Thread by @travisdon1981

@WhoWouldWin13 One thing that needs to be considered in this battle is that while Kirk comes from the 23rd century, Valerian comes from the 28th century. Military martial arts will evolve more in 700 years than they will in 200 years. Thus, Valerian will no doubt be far better trained in H2H

@WhoWouldWin13 combat than Kirk. Indeed, while Valerian shows some legit moves in the film (such as when he's flirting with Laureline, the two using their H2H combat skills in a playful, painless manner), Kirk has had his good moments...and not so good moments...

@WhoWouldWin13 One reason why Kirk's H2H skills aren't always...practical, to say the least, is possibly because he is not trying to kill his opponents. Star Fleet officers are highly trained in H2H, and that training is probably like that of modern military martial arts: designed to kill, not

@WhoWouldWin13 for self defense. Imagine that you are a veteran of WW2 trained in Combato (a VERY, VERY lethal martial art) and you find yourself in a bar room brawl. Would you use moves designed to kill to defend yourself? Not unless either your life was in danger, or you didn't fear jail

@WhoWouldWin13 time. True, Kirk's life was on the line during these combat experiences, but then again, being an officer in the Peace-loving Federation, he might be conditioned to not use lethal moves unless absolutely necessary, and Kirk may not have thought it necessary in many situations

@WhoWouldWin13 to use that lethal force, opting for far less lethal maneuvers.

It could also be the case that he's...just not very good. He has his stellar moments and all...but also his downsides.

Valerian, on the other hand, isn't shown to have such goofs in H2H combat.

@WhoWouldWin13 Combined with the fact that he receives H2H combat training from the 28th century, while Kirk receives it from the 23rd, Its a safe bet to say that Valerian has far superior H2H combat skills.

Kirk, however, does have a size advantage, yet even this doesn't make up for the

@WhoWouldWin13 fact that Valerian, along with being a pilot, is also a special forces soldier, far better trained than the average soldier or Yeoman/Cadet (which Kirk used to be), let alone a Starfleet captain who doesn't generally engage as often in combat as Valerian would (Kirk does see

@WhoWouldWin13 a lot of combat, to be sure, but let's get real; who is going to engage in combat more often, a special forces soldier or a ship captain?).

We also need to consider Valerian's combat suit, which enhances his speed, strength and is highly resistant to damage (as seen when he

@WhoWouldWin13 runs through several steel walls).

@WhoWouldWin13 Now, Kirk has enough problems fighting super strong opponents, some of whom are nowhere near as fast as Valerian:

@WhoWouldWin13 True, he has faced opponents who combined super strength with heightened speed (Khan), and Khan could potentially move as fast as Valerian, but he won't have Valerian's H2H combat training nor body armor. Indeed, in that armor, he stronger than Khan.

@WhoWouldWin13 Now let's look at weaponry.

While Valerian's energy pistol can blow the heads off giant super strong aliens, a phaser can vaporize large aliens in a second.

@WhoWouldWin13 However, not only does a phaser have limits (as seen in the original series, when Chekov uses a phaser to heat up a boulder (it doesn't vaporize) but Valerian's body armor is designed to withstand energy-based attacks. Indeed, as seen in Stark Trek 6, a phaser can vaporize

@WhoWouldWin13 a pot while leaving the mashed potatoes and stirrer within it intact.

@WhoWouldWin13 Likewise, if Valerian's armor is hit, and even if it is vaporized, Valerian wont be. Indeed, Kirk might be shocked at the sudden onset nudity, which could give Valerian the time needed to go for the kill.

@WhoWouldWin13 (course, to be fair, Valerian would likewise be shocked).

Nevertheless, its very possible that his armor would withstand the phaser strike.

Captain Kirk's uniform, however, wont stand against Valerian's energy blasts. Indeed, even K-Tron combat robots couldn't stand up to

@WhoWouldWin13 Valerian's shots, and they make Robocop look like a Glassjaw.

@WhoWouldWin13 Also, not only is Valerian a lot faster than Kirk (and thus most likely to have a faster draw), his combat suit increases his speed, and this will make him a far, far faster draw than James T. Kirk

@WhoWouldWin13 Thus, I conclude...

VALERIAN CALLS Captain JAMES T. KIRK AN OVERACTOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@WhoWouldWin13 @threadreaderapp unroll.