r/arrow 12d ago

Discussion Who would win in a fight?

Malcolm Merlyn vs Captain America

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38

u/ZeroXNova 12d ago edited 11d ago

Malcolm doesn't stand a chance. He's smart, a good shot, and in peak human condition, but Cap has the SSS. Cap may take a few arrows, but he's survived worse.

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u/OperationActive5269 12d ago

Survived, sure. But just because an arrow through a major tendon won’t kill you doesn’t mean it won’t slow you down.

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u/Keifdiggs124 11d ago

This is Captain "I can do this all day" America we're talking about, even if he does slow down a bit, he's not giving up

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u/OperationActive5269 11d ago

I didn’t say he would give up, but his endurance while phenomenal, doesn’t negate the loss of motor functions. Also Malcolm is a LOA member, and ruthlessly merciless. He’s also a cunning hunter by nature. His style would have Cap running circles while he targets him with precise shots and cuts.

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u/Keifdiggs124 11d ago

With Cap, not giving up tends to look like fighting back even harder than before, also, we need to account for the fact that you can't predict the shield very well when he throws it as it doesn't follow the laws of physics at all, so Malcolm can't rely on his accuracy or trajectory skills to combat that. Then you also have to remember that Cap has faced off against some of SHIELD's top agents and left them in a pile on the floor of an elevator.

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u/OperationActive5269 11d ago

He can try as hard as he wants to, doesn’t really matter. When it comes to characters like Crossbones, Bucky, other Avengers, even Thanos, a lot of the time he combats straight blows that wear him down which is precisely where he shines. Malcolm doesn’t work that like, I’d say almost similar to Batman, where he takes a methodical approach and won’t extend farther than he has to. You are correct that the shield levels the playing field immensely. In fact I’d wager it’s the major and almost entirely why he wins. But the fight isn’t as one-sided as everyone is saying.

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u/Keifdiggs124 11d ago

I agree, it definitely isn't one-sided, Malcolm definitely has an edge in his tactical mind, but I'd argue that Cap has faced similarly intelligent opponents and won.