#ooc: I can close my six bulbapedia tabs now

[legendsobsessions]

What legendary do you think you could stand the best chance against in a fist fight?

Okay, so the answer to this is going to depend on whether you're counting specifically pokemon classified as legendary, or (as a lot of people do) those classified as mythical as well.

That said: any legendary pokemon or mythical pokemon that doesn't have fists, I'd win by default.

Jokes aside, though, and limiting myself to specifically legendaries, let's start out by going with pokemon I would not fistfight (though I would still happily take them on in a pokemon battle.)

Articuno/Moltres/Zapdos: Too hard to reach for a fistfight.

Mewtwo: I'd feel bad, they've been through enough with Team Rocket without me showing up to physically throw hands. Psychically, they'd probably win.

Raikou: Doesn't have fists, but can reportedly fly anyway? Another issue of reach.

Ho-oh/Lugia: Again, too hard to reach for a fistfight. I can't fly.

Regice/Regirock/Registeel: I don't want to punch solid ice/rock/steel. That feels like a really good way to break my hands.

Latios/Latias: I still can't fly.

Rayquaza: I still can't fly.

Mesprit: "Dare not touch the pokemon's body. In but three short days, all emotions will drain away." No thank you, I will not be fistfighting Mesprit, I happen like my emotions.

Azelf: "Above all, above all, harm not the pokemon. In a scant five days, the offender will grow immobile in entirety." I also like being able to move! Various sources differ on exactly what this part of the "horrific myth" means, but I don't really feel like tempting fate.

Dialga: Steel-type. I don't want to break my hands.

Giratina: Ghost-type. It's inconclusive if just trying to punch a ghost-type would be any more effective than, say, using an actual fighting-type move on it, but I'm still inclined to believe that wouldn't work very well.

Heatran: Literally the embodiment of molten lava. I'm not sure I'd have hands after trying to punch that, but if I did they'd be very badly burned and probably broken because, again, steel-type.

Cobalion: Steel-type. I still don't want to break my hands.

Tornadus/Thundurus/Landorus/Enamorus: Can fly. I can't.

Yveltal: Can fly.

Solgaleo: Steel-type.

Lunala: Once again—this is an issue far more often than I anticipated it would be—I still can't fly. Sure, I could if I had my pokemon helping me, but I don't think I'm allowed to have my pokemon helping me in a fistfight.

Zacian/Zamazenta: Steel-type in their more powerful forms. I'd be more willing to take my chances otherwise.

Eternatus: No.

Galarian Articuno/Moltres/Zapdos: Can fly. Apparently Galarian Moltres can't fly particularly well, but any amount of flight is more than I'm capable of.

ANYWAY! Now that we've got all that out of the way... there really are a lot more legendaries ruled out by virtue of "I would have a very hard time fistfighting them at all" than I thought...

Actually thinking about this, though, and getting back to the topic at hand (I'm so sorry, anon, I got off on a slight tangent) I think I would probably stand the best chance against Uxie or Regigigas. As long as I don't make direct eye contact with Uxie—I'll have you know I'm very good at avoiding direct eye contact—then I could win fairly easily, and while Regigigas is massive and strong, Regigigas is also very slow and I could use that to my advantage.

This is all purely theoretical, of course. I wouldn't fistfight any legendary or mythical pokemon unless I had a very good reason to, and if I did have a very good reason to I'd probably find some way around the various issues I brought up—but also I'd fight with my pokemon first, in most cases.

Thanks for the question, anon! This was a fascinating thought experiment.