History Main / DanceBattler

While this might seem strange, it's hardly all that far-fetched. Being a good dancer requires flexibility, coordination, balance, reflexes, and sometimes strength and speed, all things that go a long way in a fight as well. Plus, [[RuleOfCool it just looks cool]]. Expect such characters to hang a lampshade on the relationship between dance and combat.

While this might seem strange, it hardly all that far-fetched. Being a good dancer requires flexibility, coordination, balance, reflexes, and sometimes strength and speed, all things that go a long way in a fight as well. Plus, [[RuleOfCool it just looks cool]]. Expect such characters to hang a lampshade on the relationship between dance and combat.

Your opponent takes a bow before departing, but you don't get to see it because you're face down on the floor. [[Music/MichaelJackson You been hit by... you been struck by, a dance battler!]]

** Thanks to being PromotedToPlayable in ''VideoGame/Yakuza0'', one of Goro Majima's new fighting styles is "Breaker". Which he creates after seeing a bunch of breakdancers have a dance battle on a bridge, it allows him to clear up crowds with wide breakdancing-style attacks, he hones it further by meeting up with one of the breakdancers (and his siblings). The style also allows him to build up his HEAT meter by performing show poses in the middle of combos, which also allow him to counter enemies if they hit him during said poses.

** Medicham is based on Arabian {{Belly Dancer}}s with its fighting style described by the Pokédex as elegant and dance-like.

* Babydoll in ''Film/SuckerPunch'' incorporates her dance moves in her various fantasies' battles, doing various spins and flips while cutting up monsters with a sword.

* 'Babydoll in 'Film/SuckerPunch'' incorporates her dance moves in her various fantasies' battles, doing various spins and flips while cutting up monsters with a sword.

* Xander Stone of Topanga Karate shows this style at the All-Valley Tournament on ''Series/CobraKai,'' using a lot of fancy flips in his fights. When Piper Elswith joins Cobra Kai in Season 4, she also proves to be a DanceBattler, incorporating her gymnastics training into her fighting style.

** In the sequel ''Infinite Wealth'', since the game takes place partially in Hawaii two of the new classes are Geodancer (based on hula dancing) and Pyrodancer (based on firetwirlers).

* An ''[[ComicBook/ArchieComics Archie]]'' comic had him and Reggie driven to laughing fits over Veronica's "sissy" male ballet dancer friend - until he single-handedly subdues a gang of tough guys with his moves.
* Capoeira is among the many fighting styles Franchise/{{Batman}} has mastered.

* ''ComicBook/BatmanAndTheOutsiders'': Bolshoi of The People's Heroes used ballet as the basis for his martial art. He later adds to this with actual prowess in the martial arts. He still gets bits chopped off him. Thank goodness for modern reattachment surgery.
* Dagger (of ''ComicBook/CloakAndDagger'' fame) has a fighting style that heavily incorporates her ballerina training.
* ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} has managed to beat the Taskmaster by virtue of being type four -just plain ''nuts''. Since his brain is constantly shifting due to cancer and superhealing, he never does any form of combat the same way twice, and will often use whatever form randomly pops in his head, including dance battling.
* Ren Kimura from the ''[[ComicBook/TheDefenders Fearless Defenders]]'' uses her dance skills in conjunction with her ability to create razor-sharp ribbons from her hands.
* Xiong Mao, from the French comic ''ComicBook/FreaksSqueele'', uses a martial arts style called Flamendo. It is described as "a martial arts style with all the trappings of dance".
* Subverted in an issue of ''ComicBook/JonSableFreelance''. John and a male ballet dancer friend are confronted by a gang, and Jon is bracing himself for a fight when his friend spots the boombox one of them is carrying and puts on a show combining ballet and breakdancing moves. The gang is so impressed they let them pass.
* ComicBook/{{Vibe}}, a member of the ''Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'' during its Detroit phase, used breakdancing moves as part of his fighting style.
* Even IntrepidReporter ComicBook/LoisLane once used dance battling while impersonating a ballet dancer.
* Marco from'' ComicBook/TheQuestion Quarterly''.
* When the ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}'' have an adventure in 1910s New York, one of the heroes they meet is Lillie "The Spieler" [=McGurty=], who can fly to the rhythm of music. One of her first scenes has her fighting a gang of strikebreakers and she dances on their heads.
* Abominus from ''ComicBook/TransformersShatteredGlass'' is a CulturedBadass whose fighting style is based on interpretive dance.
* Dionysus (the dancefloor that walks like a man) of ''ComicBook/TheWickedAndTheDivine'' weaponizes his HiveMind ravers to storm Valhalla, all of them lit with an inner glow from his magic and unable to be hurt as long as he protected them. [[RuleOfCool He also had glowstick nunchaku]].
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: Priscilla Rich, the first ComicBook/{{Cheetah}}, was a skilled dancer, and this translated into remarkable agility in combat.

** ''Film/TheKingsMan'': In the prequel, UsefulNotes/RasputinTheMadMonk combines martial arts and a knife with ballet dancing.