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Because Science

Is Nightcrawler Actually Faster Than the Flash?

Search a nerdy forum or chat room long enough and you are bound to see one of the eternal fights unfold. Who is stronger, Goku or Superman? (Superman, duh.) Who is the better captain, Kirk or Picard? (Picard, duh.) Who is faster, The Flash or Quicksilver? The problem with that last question is that it ignores an option that I think could, mathematically, be faster than Quicksilver and, yes, even the Flash: Nightcrawler. And I can prove it.

In my latest Because Science, I’m staging a race between The Flash and Mr. Wagner. Given some initial assumptions about teleportation time and distance, as well as of the Flash’s top speed, is there some distance over which it would be faster to teleport rather than to run? Because speed is a measure of distance over time, there should be some point at which Nightcrawler could travel faster than The Flash–faster than the speed of light–between two points.

But where is that point, and could Nightcrawler teleport that far according to what we’ve seen him prove capable of in the comics and movies? You’ll have to watch my latest episode above to find out!


Check out my last video on whether you could write “Mystery Science Theater 3000” on the Moon; subscribe to this playlist to stay current with the show; buy a Because Science shirt, mug, hat, or collectible pin (you know why); and follow me on Twitter to give me a suggestion for the next episode or on Instagram where I’m now posting extra mini-episodes!

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