My Lion King Forum

Only a couple of these lions actually have a cub in the films, but what kind of father do you think Kovu, Scar and Nuka would be?
Who is/would be the best dad in your opinion, out of everyone in this poll?

You can pick one or two options, and you can change your vote if you wish.

I`ll post my opinion later, I`m curious to see what you guys think!

Mufasa is like, my favorite movie dad so i'm going with him

I voted for Mufasa and Simba.

Mufasa because he was so very wise and loving of a father.

Simba because he taught his daughter to do what she thought was right and that lesson stuck with her even when Simba himself stood in opposition of what Kiara thought was right. Simba also had the courage to admit that he was wrong, that had to be hard for him as a father and as a king.

I think Mufasa and Simba were the best fathers. Mufasa was probably just the right mix of stern and playful, whereas Simba was a bit overprotective, but in the end, both their hearts were in the right place, no doubt.

Mufasa is the best father IMO. He is stern and protective, when he needs to be yet is loving, playful and wise. Pretty good combination with his hear in the right place. It is why his death has such an impact.

Simba was a good father. He is a little over protective although most fans have bridged that explanation as to why he is like that (kopa/tanabi) whilst the movie just said outlanders are dangerous but his heart is also in the right place.

I think Scar could have been a good father if he wasn't choked with bitterness and hatred. We dont really know much about him in the films except that he is the villain, so zira must be crazy to love him? Maybe but i think scar might have displayed some love towards his child(ren). If given the chance, a lot of people who you think would make awful parents can be the best.

[quote="Mint"]
Simba was a good father. He is a little over protective although most fans have bridged that explanation as to why he is like that (kopa/tanabi) whilst the movie just said outlanders are dangerous but his heart is also in the right place.
[/quote]

Interesting, I always bridged that gap with my "Simba has PTSD" theory.

IDK, but all of Simba's life-ruining troubles took place during his childhood, and hence that's why I think he's so over-protective of Kiara in movie two. He's so pent up and anxious still that it's all he really can do IMO.

Throughout the series he displays many of the symptoms: insomnia, nightmares, depression (second half of the first movie, to a degree) and , in this case, anxiety. Since I'm not a "Kopa believer" I think it's a more logical explanation.

I voted for Mufasa. His parenting seemed to be the most balanced and wise.

Simba had good intentions, but he, unwittingly, ruined his daughter’s self-esteem (Kiara: “I may not be brave, or strong, or smart…”). He constantly doubted her abilities and was barely giving her an opportunity to do things on her own (and I, also, believe it was because he had PTSD). But he did spend a lot of time with her, taught her everything he knows, and that knowledge was from what she could grow even beyond everyone’s expectations, and even teach her father something in turn.

Kovu seems too young to be a father yet. He still has some growing to do, both physically and character-wise, and he’d probably need some time to recover from recent events. I don’t think it’s possible to judge what kind of a father he’d be by now, but with his new pride’s help and support, I think he’d make a pretty decent parent, even though he didn’t have a good role model.

Nuka is too immature to have cubs of his own, to be honest. He had massive issues with his family and basically was everyone’s scapegoat – there seems to be too much damage done. As a teenager, he couldn’t properly watch over his younger siblings, and his mother’s neglectful attitude towards him played a role in that. However, if adult Nuka got to live and had cubs, I think he’d be pretty much the opposite of Zira – he would’ve tried to give them everything he himself was deprived of. He’d probably smother them with love, and it’s likely his cubs wouldn’t have had much respect for him.

Scar, I think, made/would’ve made the worst father of the five. He’s too self-centered to genuinely care about anyone but himself.

I would have to say both Mufasa and Simba.

Mufasa had the right balance of being both wise as well as stern when he needed to be. He taught Simba how important his responsibility as king was going to be once he grew up and he was able to take it in for all his life. He knew how to discipline right for the mistakes Simba committed, but luckily, he wasn't too hard on him compared to how most parents are on their kids. A lot of the times, very strict parents can emotionally hurt their child and they don't often listen to their inner feelings. Mufasa was able to connect Simba's fear with his own fear, making both the parent and child much more relatable with each other. That's how parents should discipline their kids: Using methods that compromise the adult as well as the child. Simba loved his father very much.

Simba did also have a good balance of being playful, soft-spoken, and stern when it was necessary. He was never one of those parents where they'd physically threaten/hurt their child (which I can't stand in any kind of parenting). He was overprotective of Kiara, but honestly, I don't really see the difference between Simba and Marlin from Finding Nemo (another parent that lost a loved one due to a tragic death and carries his overprotectiveness onto his child). Even though he went a little far with some of the decisions and actions he took, he made mistakes since he's not perfect and different from Mufasa. He tried being a reflection of his father, but he had to learn to only be the reflection of himself as an individual. Plus, he suffered a lot since his childhood and his trauma carried on with him into adulthood. That happens to a lot of victims where it affects their growth and metal health. He had true PTSD not only due to witnessing his uncle murder his father as a child, but also due to him almost dying out in the desert alone AND he was very close to being murdered by Scar in the same fashion as Mufasa was. His nightmare in the second movie clearly shows that his suffering still carried on with him as an adult. In my opinion, that's why I understand Simba and Kiara's relationship since he doesn't want Kiara to suffer the same kind of pain as he did and he loved her so much. He admitted his mistakes and forgave Kovu, which made Kiara happy. In addition, he was able to bring the two separate prides together as one.

I, like many others, chose Mufasa, for reasons already stated. What we see of him may be from a sort of "biased-Simba-view" but he did a much better job than Simba did, and I personally think that Scar would be dreadful with cubs as he would never actually care about them. Nuka would either be terrible with them (see his treatment of young Vitani and Kovu) or he'd be overly kind to them, in an attempt to make sure his cubs never felt so ignored as he did. And Kovu, I think he'd be a good dad, but he'd be worried that he wasn't a good father all the time because of his past.

So all in all, I have to go with Mufasa.

Mufasa is naturally my top choice. Like it`s already been mentioned, he has the most wisdom and balances perfectly between being playful and strict. He provides his cub with the proper guidance and lessons.

I think Simba is a good father to Kiara, and his over-protectivness is a natural consequence of his experiences as a young cub. I think he sometimes struggles to really get through to her, as he seems to repeat himself a lot, telling her over and over the same things Mufasa told him without realizing that he`s stifling her when he`s not giving her any freedom. His love for his daughter is obvious though, they do share a close bond and Simba is doing his best... it`s not like he had any parental guidance from Timon and Pumbaa.

Kovu obviously has no cubs with Kiara by the end of the second film, but I like to think he`ll make a good father in the future. I can see him being a bit cautious, I think Kiara would be the more playful, tactile parent of the two. Kovu is a softie at heart though, and I`m sure he`d be loving to his cubs, but I can see him having an easier time of relating to them when they have grown a little older. I think Kovu would be the one to mostly scold and discipline, as I can`t imagine Kiara as a strict mother, hehe.

Scar - I can`t see him being a caring or loving father... in fact, I have difficulty imagining him as a parent at all. If he did have a cub, I think Scar would be a cold and distant father, not showing much love or participating in raising the cub.

Nuka - It`s been mentioned earlier how he treated his own siblings, but it`s therefore not a given this is how he`d treat his own cub(s).. Still, I don`t think Nuka is father material, he`s just... crazy and too needy. I can`t see him being able to take care of someone else as he himself is so desperate for attention and approval.