User blog comment:El Alamein/Boris the Animal vs. Doctor Octopus/@comment-143604-20130519014326

Drayco90's Edgy Edges of Edgy Edgines-AMERICA!


 * Close Range- Even. Doctor Octopus has an imediate edge simply in terms of quantity- with four mechanical arms of superhuman strength, in addition to his human body, Ock is able to throw a lot more attacks and do a lot more in the battlefield than Boris. So what's holding him back? Well, first he's got to remain extremely concentrated on the use of his arms, or he loses control of them and that can go really south for him really fast. Another big problem for Ock here is that his normal human body is a flabby, weak human. He's not paticularly strong, and he's fairly exposed. His tentacles may be superhuman, but Ock himself isn't- and a single well placed punch could easily floor him. Boris, on the other hand, has only one arm- an immediate disadvantage. He can only do so much at a given time because of this crippling fact, but with his strength being natural and his durability being superhuman, he'll have a better chance up close than Ock, who could lose control or get hurt. Combine with his sharp teeth, and we have a warrior who can deal some major damage to Ock up close, and is enough of a psychological threat that he could shake Ock's control. In the end, I'm calling this even because Ock has range and multitasking, while Boris has raw power, natural ability and durability.


 * Mid-Range- Boris the Animal. Boris takes an immediate range advantage here, as his ability to shoot spikes fires farther than the maximum reach of Ock's metalic octopus arms, allowing Boris to keep at a distance and nail Ock with projectile spam. Combine this with Ock's lack of protective gear, and we have a match that could end with a needle through Ock's chest or throat with ease. That said, Ock has an advantage, again, in multitasking- something that should not be understated. The Doc can use his arms strength and power to move quickly and through urban obstacles, climbing buildings and flinging himself forward, allowing him to close that 20ish foot gap between their effective ranges, and if he can keep concentrated, four tentacles tearing into Boris and performing separate combat tasks could easily overwhelm the Animal. If that were the extent of it, I'd call this edge even- balancing Boris' range with Ock's practical power- but it's not the end of the matter. Boris can let the needle-spitting thing fire independent of him, effectively creating a sort of natural turret defense placement, which will be able to take Ock by surprise, distract him and force him to think on another level- something that will only lead him to being more prone to losing control as time goes on.


 * X-Factors- Doc Ock. It's easy to get caught up on the theoretical arm control loss that Ock suffers from- but it's a mistake to do so. We're not talking about some nutjob who stumbled into these arms- Otto Octavius is a brilliant man who can think on much greater levels than most others in his field and in his home universe. While Boris' monstrous actions, shredding teeth and superhuman properties will make him a terrible foe to deal with, I don't think he has the tools adequete to make Ock completely lose control of his arms in a meaningful way. I'll admit, it's been years since I've seen Spider-Man 2, but Ock had fairly good control most of the time he was playing heel to Spidey, even in the heat of battle against a superhumanly strong and fast foe with webbing projetiles and slow-motion vision. Ultimately, I think Ock is a smarter, more tactical and more in-control warrior than Boris, and that will allow him to take an edge in the battle when it counts.


 * Overall- This is a tough one to call, but in the end I'm going to side with Boris the Animal. Ock is smarter, and his tentacles give him crazy good multi-tasking skills that will be hard to keep up with- but Boris will be able to deal more damage to Ock than Ock will do to him because his strength and durability are actually his- not just his arms. Ock is just a man, and when a man meets a superhuman punch or razor teeth, a man breaks. Combine his superior range game, and I think Boris will have just enough tools to win the day, however narrowly.