mark was getting clobbered by fucking maulers 3 episodes ago now he’s able to beat a full grown soldier viltrumite that’s been conquering worlds for millennia just because he “stopped holding back”. Even Nolan who got hospitalized by the guardians while soloing them, only suffered a cut on his head fighting THREE viltrumites!!! Just makes them look weak in comparison. I feel like they shouldn’t even have any chance winning that battle at all, not alone surviving in better condition than against way weaker foes
That’s an issue of unequal skill, not unequal strength. An unskilled opponent can still hurt you physically if you let them. A punch from a trained fighter or an average person can both give you a black eye.
But a viltrumite fighting the maulers is like you fighting a toddler. No matter how hard you hold back, the toddler is going to break your arm or do any serious harm. They might poke you in the eye or nab you in the nuts, and that will hurt, but you aren’t going to let them do it twice, no matter how hard you hold back.