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The Most Powerful Dragons In Movie And TV History
The strongest heroes must face the strongest dragons. This is a constant in stories throughout time, unrestricted by any specific point on the map. Dragons fought the noble knights in medieval lore and the mighty samurai in Japanese folktales. They are among the most dangerous and fearsome foes humankind has ever dreamed up.
Fans of these beasts know where they can find the best dragons in movies and television. It's one thing to sit around a campfire and hear about dragons, and a completely different thing to watch a dragon come shrieking towards the screen in front of one's own face. Thanks to technological advances, dragons are no longer things of legends and cave paintings.
But which of these mighty dragons is the strongest?
- 1135 VOTES
Smaug
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- The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
- Warner Bros. Pictures
Smaug was said to be the last great dragon in Middle-earth. He was famous for swiping the treasure of the dwarves and holing himself up inside of Lonely Mountain to admire his riches. He stayed amongst his wealth for over 150 years until he was interrupted by Thorin and company, who sought to reclaim the dwarves' ill-gotten wealth. As retribution for this incursion into his home, Smaug bombarded and decimated most of the nearby village known as Lake-town. He was ultimately taken out by an incredible arrow delivered by Bard the Bowman, but not before most of the town had been razed.
Smaug's powers were typical for a dragon. He was massive, mighty, and strong enough to break through stone. The fire he breathed was on the stronger side when compared to dragons in other franchises, as he could rain fire down on a town from hundreds of feet up in the air. His scales made most strikes completely ineffective against him, save for the one weak point on his underbelly. Like all Middle-earth dragons, he was also incredibly intelligent, which gave him a step up on other flying beasts.
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- 299 VOTES
Drogon
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- Game of Thrones
- HBO
Drogon is a dragon born from one of the three eggs given to Daenerys as a wedding gift. Upon their births, they became the only known dragons in existence. Later, after the demises of his brothers, Drogon became the only living dragon remaining. If only one of them could survive, though, he was the obvious pick, seeing as he was bigger and stronger than his dragonkin. With his mother, Daenerys, Drogon won many a great skirmish on their journey to Westeros. During the battle of King's Landing, Drogon was the key to their victory. He wiped out a fleet of ships, the city's gate, and ultimately, the Iron Throne - all on his own.
Like most dragons, he is massive and incredibly strong, but his fire-breathing abilities are where he shines. His fire doesn't just set objects aflame; it utterly decimates them. It appears to act as a concussive blast - similar to Cyclops's optic beam - and can break stone. He may not possess the human-like intelligence of some of the dragons in other media, but he was powerful enough to turn the tide of any given engagement in Game of Thrones.
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- 376 VOTES
Male Dragon ('Reign of Fire')
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- Reign of Fire
- Buena Vista Pictures
In this depiction of a post-apocalyptic London, dragons reign supreme. After a construction project awakens dragons from hibernation, they descend on Earth and are fought back with nuclear weapons, leading to a global catastrophe. So, in this world, dragons don't just destroy castles - they end the world. The strongest dragon depicted in Reign of Fire is simply known as the Male Dragon, the ultimate hunter amongst them and the only known male of the species. In the film, they plan to slay the male in order to prevent the dragons from further breeding, but he wipes out most of their army and castle before they can take him down.
The male dragon is a terrifying foe. Admittedly, his power levels in the film seem a bit inconsistent, seeing how he has a hand in bringing about the apocalypse but is taken out by a single explosive arrow (in the mouth, sure, but still). This dragon is notable for being able to withstand shots and explosives from modern weapons - not just measly swords and arrows.
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- 4113 VOTES
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- How To Train Your Dragon 2
- 20th Century Fox
Toothless is the last known Night Fury dragon. These dragons were once thought to be terrifying and dangerous, and while he is strong, Toothless is much more of an overgrown puppy than a vicious hunter.
While Toothless isn't as intelligent as a dragon like Smaug, he possesses a much greater intellect than the average animal (or even other dragons in his franchise). His greatest strength is his speed and agility, with his top speeds clocking in at around 100 mph. Toothless also possesses the ability to go into an alpha mode, where his cute and cuddly disposition is completely shed. In this mode, he was able to challenge the massive dragon alpha (literally hundreds of times his size) and win the fight. Toothless became the alpha of all dragons in his universe, so it's a decent bet that he could become the alpha of all dragons everywhere.
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- 556 VOTES
Dragonstorm
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- Transformers: The Last Knight
- Paramount Pictures
As it turns out, King Arthur wasn't alone in his fight against the Saxons. To help Arthur win the conflict, a group of Transformers hiding on Earth combined into the mighty Dragonstorm and went to fight for Britain in medieval Europe. As any middle schooler can confirm, that's basically the coolest thing ever to happen. Medieval knights never really stood a chance against a normal dragon, let alone a massive three-headed metal Transformer dragon.
Due to its metal build (and the fact that it's a Transformer), normal dragons from other franchises simply don't stand much of a chance against Dragonstorm.
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- 670 VOTES
The Hungarian Horntail
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- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Warner Bros. Pictures
Among all the dragon breeds in the world of Harry Potter, the Hungarian Horntail is considered the most dangerous. Honestly, it seems a little absurd that high schoolers would have to fight it during the Triwizard Tournament, but that's exactly what Harry has to do.
The Hungarian Horntail is animalistic and agile. Although its fire doesn't appear to be as powerful as some dragons in other media, it makes up for it with its aggression and brawling ability. This dragon would fare very well in a claw-to-claw matchup, but the other dragons might make fun of its weak flame.
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- 770 VOTES
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- Eragon
- 20th Century Fox
Saphira was a dragon that hatched after finally finding a rider it connected with - a farm boy named Eragon. Eventually, Saphira grew, and together with Eragon, the duo was able to defeat the powerful dark sorcerer Durza.
Saphira, like all dragons in Eragon, has the ability to connect telepathically with her rider. This allows for a pitch-perfect level of cooperation not seen in other dragon/human teams. To oversimplify it a bit, Saphira also acts as a magic battery for Eragon, giving him the ability to use her strength for his spells.
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- 858 VOTES
Borch the Golden Dragon
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- The Witcher
- Netflix
Borch is a golden dragon who spends his days in the form of a man living amongst humans. He possesses two key qualities that separate him from dragons in other media.
For one, he is a shapeshifter able to take on a number of different forms. Additionally, Borch is highly intelligent and shown to be a clever strategist who manipulates events to make sure the Witcher can protect a group of dragons from their would-be hunters.
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- 942 VOTES
The Dragon ('Beowulf')
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- Beowulf
- Paramount Pictures
The original story of Beowulf contains one of the first-ever medieval dragons. Hundreds of years later, it was brought to life on screen in a terrifying manner. The dragon in the film is the son of Beowulf and the monster Grendel. He bombards the countryside and burns down villages in an attempt to get back at his dad.
The dragon that Beowulf faces is one of the most dangerous flying beasts ever to grace the silver screen. For one thing, it is massive and able to clutch multiple men in its claws at once before casually flinging them away. The dragon can also take bites out of castles, which is impressive, to say the least.
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- 1034 VOTES
Diaval
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- Maleficent
- Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Diaval is a raven that Maleficent turned into a human to save his life. In gratitude, Diaval pledged himself to Maleficent, who requested that he be her wings. Diaval is something of a shapeshifter, although his abilities come purely from, and at the will of, Maleficent. At the end of Maleficent, while fighting the king's forces, Maleficent turns Diaval into a terrifyingly large dragon. As a dragon, Diaval puts up quite a fight against the king's guards and sets fire to the throne room.
Diaval is a fairly standard dragon (if a little on the weak side). Not to be overly harsh on Diaval, but some dragons take out entire towns on their own, and Diaval seems to struggle fighting around 20 knights. With that said, his real strength comes from his transformation abilities. While a normal dragon wouldn't be able to sneak up on anyone, Diaval can get into places a normal dragon can't while in his crow form. Then, boom: surprise dragon strike.
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- 1145 VOTES
Haku
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- Spirited Away
- Toho
In Spirited Away, Haku serves as a guide to Chihiro. He makes sure that the young girl stays alive in the spirit world and instructs her against making the same mistakes that he made. Although Haku appears as a young boy at times, he's actually the spirit of a river, as Chihiro eventually reveals to him, which restores his memories.
Haku is quite different than most dragons in other films. This is mostly due to the fact that he isn't really technically a dragon, but is instead a spirit with the ability to manifest as a dragon. His spirit abilities give him an edge up over other dragons. He's incredibly wise and knowledgeable when it comes to anything relating to the spirit world. He has the ability to cast spells and manipulate the world around him in small ways.
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- 1251 VOTES
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- Dragonheart
- Universal Pictures
Draco was a large and brilliant dragon whose sacrifice ended the tyrannical king whose life was intrinsically connected with his. Draco was clearly strong, but it was his intelligence that set him apart from other movie dragons.
With that said, he did have a few unique abilities. For one thing, Draco had a camouflaging ability that allowed him to blend in with his surroundings. His strength and intelligence combined helped him to survive as the last living dragon.
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- 1354 VOTES
Dragon ('Shrek')
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- Shrek
- DreamWorks Pictures
Dragon in Shrek is a mighty adversary tasked with guarding Princess Fiona and ensuring that she stays locked away in her castle prison. Shrek and Donkey are only able to break Fiona out of said castle thanks to a mix of luck and Dragon's infatuation with Donkey. Later in the film, it's Dragon's strength and her strength alone that allows Shrek and company to end the reign of Lord Farquaad. After Dragon eats Farquaad, the soldiers in the throne room readily give up, unwilling to even attempt squaring off with the beast.
Dragon in Shrek is an intelligent being, capable of communication, although unable to speak. She possesses standard dragon abilities and is a mighty foe for any opponent.
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- 1447 VOTES
Falkor
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- The NeverEnding Story
- Warner Bros.
Falkor is an old and wise luckdragon. In The NeverEnding Story, he is integral to helping Atreyu and Bastian save Fantasia from the Nothingness. Falkor is notable for his constant upbeat attitude and belief that everything will work out in the end.
As far as power goes, Falkor isn't exactly ferocious, but he can fly incredibly fast and seems to have a luck power similar to that of Domino from Deadpool 2. Basically, as Falkor proclaims, when he's around, good things seem to follow him. Falkor is also incredibly intelligent. While he might not be the dragon going head-to-head in a brawl against another flying beast, he can hold his own as something of a dragon general - especially if his luck abilities work on a massive scale.
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- 152 VOTES
Vermithrax Pejorative
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- Dragonslayer
- Paramount Pictures
The chief antagonist of the 1981 fantasy adventure film Dragonslayer, Vermithrax Pejorative is a powerful dragon that has made its lair near a medieval town, and terrorizes its populace. The humans living nearby are in such thrall to the beast that they hold regular lotteries to deliver maidens to be eaten by it, in the hopes that this will prevent their town's destruction.
Unlike many dragons in fantasy, Vermithrax Pejorative doesn't possess human intelligence. It's simply a huge, terrifying creature with a taste for human flesh. Its size is immense – in one scene, when would-be-dragonslayer Galen (Peter MacNicol) leaps onto its neck, we can see that its head is as large as a human. Despite being armed with a dragonscale shield and a specially-forged spear, Galen is only able to wound the creature. It requires powerful magic – unleashed in a climactic duel between the dragon and the wizard Ulrich – to destroy it once and for all.
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