist
Yusuke Versus Shigeru Takes Place During The Chapter Black Arc in Episode #72
TheDark Tournament isn’t justYu Yu Hakusho’s bestarc but one of the greatest shōnen tournament arcs of all time, partially because of its many larger-than-life battles. This is why one of the following arcs' first battles felt so refreshing: it used dramatic irony, clever writing, and Yusuke’s considerable strength to get the better of a foe almost any normal human wouldn’t stand a chance against.
Certain humans started manifesting psychic abilities after a portal to the demon realm began to open, one of them being Shigeru Murota, who planned to use his new ability to read minds to make a fortune as a boxer. In the grand scheme of things, Shigeru was a minor character in the series, buthis short battle against Yusuke brilliantly helped set the stage for the Chapter Black arc, which would be a very different experience than the Dark Tournament was.
9Kuwabara Starts The Dark Tournament Strong
Kuwabara Versus Rinku Takes Place During The Dark Tournament Arc In Episodes #28 - #29
Speaking of setting the stage for great arcs, Kuwabara versus Team Rokuyukai’s yo-yo-using demon boy Rinku started off the legendary Dark Tournament with several surprising bangs. While Yusuke’s friend always seemed like the weakest link compared to Hiei and Kurama, he was more than anxious to jump into the first battle in the demon-infested tournament. And it was there that he proved that audiences shouldn’t take him lightly.
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Although Kuwabara ends up losing the battle due to some underhanded tactics, he proves capable of tanking incredible amounts of damage and shocking onlookers by manipulating his Spirit Sword energy in several incredibly beneficial ways. Again, Kuwabara versus Rinku isn’t anywhere nearYu Yu Hakusho’s flashiest battles, but it showed that Kuwabara and the foes his team would face in the tournament would be providing battles that not only entertained but defied expectations consistently.
8Yu Yu Hakusho’s Underdog Takes On The Biggest Kitty
Kuwabara Versus Byakko Takes Place During The Maze Castle Arc In Episodes #16 - #17
Being arguably the least powerful fighter amongst Yusuke’s group,Kuwabara’s character was the perfect vehicle to provide satisfying and surprisingly underdog moments. This rang especially true during the Maze Castle arc, where he, Yusuke, Hiei, and Kurama each faced off against one of the Saint Beasts, formidable demons who possessed earth-shattering strength and elemental abilities. Byakko, the bulky White Tiger, was challenged by Kuwabara, and it was a matchup even his friends did not think would be wise.
Byakko was a colossally buff humanoid tiger with a wide range of deadly abilities, including razor-sharp claws, stone-melting blast breath, and energy absorption that devoured Kuwabara’s Spirit Sword. However, the battle proved the teen brute was able to do more than talk when he found several clever ways to counter the Saint Beast’s strengths, allowing Kuwabara to defeat the foe twice, once by giving the beast too much energy to absorb and the second time by knocking his opponent into a lava pit.
7Hiei Becomes A Dragon Of Flaming Darkness To Defeat Bui
Hiei Versus Bui Takes Place During The Dark Tournament Arc In Episodes #57 - #58
While Hiei is one ofYu Yu Hakusho’s coolest characters, many of his battles end very quickly due to his incredible strength and speed, but both of those abilities were dramatically tested in his fight against Bui during The Dark Tournament’s final round. Each member of Team Urameshi prepared themselves for their anticipated last battles because the foes they would encounter required it, and Bui was no exception.
Bui was one of Team Toguro’s most mysterious fighters, completely clad in heavy armor. After Hiei proved to be worth the effort, Bui removed his armor, which caused the ground it landed on to shatter and their battle to really begin.Bui’s unrestricted energy clashed against Hiei’s Dragon of the Darkness Flame in one of the series' flashiest battles, ending in a decisive and exhausting win for Hiei.
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6Kurama’s Fight Against Karasu Was The Series Most Bloody and Explosive
Kurama Versus Karasu Takes Place In The Dark Tournament Arc During Episodes #55 - #56
The first match of the Dark Tournament’s final round hadthe brilliant Kurama battling against the calm and explosive Karasu. Team Toguro’s first fighter used a variety of bomb-like creatures, some of which being invisible, that landed disturbingly bloody wounds on Yusuke’s most intelligent friend. Even with Kurama being able to tap into his own Yoko Kurama demon form, the battle was hard-fought and was ultimately a loss for the good guys, even if Kurama’s final attack did kill his opponent.
5It Took Yusuke More Than An Apple A Day To Keep The Doctor Away
Yusuke Versus The Doctor Takes Place During the Chapter Clack Arc In Episodes #73 - #74
Unlike most of Yusuke’s previous missions, the Chapter Black arc had the series heroes battling against psychic-powered humans instead of monstrous demons. His hesitation to kill humans was genuinely tested in one of the series' most intense sections, which saw Yusuke and his friends trapped in a hospital as they hunt an unknown killer. Their foe turns out to be a doctor who can significantly alter his appearance and body’s chemical makeup to boost his physical attributes.With Yusuke’s apprehension to kill a human, his foe’s skills, and the situation’s growing tension, The Doctor left a strong impression.
4Yusuke’s First Dark Tournament Fight Is One Of Its Greatest
Yusuke Versus Chu Takes Place During The Dark Tournament Arc In Episodes #30 - #32
The Dark Tournament introduced a range of colorful characters with an even larger degree of personalities, and Chu might have the largest. Using drunken martial arts and energy attacks similar to Yusuke’s, the two fighters were closely matched in power and personality. Theirbrutal stationary slugfest with knives pressed against their heels during the Knife Edge Death Matchtook the fight to the next level and helped it become one of the most badass fights inYu Yu Hakusho’s anime.
3Yusuke and Kuwabara Make Themselves Known To The Toguro Brothers
Yusuke and Kuwabara Versus The Toguro Brothers Gang Takes Place In Episodes #23 - #25
After the firstcouple of arcs ofYu Yu Hakusho, both Yusuke and Kuwabara have become considerably powerful, and the mission that tasked them to rescue Hiei’s sister Yukina from the clutches of the crime boss Tarukane couldn’t have demonstrated it any better. Using their considerable spiritual energy, the two teens casually stroll through the crime bosses' demon lackeys and traps until they confront two foes who’d change their lives forever, the Toguro brothers.
The short arc before the beginning of the Dark Tournament brilliantly hypes up Yusuke and Kuwabara’s abilities while alsointroducing some of the best villains fromYu Yu Hakushoin an incredibly effective way. After clearing through Tarukane’s henchmen with little to no effort, the two heroes are nearly killed by Elder and Younger Toguro working together. With the help of an impressive team attack that nearly killed Kuwabara, the brothers were defeated, or at least, that’s what they wanted everyone to think.
2Dozens Of Episodes Of Hype Payoff Significantly With Yusuke and Toguro’s Ultimate Fight
Yusuke and Toguro’s Final Battle Takes Place In The Dark Tournament Arc In Episodes #61 - #64
Tension between Yusuke and Toguro had been building up throughout much of the story, with the latter easily being the most intimidating character the franchise had shown so far. Anticipation was finally rewarded in the final match of the Dark Tournament, in what some viewers believe to be one of thebest anime fights of all time, when Yusuke finally fought Toguro, who’d waited most of his life for an opponent he could go all out against, a wish Yusuke was eventually able to grant.
A lot of the battle’s most impressive choreography and action takes place during its first chunk, where Yusuke attempts to beat Toguro with his powers restrained by a training device called the Spirit Cuffs. After those are dropped,Yusuke delivers one of the series' most satisfying assaults on the foe, prompting Toguro to finally go all out. The fight sees a dramatic shift in pacing and action after that until Yusuke (again) attempts to sacrifice himself to deliver a giant attack that earns him and his team the winning spot of the Dark Tournament.
1Yusuke Versus Sensui Broke The Rules and It’s Cast
Yusuke and Sensui’s Final Battle Take Place In The Chapter Black Arc In Episodes #85 - #93
While the brilliantly formed tension between Toguro and Yusuke helped their fight become a fan favorite for many,the number oneYu Yu Hakushofight goes to Yusuke versus former Spirit Detective Shinobu Sensui. The main villain of the Chapter Black arc had accomplished so much in his life, including becoming one of history’s strongest Spirit Detectives at an incredibly early age. Unlike Toguro’s lust for a good battle, Sensui’s reasons for villainy were more complex, making him a fascinating foe for Yusuke to clash with psychologically and physically.
Sensui had seen some of the worst that people were capable of, which triggered a desire to fuse the demon and living worlds. At several points in the story, the Chapter Black villain forces Yusuke andYYHviewers to confront some uncomfortable truths about the human race. His battle against Yusuke stripped both characters down and even revealed multiple personalities Sensui drew different powers from. The incredible animation, writing, and surprises the fight presents make it the best fight in the anime, even if its ending was divisive.
Sources: Crunchyroll Dubs (1,2,3,4,5,6,7) /YouTube
Yu Yu Hakusho
Yu Yu Hakusho is a multimedia franchise that began as a Japanese manga series in 1992 by author and illustrator Yoshihiro Togashi. The franchise ventured into anime in 1992 from Fuji Television, and there have also been two animated films. In 2023, Netflix released a live-action TV series starring Takumi Kitamura, Shuhei Uesugi, Jun Shison, and Kanata Hongō.
