Overwatch: Ranking Every Cinematic Short (So Far)

A perfect blend of epic music, emotional storytelling, and top-tier voice performances, this short never fails to make a viewer cry, and is one of the best-written and most devastating of all the Overwatch shorts.

Opening with Reinhardt, an old Overwatch agent and even older soldier in the battle against the omnics—sentient robots who went to war against humanity decades ago, under the control of "God AIs"—choosing to answer Winston's recall, despite Overwatch having pushed him out before its fall.

It then goes on to Reinhardt's memories as a crusader under the leadership of Col. Balderich, who was the original soldier called to serve with Overwatch's first strike team. Back then, Reinhardt was a flippant, vainglorious soldier, and his over-confidence was partly why his friend and leader died in battle.

In a heartrending scene, Balderich, mortally wounded, hands over his responsibility to Overwatch to Reinhardt, and fights the last of the omnics as Reinhardt returns to protect his team.

It gives painful context to Reinhardt's devotion to Overwatch, and his final words, mirroring Balderich's, encapsulate that:

"I have been called. I must answer."

It's one of Overwatch's greatest shorts, and its most emotional, well-scored, and well-acted, with tears shed for every viewing.