For as long as anyone can remember, there have always been two sides to everything: good vs. evil. It’s always like that in your favorite movies, books or television shows. Hey, it even happens in real life, especially on social media. And in the good vs. evil debate, you get the ones who cheer for the good of it all and those who’d rather step over to the dark side cause apparently they have cookies, cakes and other delicious desserts. (This is a long-running joke, laugh if you’ve heard it before.)
While growing up, it was actually fairy tales that first brought on this fun factor of deciding who should be the winning victor and who’d end up a debacle. It was one of the reasons that I was hooked onto books and movies as a child. To learn the mysterious outcome of such a continuous battle made for excellent entertainment. With the many well-known good vs. evil battles in the fantasy world, I’m always on the edge of my seat debating whether or not good should outdo evil or vice versa, depending on what I’m reading or watching. However, to be honest, I find it most exhilarating when evil loses because of an epic failure.
Disney is actually one of the best examples of this fun debate. Why? Because I find their shows and movies to have high amounts of the good vs. evil battles that children find highly entertaining, that’s why. Though many of their creations which feature the debate are actually based on old fairy tales. A lot of the battles are a “right in your face” showdown while a few can show a subtle possibility.
Go ahead and check out a few of what I believe to be the best of the “Good vs. Evil” in the world of Disney:
“Beauty & The Beast”
Beauty & the Beast is a fairy tale turned animated film. It tells the story of a young book-addicted girl named Belle who befriends a horrifying Beast. The two have many ups and downs, but the close relationship they developed seemed impossible to others. One day, the villagers find out about the Beast thanks to Gaston, the local, so-called handsome big shot. He leads the village mob with torches, pitchforks and other weapons to take down the Beast, who didn’t seem to care anymore since Belle left him to go back home. But then, as he is ready for death to come, Belle calls out to him and he finds the will to fight and survive, just to be with her. He gets hurt, but Belle’s love for him shines through and he turns human again and they live happily ever after.
The Beast vs. Gaston – The encounter of Gaston and the Beast didn’t occur until near the end of the film. Gaston, the evil character, had heard that Belle was staying with a ferocious creature in the horrifying castle after Belle’s father came into the pub raving mad. Belle had come home after awhile because her father became ill and come to find Gaston who came to the house wanting to marry Belle, but she refused. Using her father’s “lunacy” to his advantage, he blackmailed her saying that her father would be sent to the looney bin if she didn’t agree to his proposal. Still refusing, she took out the mirror to show everybody the truth about the Beast. Gaston, outraged, locks Belle away in the basement of her home and leads the villagers to kill the Beast. The Beast, the good guy in this fight, didn’t feel there was anything to live for, not caring if they invaded his castle. Gaston went to where the Beast resided and the fight started. Beast doesn’t care until Belle is heard and he fights back, winning the battle.
This is honestly my favorite good vs. evil battle of all time. Though it was short-lived, it revealed just how much the Beast was in love with Belle.
“Kim Possible”
Kim Possible is your basic average teenage girl. She goes through all the average issues a teen deals with like relationships, school, friends and family. But if there’s one thing that makes Kim stand out is the fact that she is a crime-fighter who saves the world pretty much on a daily basis. Her best friend and boyfriend, Ron Stoppable, is also her partner in these planet-saving missions along with their intelligent, computer friend Wade and naked mole-rat, Rufus.
Kim Possible vs. Shego – In the debate, Kim Possible is the ultimate good guy. She fights for the side of good every single day against numerous villains. But I believe the main focus on the evil of this series is her fights against Shego. Shego is an employee of Dr. Drakken, a mad scientist that wants to take over the world. Her job is mainly to steal certain things and to protect him as a bodyguard. She is also considered to be Kim’s rival. On numerous occasions throughout the series, Kim and Shego go head to head, depending on the situation. At a few points, there were times when the two figured they needed to work together as some decisions of other villains aren’t exactly agreeable to others. Overall, this good vs. evil battle was one of the best yet!
“Gargoyles”
Scotland gargoyles are awakened after a 1,000 year sleep by business tycoon David Xanatos. The gargoyles try to make a new life living in Manhattan, their leader Goliath concerned for their safety. But after befriend NYPD detective Elisa Maza, they realize they just might make it living there and thus began several adventures.
Gargoyles vs. David Xanatos – The gargoyles are known as the good guys in this series. Though to most humans, they are evil and pose a threat with their very existence. In the beginning, David Xanatos seems like a good guy when he first awakens them from their 1,000 year sleep curse. However, as soon as the second or third episode comes on, you realize that he is not so good. He uses the gargoyles to do his “dirty work”, tricking them over a series of several episodes. But with the help of Elisa, they come to realize that Xanatos is their enemy and yearn to keep the city safe from any of his ideas and people associated with him. This goes on for a span of two seasons, fighting him again and again until Xanatos realizes his wrong-doings and offers them a home once again in the castle.
Elisa vs. Demona
This is one of the subtle battles that I mentioned to you. Demona is Goliath’s former mate, who has a deep mistrust for the human race. Time and time again she works hard to rid the world of humans, but is quickly defeated by the gargoyles and Elisa, whom she despises. You could say that Demon is actually Elisa’s rival. Not in fighting, but for Goliath’s love. This is the real battle. In the series, there are several instances in which you knew Demona still harbored feelings for Goliath, but with her evil circumstances, he didn’t succumb to her wishes of working together. Now, Elisa’s feelings for the lead gargoyle are subtle, but still can be seen throughout the series. At the end of Hunter’s Moon part 3, Elisa and Goliath’s feelings are both revealed and they share a sweet kiss.
This old series was one of my all-time favorites and I will never grow tired of it.
“Descendants”
This newly premiered Disney film brings to life plenty of our favorite characters, good and bad, from the best fairy tales of all time. It features four villain characters – Maleficent, Jafar, Evil Queen and Cruella DeVil – whose own children are chosen to attend Auradon Prep, a school located in Auradon; the place where Belle and Adam (once the Beast) rule as King and Queen after uniting all fairy tale kingdoms together. Because of Maleficent, their evil children – Mal, Jay, Carlos and Evie – all from the Isle of the Lost are sent to scheme the fairy tale kingdom to steal the Fairy Godmother’s wand.
Good Characters vs. Evil Characters – The children of these notorious fairy tale villains are the evil side in this debate as they begin causing trouble for the school. Prince Ben, son of Belle and Adam, is a good character and the one who suggested the Isle of the Lost kids be given a chance. As the Lost kids follow the orders of Maleficent, Mal begins to wonder if what they are doing is right and begins feeling that what her mother wants is wrong. The good characters that belong to Auradon Prep help these children see the “good” instead of continuing to succumb to the evil their parents want them to be. At the end, these four evil children stand up front to defend the side of good and save the day! Definitely a great good vs. evil battle, don’t you think? And if you haven’t seen the movie yet, SEE IT!
“Tangled”
This was a great fairy tale movie about a girl named Rapunzel who was locked inside a tower by a bad woman by the name of Gothel. The young girl lived in isolation, dreaming of the outside world, until one day she received a visit from a man named Flynn Ryder. The two escape the tower together where they begin a journey for Rapunzel to see the lanterns released once a year from the nearby kingdom.
Rapunzel vs. Gothel – In this tale, Rapunzel is the good character who only dreams of leaving the crude tower which she is stuck in. Gothel, the evil one, has her locked away because of the girl’s long, golden hair which is said to have many healing properties and helping to keep Gothel immortal. The older woman, who poses as Rapunzel’s so-called mother, kept the secret of her being the child of the king and queen. Once Rapunzel escapes from the tower with Flynn Ryder, she learns on that journey that Gothel isn’t her mother but an evil witch who kidnapped her as a baby. The long-haired girl fights back against Gothel and is reunited with her real parents. This was a great good vs. evil battle that was able to end quickly for a good happy ever after.
Flynn Ryder vs. Maximus – Rapunzel vs. Gothel was not the only good vs. evil in this movie. The very minor debate was one that I couldn’t stop laughing at throughout the entire film. Flynn Ryder, in this case, would be the evil or bad guy while the horse, Maximus, is the good one. Maximus was a trained horse who made sure he helped his rider get the criminals and Flynn happened to be one of them. Somehow, Rapunzel and Flynn came across Maximus who continued to deliberately go after Flynn in order to bring him in since he was wanted. These two had the craziest confrontations, half the time fighting. Yeah, can’t help but love these two characters!
Well, that’s it for those! Why don’t you go ahead and tells us your favorite good vs. evil battles in Disney!