Curb Stomp Battle/Western Animation

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  • Exo Squad, whenever there are significant numbers of Neo Warriors, victory tends to lean in their favor against the Exoframes used by Exofleet due to their durability and regeneration. Hell, right after the Australian Resistance curbstomps the occupying Neo Sapien forces in Australia, they are in turn curbstomped by the Neo Warrior Counter Attack. Then there is the Third Battle for Venus where General Shiva, under Phaeton's Orders, tries to invade Venus or destroy the Resolute II again. Despite destroying several frigates, the Neo Sapien Fleet is completely overwhelmed, Shiva dies, the Flagship is destroyed, and several carriers, battleships, and carriers are destroyed by Marsh's flanking maneuver. What's left-which isn't much, limps back to Earth, leaving the way open for invasion.
  • While done by the villain, it's still not brutal enough for a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown, but the way Wanda Maximoff, aka the Scarlet Witch completely and utterly annihilates the X-Men in the X-Men: Evolution episode "The HeX factor" surely needs to be on this list. Apocalypse nonchalantly wiping out Magneto by waving his hand probably also counts.
  • Beast Wars has the epic moment where Megatron and Rattrap dramatically gear up for a fight with each other, complete with close up shots of their narrowing eyes and intense music, they charge at each other both clearly ready for an epic battle in their new Transmetal forms... and Rattrap proceeds to comically trip Megatron causing him to go flying headfirst into a rock.

Rattrap: Power you got. Brains is another story.

    • Considering Megatron has every advantage from a physical standpoint, the only way to beat him is trickery, which Rattrap got plenty of.
    • Silverbolt in the episode Crossing The Rubicon delivers one to Tarantulas after getting his Berserk Button smashed with a sledgehammer.
  • Most ridiculous example ever: in Transformers Cybertron Starscream once tried to fight a newly resurrected Primus. For the uninformed, Starscream is a fairly powerful Decepticon who transforms into a jet while Primus is a god who transforms into a planet.

Optimus Prime: This should be good.
Starscream: Whoa, big guns... SLAAAAG!

    • It looked like it might go somewhere when Starscream suddenly grows huge by the power of the MacGuffin, but Primus turns some moons into maces and effortlessly slams Starscream into an asteroid.
    • And during the earlier Jungle Planet arc, Optimus Prime's Mid-Season Upgrade, Savage Claw Mode, turned many a fight into the more standard example, though villains eventually got upgrades as well and evened the score. The one who suffered worst is Scourge, so dangerous when introduced and then spending the rest of the season getting flung into the air like Team Rocket after one hit by pretty much anyone. He thought he was still tough, though, which only made you feel sorrier for him.
      • Meh, didn't happen to Scourge quite as often as you make it out to be. Also, there can be no forgetting Megatron vs. Metroplex. Metroplex literally stomps on Megatron, effortlessly dodges an attack on his legs, and then brings his giant axe down on Megatron's ugly head so hard Megatron ends up in the bottom of a small crater in the floor.
        • The next floor, that is. He was pounded straight through the floor they were standing on and left a small crater in the floor below.
        • Worse than that still. Megs got knocked through two floors, leaving a crater in the third one down.
          • And then the following episode Megatron evolves into Galvatron and returns the gesture by handily snatching Metroplex's axe and beating him unconscious with it. His Unstoppable Rage also takes out almost every other Autobot beforehand.
    • Another Cybertron example, this time with Starscream on the giving end. He somehow manages to defeat all twelve Autobots, including Optimus Prime in full battle mode, for possession of the Omega Lock and Cyber Keys.
    • In Transformers Animated, Megatron's first act upon restoring his body was handing all five main Autobots their tailpipes without breaking a sweat. His second was frying Starscream for damaging him in the first place. The Autobots only survived because they ran away while Megs was cleaning house.
      • The Autobot's first encounter with Blitzwing and Lugnut was going well until Bumblebee suggested Megatron was dead. Lugnut proceeded to level all five of them (and Blitzwing) with one punch. Granted, it's the P.O.K.E, but it's still impressive.
    • The Transformers Prime finale gives us this confrontation between Airachnid and Soundwave. Airachnid tries to usurp power for herself, only for Soundwave to stand up to her. The resulting fight is totally one-sided, and ends with Soundwave's foot on Airachnid's head. Said stomp was the only time Soundwave actually moved his feet during the fight.
      • Optimus Prime's epic battle with Megatron in Prime contains one for each combatant. At first, Optimus unleashes an Unstoppable Tranquil Fury and proceeds to beat the tar out of Megs, beating him down so badly Megatron's armor is ground away in several places and he is left nearly helpless on the ground, unable to comprehend his impending death. Unfortunately for Prime, Megatron gets an evil Heroic Second Wind from the Dark Energon nearby and counters Prime's coup de grace with a Barehanded Blade Block before stabbing him in the shoulder with his own sword. The curb-stomp then goes in Megatron's direction, ending with him standing triumphant, like his vision had shown him.
  • Entirely serious and intentional example: The Boondocks spends an entire episode leading up to a fight between Grampa and Stinkmeaner, an old man that was able to kick Grandpa's behind despite being blind. Right before the fight starts, Huey realizes that Stinkmeaner didn't have superhuman sense and fighting ability, he just got lucky when Granddad accidentally nudged Stickmeaner's cane with his foot. Grampa throws the first punch, time stops for a minute for Huey to suggest everyone go read a book, the punch gets Stinkmeaner directly in the face, knocks him down, and he's dead seconds after hitting the ground.
  • Many of Freakazoid!'s fights were resolved this way, for laughs. One episode entitled "Relax-O-Vision" highlights this repeatedly.
  • Justice League: Aquaman and Wonder Woman have a duel on Easter Island. This fight is totally awesome and shows how Badass the king of the sea is. He barely wins. Then he pushes his luck and tries to go after Superman... Supes gives a depressed sigh and throws just one punch. Cut to Superman dragging Aquaman's unconscious body away, with a recovered Wonder Woman right behind them.
    • Which is due to the writers underestimating Aquaman's powers. In the comics, Aquaman has strength and durability to match Superman's.
      • No, he doesn't. Aquaman's strength is Class 60 while Superman's is Class 100, and Superman can survive on surfaces of suns.
      • Not in the DCAU he can't. Regardless, Superman is still obviously stronger than Aquaman.
    • The later fight between Green Arrow and Wildcat is brutally one-sided. That was Arrow's plan, though.
    • General Eiling absolutely destroyed Stargirl, S.T.R.I.P.E., Vigilante and Shining Knight after his transformation in Unlimited. Shining Knight refused to go down, though, which didn't end well for him.
    • Amazo in "The Return". "I have evolved far beyond what I was when we last met. You do not want to challenge me."
    • He pretty much decimates the entire Justice League, casually. And even moved the planet, the planet Oa to another dimension because he didn't feel like going around it.
  • In the Grand Finale of Kim Possible Mystical Monkey Power Ron manages to Curb Stomp the extremely powerful Scary Dogmatic Aliens.
  • The few times Beast Boy from Teen Titans is any use at all in combat, he has demonstrated a remarkable ability to curbstomp things - including utterly disassembling one of Slade's Sladebots (rather than his faceless Mecha Mook horde) and landing on Evil Starfire... in hippo form. Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass, anyone? Hey, don't mock the hippo. They kill more people a year than any other animal near its size.
    • Red X, in his first appearance in the series as his own character, effectively curb stomps the Teen Titans the first time he fights them. All of them. At the same time. With the exception of Robin, they don't fare much better against him for the rest of the episode.
      • He does it again in "Revved Up" when he takes on nine supervillains in their tricked-out, weaponized vehicles and destroys every single one of those vehicles. In forty seconds. In style. And not with his own motorcycle, either. That was destroyed, so he jumps from vehicle to vehicle instead while they're moving at speeds in excess of 100 mph and takes them out that way.
    • Go ahead. Piss off Raven. Then, while you're in the psych ward, probably in a full body cast, ask Dr. Light how it worked out for him.
  • Does the Robot Chicken clip "World's most one-sided fights: Caught on tape!" count?
  • In Ralph Bakshi's 1977 film Wizards, the final battle between Avatar and Blackwolf is a humorous example.
  • Kung Fu Panda does this twice. First, when Tai Lung goes on a rampage through the town for the first time, Master Shifu tries to fight with him, but fails in doing so. Seconds later Tai Lung is defeated by the old Master Oogway, who simply touched several nerves on his opponent's chest, paralyzing him.
    • Later, after discovering the secret behind the Dragon Scroll, Tai Lung furiously attacks Po with the forbidden technique (which can instantly incapacitate anyone). What was the effect of this action? Laughter. Panda thought he was being tickled, then after kicking Tai Long's butt few times in a comical fashion, he uses the Wuxi Finger Hold technique. Which is considered too powerful to be taught, but he does it anyway.
    • The best part? Master Shifu didn't teach it to him. He figured it out.
  • Star Wars: Clone Wars: Grevious spends most of time stomping Jedi, but his fight with Mace Windu lasted two seconds - in the first Windu used Force, in the next Grevious was lying on the floor.
    • Mace Windu has another such battle, in the original Clone Wars mini-episodes, when he goes to planet Dantooine, and his entire army is slaughtered by a CIS superweapon. His response? Beat the enemy robots to death with his bare hands and then destroy the superweapon singlehandedly. At one point he delivers a series of punches to some battledroids so outrageous, I swear, his fists looked like they were on fire. And then, he drinks some water a little boy gave him and leapt off a mountain into the distance. Yes.
      • Makes you wonder how a little electroshock and a fall could kill him.
  • In Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy, after 10 years of being told that Eddy's Brother is the strongest and most badass living thing that could ever possibly exist, in the movie we finally meet this glorious creature, and his demise is brought on NOT through an epic battle but by a door being unscrewed. By Ed. In like a minute.
  • In the South Park episode "Stanley's Cup," The South Park Peewee Hockey team ends up playing the Detroit Red Wings. This doesn't end well.
  • Winx Club season 3 uses this both for good and bad: Enchantix Bloom had one with the Trix, while Enchantix Stella had one against Chimera. The Bloom battle was awesome (well, by this season's standards), the Stella battle, not so much.
  • Okay, so you've never watched Avatar: The Last Airbender before. You are watching a random episode and this Aang character has entered the Avatar state. The odds that a Curb Stomp Battle is about to occur? Even money. (The odds that something awesome is about to occur are about 9:1 in favor.)
    • The first six minutes of "The Earth King." Its basically nothing but Aang, Appa, Sokka, Katara, and Toph vs. pretty much the entire Earth Nation army around the Earth King's palace, and not only these four humans + one flying bison pounding the Earth Nation's soldiers into the ground, they're doing it while barely slowing down and apologizing the whole way.
    • The end of "The Siege of the North." Avatar Aang + ripshit pissed La vs. the entire Fire Nation invasion force. It ends badly for them.
    • Any of the Order of the White Lotus vs anyone else..
      • All of the Order Of The White Lotus vs the Fire Nation Army. And the Fire Nation was powered up by Sozin's Comet at the time!
    • Bumi vs. the entire Fire Nation force occupying his city. It was during an eclipse when they were powerless, but it was still several hundred to one. The Fire Nation ran away! And he threw a gigantic statue after them!
    • In the very episode that she's introduced, the blind and 12-year old Toph beats the ever-loving crap out of seven professional earthbending fighters.
    • In their first on-screen battle, Azula defeats Zuko very easily and would have killed him if not for Iroh's intervention.
  • In Sequel Series The Legend of Korra episode "Welcome to Republic City" Seventeen-year-old Country Mouse Korra travels to Republic City and bears witness to three members of the bender crime gang, the Triple Threat Triads extorting money from a Muggle shopkeeper, one a waterbender, one an earthbender, one a firebender. Korra picks a fight, since she's mastered all three arts, and beats them easily. The fight ends with the fleeing gangsters and their roadster tossed through a shop front.
  • When Hanna-Barbera's Godzilla went up against COBRA. A Curbstomp battle with an added dose of PWN.
  • On Family Guy Meg goes to prison for a few months and comes back a hardened badass who beats the living crap out of Peter and gives him an actual curb-stomp (or "stairstomp" in this case).
  • The only real dramatic tension in Hanna-Barbera's Shazzan comes from seeing if the two kids can summon Shazzan in time to deal with the threat of the week. The moment they do, it's over for the bad guys. Throughout the series, Shazzan proves again and again that he is the most powerful magical being in the setting. Even when his opponents are ostensibly in the same class as him (such as a powerful demon and a fellow genie), Shazzan is completely unthreatened. Shazzan not only beats his enemies every time, he does it easily and with the same big smile on his face.
    • The best curbstomp in that series has to be when Shazzan dispatches a wizard who controls a powerful fire demon and the demon itself, telling the fire demon to 'go back to the dimension where it came from and take its master with it'. Now, what dimension DO Fire Demons come from? On the flipside, the genie actually once chastises the kids for summoning him to beat a local street magician just to show he could.
  • The battle between OSI and the original Sphinx organization of The Venture Brothers lore: Sphinx is simultaneously annihilated and humiliated by an army of The Village People impersonators, who appear to have suffered no casualties. In fact, the concept of the Curb Stomp Battle is parodied by how some of OSI's attacks clearly reference well-known war atrocities.
  • On an episode of Super Powers, when a visiting Mzyptlk sees the JL race out to stop some ordinary bank robbers, he lampshades the overkill of this curbstomp.
  • Samurai Jack does this rather well in the episode "The Princess And The Bounty Hunters" After spending almost the entire episode telling how they would individually take down Jack, the said princess advises they join forces to bring him down. After laying out a seemingly perfect trap, they all hide under the snow. They all spring on Jack as he walks by... and he takes them ALL down in less time than a drop a water from a melting icicle can hit the ground.
  • DC Showcase: Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam had title bad guy Black Adam defeat Superman in single combat, then fight both Superman and Captain Marvel at the same time, and only lose once they started getting their teamwork down. Then Adam forces a Sadistic Choice on Captain Marvel, between Cap's life or the life of a hostage Adam had. Naturally, being perhaps the biggest nice guy boyscout superhero around, Cap chose the life of the hostage over his own and surrendered, transforming back into Billy Batson. Then Adam tried to kill both Billy and the hostage at the same time, but was prevented from doing so by Superman. Billy was not amused. One magic word later and the beat down Captain Marvel laid into Adam was as profoundly satisfying as it was one sided.
  • An episode of Jimmy Two-Shoes had Jimmy becoming a wrestler. As you can imagine, every fight he was in was pretty much this.
  • Clayface in "Downtime" of Young Justice did this to the team off-screen. Seconds later, he was given one himself once Batman arrived on the scene.
    • When Superboy is first released in the pilot he (under the control of Cadmus genomes) takes out Kid Flash in a single punch, and after being slightly annoyed by Robin's taser does the same to him. Aqualad is the only one who actually manages to fight him evenly for awhile, although eventually Superboy takes him out too.
  • ThunderCats (2011)
    • In "Omens Part Two" Thundera's Cats are laid siege to by Lizards. The Cats have bows and arrows and a bit of sorcery. The Lizards have laser rifles, Sticky Bombs and Walking Tanks that shoot missiles. The Cats lose their kingdom in one night. They have a Hope Spot thanks to their Clerics and the Sword of Omens, but the appearance of The Dreaded ancient evil Mumm-Ra takes care of both.
    • In "Song of the Petalars" the Thundertank takes down four Walking Tanks without taking one hit, prompting a full-scare retreat of what remains of the Lizard Army.
  • The final showdown between Batman and Red Hood turns into this. At first, it seems that Jason is holding his own, cutting off Batman's utility belt and laying a few hits. But then Bats torches his gadgets, and reveals he's been holding back. The resulting bathroom fight scene comes dangerously close to a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown with the Dark knight on top, with Batman very close to losing it altogether.
  • Star Wars the Clone Wars has a few:
    • The very first episode is about Yoda utterly owning an entire droid army, then to add insult to the injury, he forces Ventress to retreat, with two casual gestures of his hand.

King Katuunko: He's noth worth a hundred droids. He worth a thousand.

    • Ahsoka vs Grievous While she did put up a good fight, and managed to escape, the scene showed how far apart their abilities were at the time.
    • Ventess vs the Nightbrothers. Savage was the only to come near to matching her. Then at the end of the episode a transformed Savage executes a Jedi Master, his Padawan, and their clone soldiers without breaking a sweat.
    • Anakin curbstomped the Daughter and the Son simultaneously, when they threatened to kill Obi-Wan and Ahsoka. Those are the guys representing the Light and Dark Sides of the Force respectively.
  • The season 2 finale of My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic pits Princess Celestia against Queen Chrysalis in a brief Beam-O-War. Celestia is quickly overwhelmed and floored, to even Chrysalis' shock. Then she and her entire army in turn get curb stomped by Cadance and Shining Armor with the power of their love.
  • Two examples from Mulan:
    • The first one (which isn't seen but heavily implied) between the Huns and the Chinese army. Based on the aftermath Mulan and her friends see, it didn't go very well for the Chinese troops.
    • Mulan herself later delivers one to the Hun Army when she uses a rocket to cause an avalanche, destroying nearly all of the Huns in the process.
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