Every Rocky Movie Ranked From Worst To Best

4. Rocky II

Rocky II had the unenviable task of following-up its Best Picture-winning predecessor, and had Stallone not made such shrewd creative choices with this sequel, there surely wouldn't be an eight-movie saga to speak of.

While Rocky II loses a little of the original's sheen due to Balboa no longer being a plucky underdog, it's a surprisingly natural sequel which builds on what came before, even if it's certainly more daftly melodramatic than its forebear.

Still, the Rocky/Apollo rematch is one of the strongest fights in the entire series, and given the enormous expectations placed upon it, it manages to be a worthy follow-up while admirably not straining itself too hard to be a Bigger, Better Sequel.

Rocky II opts for well-executed familiarity and effortlessly gets away with it.