#magicats

okay, i had to sit on this for a while since i'd never seen that claim before, especially in the context of being against catradora (which i won't really touch this time), but i do have some thoughts on it. just be warned that i may be going too far into my perception and might come across as outlandish because it's not directly supported by canon.

firstly, it should be noted that she-ra wasn't designed originally to be a soldier but to be a weapon, at least primarily. sure the fighting abilities were a bonus too, but i'd imagine she's supposed useful to defend the first ones from (what are perceived as) foreign threats on other planets, such as the boar mara attempted to fight until razz taught her how etherian magic works.

i say "attempted" because she was clearly losing if you go back and rewatch that scene... but i think there's more to that as well. similarly to how magic is explicitly horde prime's weakness, it seems to be implied that goes for the first ones too, regarding the resemblance in being an oppressive force that colonizes peaceful civilizations. she-ra's magic is not authentic until adora reclaims it for love, and therefore it is too weak against etheria's natural beings, as opposed to the countless mechs & tanks of the horde that end up effortlessly destroyed.

where am i going with this? well, there's a popular speculation among the fandom that magicats (catra's species), as specified in the name, have their own form of magical essence (highly suggest reading that btw, it's a great thread) that's more subtle than a princess who has a runestone that comes with powers and which ties deeply & much more directly with the spirit of etheria itself. that's part of why she was able to uniquely connect with melog, for example. therefore, when clashing with an artificial & otherworldly opponent on her own native territory, it makes sense that catra would come out on top.

secondly, if you're looking for a shorter/simpler answer, catra says it herself in 2x01:

she-ra is too strong to defeat with force alone; but she's slow, and easily manipulated.

i suppose it would go with the heightened senses feature that she would also adopt another feline characteristic of agility ─ something your average other person, humanoid or otherwise, wouldn't have.

now, what would happen if catra faced off adora's new she-ra form with their old dynamic? well that's up to fanon interpretation, but considering her movements are more animated and she fights more gracefully than she used to, i believe catra would be easier to keep up with, especially considering the cocky confidence upgrade included. if nothing else, i doubt both of them would be on equal ground up in space despite that not being an obstacle for she-ra at all!