I know the title doesn’t convey what I have in mind, so I’ll try to explain. Take the main characters of two separate but similar movies/TV shows/books and have them face off. Which one could thwart the other? I’ve heard discussions regarding superheroes in head-to-head showdowns, but what about other match-ups?
For example, could Samantha (Bewitched) cast a spell that would defeat or entrap Jeannie (I Dream of Jeannie)? Could Columbo commit a crime that McMillan and Wife couldn’t solve? Could Sherlock engineer a heist that would totally baffle Poirot?
I’ve mentioned in a few places that I’ve been doing a lot of rewatching of full old series lately. Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie are among ones I’ve finished. As I noticed at the time, Jeannie appears to be able to do much larger reality warps much more easily than Samantha. I think Jeannie would likely crush Samantha like a bug.
Herman has brute strength over Gomez, but Gomez has intelligence, agility, and swordsmanship and would probably win. However Eddie would tear Pugsley to shreds.
I have to agree Jeannie appears more powerful, but Endora is another level yet and would rescue her daughter while bottling Jeannie semi-permanently.
As to Columbo, I’m sure he could solve most of the crimes the other detectives committed, but I’m not sure if he could commit a perfect crime. His specialty in finding a single lose thread and unraveling everything from there while playing to their genius as a simpleton. He knows a perfect plan is almost impossible to execute. Tiny things get missed.
If Samantha survives Jeannie’s first strike (or if Sam strikes first) Sam’s advantage in brains leads to victory. But yeah, in terms of raw power, Jeannie has the advantage
I think Classic Wednesday (Lisa Loring) would not be much help in a direct fight, but would plan a revenge/assassination to avenge Pugsley. Possibly, concluding with a guillotine.
The older Christina Ricci & Jenna Ortega Wednesdays may be able to help Pugsley immediately and would absolutely win the revenge battle. Eddie would never see it coming.
This was my first reaction. Columbo would never commit a crime, at least not something that is technically a crime. McMillan and Wife, mainly Wife, would have figured out what he did, but would have been unable to find a criminal charge which would stick.
Jeannie and Samantha is something of a toss up based on circumstances. Both did a poor job sticking to the rules of the mortals so such a contest could easily result in Armageddon for those without supernatural powers. However, Samantha was able to come out ahead against her evil cousin as did Jeannie with her evil twin sister. It does appear that Samantha had a wider group of relatives and magical associates on her side.
Matlock is just a small town Southern lawyer that would get his ass handed to him by LA Law.
Matlock has lost cases and LA Law will just bury him in discovery. For the purposes of this thread LA Law could definitely pull off some legal shenanigans touching illegal and Matlock would get no where.
How about Littlefinger from GoT vs Blackadder? Id say Littlefinger would have it.
Though you could probably claim either Tyrion or Varys were Blackadder equivalents (or even Tommen if he’d lived longer, could be a Blackadder I). Did Martin admit to Blackadder as an influence?
In a fight, Tony can probably take both Darrens at once. One has a really bad back and the other doesn’t look like fighter at all. Astronaut Survival Training for the win!
But as this is not just suppose to be fights, I think Astronaut wins on the Life Success and Fame ratings over Ad Man. I’m sure Tony’s math & science skills are better. He generally seemed smarter. The only thing I can find for sure is Captain Nelson graduated from Georgia Tech and then joined the Air Force. A fair chance he has an Engineering Degree.
ETA: I went digging, Darren has degree in advertising from the University of Missouri.