# Black Widow vs Silk Spectre

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-widow-vs-silk-spectre/763709>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [August 23, 2016, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-widow-vs-silk-spectre/763709 "2016-08-23T02:07:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-widow-vs-silk-spectre/763709/1 "2016-08-23T02:07:37Z")

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The hand-to-hand grandmaster heroines from Avengers and Watchmen, respectfully.

Which would win?

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**Author:** ![TYphoonSignal8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e99b99/32.png) [@TYphoonSignal8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TYphoonSignal8)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-widow-vs-silk-spectre/763709/2 "2016-08-23T02:12:39Z")

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Black Widow. Zap with those bracelet thingies.

Weapons aside, I suspect that military-trained Russian Systema is better than your average martial art which your mum taught you growing up.

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**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-widow-vs-silk-spectre/763709/3 "2016-08-23T02:29:53Z")

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Absolutely no contest. Black Widow was trained to kill by people who had been doing it since WWII. Silk Spectre was taught how to beat up muggers.

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**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-widow-vs-silk-spectre/763709/4 "2016-08-23T04:21:36Z")

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Agree with consensus so far. Black Widow had Spetnaz training.

Both of them benefit from being in a comic book medium where the laws of physics aren’t a major constraint. They can both pirouette without obeying the law of conservation of angular momentum, and they can both slide down a monofilament line without cutting their fingers off. The medium doesn’t particularly favor one over the other.

“If ever you do challenge me to a duel, your safest bet will be battle axes in a very dark cellar.”

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**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-widow-vs-silk-spectre/763709/5 "2016-08-23T04:49:31Z")

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> [@Trinopus](#):
>
> Agree with consensus so far. Black Widow had Spetnaz training.
> 
> Both of them benefit from being in a comic book medium where the laws of physics aren’t a major constraint. They can both pirouette without obeying the law of conservation of angular momentum, and they can both slide down a monofilament line without cutting their fingers off. The medium doesn’t particularly favor one over the other.

Thing is, comic-book Silk Spectre basically stands no chance, because she’s written as being out of breath after some quick-and-dirty streetfighting that obeys the laws of physics – but _movie_ Silk Spectre hits grown men so hard as to send them sailing through the air, unless she wants to twirl one around for use as a human shield.

I mean, she still loses to Black Widow, but at least with the movie it’s a question.