Would you rather?

[Horizon209]

have an mc that is smart but painfully weak or a dumb mc that is insanely strong. Just curious

 

[NotaNuffian]

... How smart is the MC depends on the author.

How entertaining a dumb but OP MC also depends on the author.

Personally, I would pick the latter for a few reasons.

1. I Monke.
2. Easier to read, especially when played for comedy. For serious, it is probably other characters are just as dumb as MC or most likely even dumber.

That being said, writing a weak but smart MC does force the author to use his noggin more, like making a smart and possible solution, followed by the problem and covering possible plotholes. Sadly, most of the smart characters I come across came as braindead like the rest, including the author or worse, cringe. There is also the issue of faceslapping... why?

 

[RepresentingWrath]

A dumb mc that is insanely strong.

 

[ArcadiaBlade]

So either Saitama or Lelouch?

Hmn....kinda hard to pick tho...

 

[Dieter]

Edit your post to be a poll instead. I would choose the former.

 

[Minx]

Smart MC—even if he's weak, he can still talk no jutsu out of trouble.

 

[Maze_Runner]

have an mc that is smart but painfully weak or a dumb mc that is insanely strong. Just curious

Dumb but insanely strong
(BTW you should make this into a poll forum with the two options)

 

[RepresentingSilence]

Most "smart" MCs I've read are actually pretty dang dumb because the author tries too hard and most of the "dumb" MCs I've read are pretty dang smart in their own way sometimes to best solution to a complex problem is to just smash it

 

[OliviaMyriad]

Neither

 

[Agentt]

Dumb MC. It's refreshing to read something which has a innocent MC

 

[Renaxan]

I did write a story with the second type of mc so my choice is obvious.

Beside, I am dumb myself. Trying to write smart mc when you don't have the capability of doing something smart... it wouldn't ended well, at least in my own experience.