And they were nothing special to the androids considering that the strongest one (Vegeta) was just able to match 18's power for just a few minutes (or even less than that). And A17 was even stronger than her, so it's obvious that none of the SSJ was a match. It's just that this time it wasn't because they were overwhelmingly stronger (well, 17 was clearly stronger than Vegeta), but because they had unlimited energy while the SSJ didn't.
And because Vegeta couldn't really do any damage to her either. She went unharmed of all Vegeta's attacks, while her attacks, on the other hand, could do damage to Vegeta, where it was considerable or not. It doesn't imply an equal battle. Android #18 said how Vegeta wasn't anything special just after he failed to inflict any damage to her. Piccolo, who was actually stated to be #17's equal, wasn't really helpless and even made #17 run away with his full power blast, in a moment he was already beated up. Vegeta did nothing of sort.
In the context of that sentence, yes, it did. She was comparing him to Super Vegeta, so the previous Vegeta was clearly weak in comparison. Furthermore, the android was just an overpowered random human being, in other words, she fought Vegeta (and that Vegeta was underestimating her, he didn't try his best from the beginning) and she clearly won, so it wouldn't be a stretch for her to consider that Vegeta weak even compared to her.
Yeah, it would be a stretch to say someone equal to her was an weakling, specially by the way she considered Vegeta strong for a non-android being. The androids were hyped up to be the strongest ones of these world, and like you said, AT wanted to show how strong those foes were compared to the supposedly strongest one (the SSJs), so calling someone equal to #18 an weakling doesn't make any sense.
Before it, she said how Vegeta was helpless against her, so her considering him weak compared to her isn't a problem.
You act as if having unlimited energy was a negligible factor when in fact is a decisive advantage.
The unlimited stamina was just something that turned them even more helpless. It was a thing alongside with their power advantage.
Nobody denies the android being the superior fighter. It's just that this superiority wasn't due to her being stronger.
Like I said, it was due to infinite stamina
and them being stronger. You are making infinite stamina a solely factor when it's not. Like already said, if you want to see a fight between both fighter with equal powers but with the infinite stamina playing a factor, then see Piccolo vs #17, or #16 vs Cell. Both machines are struggling in the fight, feeling the blows, knocking each other with the same effect. Nothing of this happens in the 18 vs Vegeta fight... at all.
1. A18 lies about fighting Vegeta seriously for no reason (and she isn't trying to seem weaker, otherwise she wouldn't tell to Vegeta that he is "nothing special").
Never said she was holding back against Vegeta, but that wouldn't have made a difference, seeing as the fight with both serious consisted of Vegeta constantly failing at damaging #18, whereas her attacks clearly did some sort of damage and made Vegeta struggle in pain. Like we saw later, these machines can feel pain, or been damaged, as shown when Imperfect Cell was pummeling #17.
2. A17 lies about A18 not being able to handle them all.
And like I said, #17 also stated his data on Vegeta wasn't accurately met, as Vegeta far surpassed his estimations. For that's worth, them could also have easily surpassed the estimations of his data, by whatever amount. He didn't even know who Trunks was. Seeing how #18 effortlessly stopped Trunks' word (the same Trunks who is on Vegeta's league), then it's possible they all would also be no match for her.
3. Vegeta's personality completely changes and he suddenly smiles when he is overpowered, even when in the rest of the series he never react like that.
Except the smile isn't one of someone who is excited over the battle or of someone who knows he will still win. While smiling Vegeta tells he is mad seeing how she doesn't flinich by any of his attacks.
4. The z-warriors all lie about Vegeta fighting the Android at her same level.
Trunks was the only one who said that. Trunks flew in, witnessed part of the fight and thought Vegeta was #18's equal and at that time it seemed like it was, so we can't really blame him. But if Trunks witnessed the whole fight, could sense #18's chi and still said they were equal, then we would have Vegeta = #18.
5. Piccolo lies when he says that Vegeta will lose because the android has unlimited strength and Vegeta doesn't.
That's just part of the reason. Piccolo said Vegeta was slowly wearing down and right after it Vegeta gets the shit beated out of him, implying the stamina's depletion wasn't the solely factor since nothing implies Vegeta's stamina suddenly took a huge dip.
Yes, in the part were Vegeta wasn't fighting seriously against her but she was serious against him.
Again, nothing indicates Vegeta wasn't serious against her. The only thing #18 states Vegeta held back was on his blast:
Chapter: 352 (DBZ 158), P10.3-4
Context: after Vegeta tries to blast No.18, only managing to destroy a truck
No.18: “That blast just now wasn’t anywhere near your all.”
Vegeta: “Of course not…If I gave it my all, the entire Earth would be wiped out…”
Right after it, #18 states she wasn't giving her all either and headbutt Vegeta, to which this latter is really angry and punches her into the gut, with nothing implying he was using anywhere but his all. Even so, 18 is able to damage Vegeta while Vegeta isn't able to do the same, clearly indicating a gap between the two.
Nappa was stronger but had his ki disturbed and got stomped by Goku and latter he calmed down and managed to fight him at his level, while Vegeta underestimated A18 and managed to fight at her level when he got serious although it was just for a few moments
At that time, Toriyama also made mention of the Kaioken through his characters twice, which was like Goku's trump card, so no reason to think he wanted to keep base Goku as godly powerful.
Of course, Piccolo was given a slight advantage over 17 (they were both equally fast, but Piccolo was a tad stronger)
Like I said, it was said more than once they were on par with each other.
Chapter: 368 (DBZ 174), P14.3
Context: after fighting merged Piccolo for a long time
No.17: “Heh. Even if our power is on par, it looks like a gap is starting to open up between our stamina…My energy is infinite, and never falls…”
Chapter: 368 (DBZ 174), P8.3
No.18: “He really is tough. He’s on par with No.17.”
Whether one was already the other, it wasn't nothing significant.
The difference wasn't big, but it was enough for Piccolo to have a better fight than Vegeta. And while Vegeta underestimated the Android, Piccolo didn't, which also made Vegeta look worse than he really was.
Piccolo's fight looked better because he was actually on par with the android, whereas Vegeta wasn't. Like I said, the difference wasn't noticeable for either side, so whether one was more powerful it doesn't matter. When #17 got serious, he initially had an advantage over Piccolo, who even though felt the attacks, still said they lacked weight. After it, both were knocking each other out and feeling each other's attack, both which were shown to be struggling over it.
Firstly, he said just a couple of pages before that he wasn't fighting with all his strength:
He said the blast wasn't at full power otherwise it would have desteoyed the Earth.
And his reaction after those facts is obviously different than when he is really overpowered by someone. I mean, this is Vegeta after his punch not being able to damage A18
Vegeta's reactions doesn't tell much when we clearly see he is outmatched. After turning a SSJ, Vegeta got back his arrogance and the thought of being surpassed by those androids just didn't cross his mind until he was left into a position where he couldn't really fight. Only because Vegeta doesn't see how outmatched he is doesn't make it any less true and just shows how he refuses to believe he is outmatched due to the SSJ being the supposed strongest in the Universe.
Vegeta doesn't smile when he is feeling desperation. He wasn't desperate, he just was pissed because he thought he would overpower the android, which wasn't the case at all.
Desperation is him in front of Freezer of Perfect Cell, where he was clearly overpowered.
Desperation doesn't always comes accompanied from a worried face or so. There are other ways to convey a feeling. Vegeta is mad at his lack of success in damaging #18. He has a smile on his face while stating his displeasure at not damaging her.
Even if you take the smile to mean Vegeta is still confident, Recoome went pretty much unharmed from Vegeta's blast, just like #18 was. Yet against Reccome he showed to be more piss than against #18, when both foes displayed similar feats. It just goes to show Vegeta's reactions to an opponent aren't a good way to measure his disadvantage over them. There's no difference from #18 tanking his attacks to Recoome tanking his attacks.
Exactly, which proves that he wasn't being overpowered.
No, it just proves Vegeta still didn't realize how outclassed he was, seemingly because he was still in some kind of denial about the SSJ being the strongest. But we see how overpowered he was, specially when later he admits all of them are easily surpassing the Super Saiyan.
What it surely doesn't show is desperation. He was getting a bit nervous because the Android was resisting far more than he expected, but this is clearly not a "Vegeta is completely overpowered reaction". We have dozens of examples of that and Vegeta never reacts like this.
Even if doesn't show desperation, it doesn't show confidence either. Like he said, he is getting mad how #18 isn't being damaged. It's like the Recoome situation, where this latter received all of Vegeta's attacks with little to no damage like #18. What Recoome did is nk different from what #18 did, yet he showed a "more hopeless face" against Recoome. Guess what you will, but there are at least some explanations:
1- Vegeta could feel Recoome's chi, so he'd already know how outmatched he is;
2- Vegeta already sort of knew he is the inferior one before the battle even started, unlike the fight against #18.
But they knew that Vegeta was the strongest of them all (the only one they didn't know anything about was Trunks, but Trunks already attacked them with all his strength just some moments before), so if 18 was much stronger than him it wouldn't make sense for 17 to say what he said.
If 18 was clearly stronger than Vegeta, 17 wouldn't have said what he said.
17 only knew Vegeta was the strongest, but he didn't know accurately the other's powers. For all he knew, they could have developed his powers as much as Vegeta did or even more. So he didn't want to take the risk and decided intervene.
Freezer knew Zarbon could transform
He obviously wasn't counting with Zarbon's transformation on that case, otherwise Zarbon alone would already be enough. He said "the two of them fighting together", so Zarbon transforming wasn't on his mind.
How is that? Huge means it's absurdly large (it's far more than large by sure), both define very large quantities. The "huge" expression is also used when the one sensing the Kis is in front of someone even stronger:
While both are indicative of some rather large chi, one was consistently used by a character expressing how his power has been surpassed by the "absurdly large one", while "huge" hasn't the same comsistency on his usage.
Clearly surpassing in terms of DB is a mere 7-8%. At 10% more strength and attacking with all your might you can finish a fight fairly quickly already (Gohan left Raditz seriously damaged in one hit with that difference of strength). That Piccolo was between 17 and 18 in terms of power as stated by 16, he was clearly above Vegeta, just not as much above him as you imply.
Clearly surpassing means a noticeable difference, not hardly surpassing or so. By the way Vegeta also reacts to Piccolo's power is safe to put a good difference between the two. This same Piccolo rivals both of the androids, implying a power at their levels is enough to make Vegeta shit bricks and even drop out his SSJ. That's more or less the way Vegeta would have acted if he could sense the androids' chi.
