10 Best Dragons In Film & TV
There’s plenty of these mythical beasts on screen, but who’s the very best?
Dragons are an unavoidable part of pop culture. No longer just constrained to fantasy or medieval mythology, dragons are some of the most recognisable magical creatures. It’s no surprise then that plenty of TV shows and movies have used dragons down the years.
The idea of dragons has stood for centuries, so it’s always interesting to see fictional worlds put their own fresh spin on things. Some of the dragons here make up the supporting cast, while others are front and centre, driving the narrative. Heroes, villains and everything in between all get a look in here.
The gaming world is ripe with dragons too, with the likes of Spyro and Dragon Age doing their bit, but they’ve been left out here. Spyro aside, dragons are often bosses, to be praised for their originality and difficulty. It’s just a different ball park to how TV or film dragons operate.
Whether they be cute, cuddly companions or brutal beasts, dragons are rarely boring. There’s some classic dragons in here and some newer ones switching up tropes too.
Whatever kind of character you like, there’s probably a dragon out there for you.
10. Jake Long - Jake Long: American Dragon
Jake Long: American Dragon seemed to just miss the boat for Disney animated TV shows.
Following the success of movie spin offs Hercules and Tarzan, plus original cartoons like Kim Possible, Disney shifted towards live-action shows.
Just as Jake Long: American Dragon launched in 2005, The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody started, with Hannah Montana a year later. Disney had done live action before through the likes of That’s So Raven, but midway through the 00s it felt like a pivot towards rearing young stars. Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, Bella Thorne, Debby Ryan and Zendaya all came off the Disney processing line.
It’s a shame this development left Jake Long behind though, because the now cult show was like a diet high school anime.
The premise was somehow both simple and convoluted, but made a solid jumping off point for the season through its run. Jake was a normal teenage boy, except he could turn into a dragon. Meanwhile, his crush Rose is secretly a dragon hunter.
The show balanced the two halves of their world incredibly well, and Jake could have been a classic Disney character had he debuted at a better time.