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A Calm Conversation on Other LGBT Champions (Please Hear Me Out Here)

6FlagsFunnelCake·11/20/2018, 7:31:59 AM·10 votes·7,173 views

DISCLAIMER: This is a discussion purely on the relation of LGBT to these FICTIONAL CHARACTERS IN THIS FANTASY WORLD. Please, no need for any extreme politics on either side of the conversation. This is first and foremost about CHARACTERS, not a societal debate.

So, with the latest reveal of our curious chameleon companion Neeko, there has been lots of talk due to a certain Rioter actually CONFIRMING that she is a lesbian, something that is pretty clear in her interactions with other champions. She's confirmed to have had feelings for Nidalee in the past and she shows some interest in Shyvana and Nami in her interactions (Evelynn too but...yknow...Evelynn). Now I really like Riot actually committing to their first LGBT Champion, but what about all the other instances that it seemed like Riot was just 'beating around the bush' regarding anything relating Champions to the LGBT community. What do I mean by this? Well...

I do have a list of characters that are either CONFIRMED to be related to LGBT or HINTED to be part of it by some hints given by Rioters, most of which aren't too explicit statements.

THE CONFIRMED

  • Neeko is our first openly lesbian character who is directly confirmed by the Rioter who wrote her story.
  • Varus isn't directly homosexual himself, but his story is very deeply tied to the homosexual relationship of Valmar and Kai, the Ionian hunters who eventually make Varus.
  • In Janna's story "Deep Breath," there is a boy who briefly mentions how he loved a boy back in school, but he didn't share the same feelings.
  • Tamara, a Noxian warmason, is mentioned to have slept with a woman seen blowing kisses at her in the story "Progress Day." She is also seen in Darius's comic "Blood for Noxus"

Now, all simple enough, and all essentially confirmed in-lore to be of the LGBT community. But now...the tricky part. These characters aren't...explicitly stated to be anything really. Some of it, yes, may be my own opinions, and please feel free to tell me your own thoughts on these, but I'm basing these solely on some hints given by Rioters as well as how I personally feel about it. Now mind you, my general philosophy is that a Champion (or character in general's) sexuality or gender identity generally is not the major focal point for their story. This may be the case for some characters (Neeko is openly lesbian and Varus's whole origin is tied to the love between two Ionian men), but I feel like it's the little things that count. Sometimes it's just nice to have a little nod to their sexuality or gender identity, just to let us take note on it, but to us as players that's generally not what we'd focus on as it never really comes into play in-game or throughout the rest of their story (would you really care who an avatar of a space-god goes to bed with at night?).

THE HINTED (& My Thoughts)

  • Taric is actually hinted at being Pansexual, as a Rioter replied to someone asking about his sexuality with something along the lines of "Taric sees beauty in everything." Jokes aside, I think Taric would be pretty interesting to represent this and it not only makes sense for his character being focused on the beauty of all living things, but generally it doesn't seem too impossible for his character.
  • Taliyah was originally designed to be transexual. The idea was that her tribe of nomads never really had an issue with her gender, so it'd never become too prevalent of a detail for her. However, that idea was scrapped, but in it's place a Rioter does mention, when replying to someone asking if Taliyah can possibly be bisexual, that it's entirely possible as Taliyah is still growing and exploring. This I feel makes sense and I'd support a bisexual Taliyah, but as the Rioter mentioned she's still growing up, so it'd make sense if she really is still trying to figure herself out. Either way, Taliyah being bisexual wouldn't really change her character either and only be a minor detail compared to the rest of her story.
  • Kayn is a really tricky one. A Rioter does say he has had some form of infatuation or crush on Zed in his past, but it's also very possible to be just a usual 'teacher crush' that teenagers can have at some point. I personally don't know how to feel about Kayn being explicitly gay though, as (again) his sexuality doesn't really come into play in his general story. Along with that, the tricky one here is that it's based solely on a Rioter's comment about his CRUSH on ZED, so this could be anything really.
  • Now the big one for me: Diana and Leona, versus Caitlyn and Vi. Now with Diana and Leona, I am a HUGE supporter for their relationship. Their original designer has stated that Diana was originally designed to be a lesbian, and various old comments by Rioters hint at possible feelings between Leona and Diana. However, the current state of this is pretty blurry, but it's kinda shown some more light with the release of Eclipse Leona sharing some interesting interactions with Diana. Now, I am a huge supporter of Diana and Leona, but I also (and this is my opinion) do not think Caitlyn and Vi is possible, or very good. Why you may ask? Well Diana and Leona's stories are more directly linked to their relationship, putting their feelings for one another right in the spotlight if it were true. I recall some Rioters commenting on the tragedy of their story being something along the lines of "How could you ever kill someone you love?" So with them, the detail on their relationship and possible homosexuality makes sense, it's intertwined with the 'big picture' of their overall lore. Vi and Caitlyn on the other hand feels like pure fanfiction to me personally. I do support the idea of Vi being lesbian or bisexual herself (she has a strange mention of an 'erotic dream' in her short story "Interrogation 101" which may allude to this idea), but she simply doesn't have those kind of interactions with Caitlyn. The two were also designed solely as more of a 'buddy cop' or 'good cop bad cop' duo. Along with that, I'd appreciate a very close, platonic relationship between the two of them just as much.

So where am I going with this? Well I just want Riot to finally state something about several of these ideas, now that Neeko can openly state it. Most notably, I really want to know the state of Diana and Leona's possible relationship, something that Riot has both avoided and hinted at for YEARS now. All in all, what are your thoughts? And please try to be civil about it. I implore you to disagree if you have the need to, everybody's opinions should be heard.

70 Comments

RyzeTheSmurfMage11/20/2018, 7:48:15 AM14 votes

Taliah isn't trans and shouldn't be made to be.

TyrekGoldenspear11/20/2018, 1:48:21 PM6 votes

Honestly agreed about Vi and Cait.

I've always seen them as "buddy cops", like Jackie and Chris in Rush Hour.

Their clashing personalities would make for great comedic moments, but I don't think a romance would add anything to them.

Stars Shaper11/20/2018, 9:19:45 AM6 votes

I personally think Taric is above sexual desires and should be left outside any LGBT+ discussion.

Varus story is about an extremely powerful and dark being trying to consume 2 ppl who love each other and those 2 ppl clinging to that love to survive and hopefully (but I hope this isn't the case) overcome the demon. Them being homosexual is a pure accident and imo it has been ill managed as there is a freaking meme about Hearthlight.

Taliyah was fortunately spared from being something that wouldn't have worked with her lore: if there has to be a trans I don't really see how a human person growing in a poor and desertic tribe is the best choice. A shapeshifter like Neeko would have been a far better choice because their vision of themselves could have been fluid as their nature is.

Kayn is on a rather dangerous chime because, apart whatever his sexuality might be, the man who he respected the most sent him to die, he knows that and he has been a problematic kid who only knew violence since the tender age and shaped his psyche accordingly.

Ralanr11/20/2018, 2:46:10 PM4 votes

I’m probably going to get hate from saying this, but I don’t think Taliyah as a character should be trans because she wasn’t released as a trans individual. She was released as a full female character, and despite what was intended, changing the character after so long after release just feels like a slap in the face to her fans or other people that like her. She either should have been released as trans, or stayed as a female character.

Also, personally I don’t think being trans adds much to her character. She’s a young woman who ran away from home because she was afraid of hurting people with her powers and sought any teacher to help her control them. Now she’s back in shurima to find and save her family. Her being trans in my mind, doesn’t add to that. Especially if her family was ok with her being trans from the start.

I can understand wanting to diversify the cast of the game, but that’s what you do when the character is introduced or at least tell more stories about them. You don’t retcon information unless their lore is too old or you’re giving them a full VGU.

If Riot wants to release a trans character, then good for them. I’ll 100% support a character being released as such. But I won’t support changing an already existing character like this.

Nylisa11/20/2018, 9:09:10 AM4 votes

I think the reason Riot was beating around the bushes about it for so long as you put it, was that there was no necessary reason to bring it up more than a faint hint for those champions. to be fair even for Neeko they are not yelling it all over the place, she is young, she is curious, she is alone! so thinking about such stuff only comes natural to her. i don't think its a very defining point of her story. and the problem lies with people actually looking for it. I mean when Ezreal had lines toward Lux it was just few flirty lines and awkward attraction hints, but it was there, it was part of his story, it didn't define his character or his story. people moved on. so i don't understand why being a lesbian changes the factors of judging a character. she is just a girl who likes girls and is flirty toward them. that's it.

There are 2 scenarios in the eyes of some people in society : 1- a boy flirts with a girl : he is a teenager! 2- a girl flirts with a girl : she is a lesbian!

This is where it all starts!

XIII Vanitas11/20/2018, 1:50:54 PM3 votes

The rioter's comment about Kayn and Zed was a joke. People need to stop taking out of context everything rioters say. Also, Vi and Cait have much better chemistry than Leona and Diana, who have barely interacted with each other in the lore.

Pandemic Punch11/20/2018, 2:00:49 PM3 votes

This is yet another company just shoving politics into their game to appear to be "diverse". If they didn't want to be apart of the conversation or stir up drama for clicks, they would either never talk about sexuality at all or make it understood that every character is Bi.

The marketing department is probably really happy about all of the outrage it causes though. You know multiple gaming sites and YouTube commentators will run with the story.

LunSeiSleidee11/20/2018, 9:02:44 AM2 votes

NEEKO IS LESBIAN ONLY FOR THE STRAIGHT MALE AUDIENCE, NOT FOR THE LGBT AUDIENCE.

So yeah, call me back when they make a gay male character.

AbiwonKenabi11/20/2018, 2:24:28 PM2 votes

Kayn's inclusion in this list has always been really interesting to me. Its unclear whether he's attracted to men or not, and even if confirmed there is obviously more going on with him mentally than just "he's gay." He was sent to essentially his death by Noxus, and really didn't know anything of affection. The first person to give him the time of day, PRAISE him even, is this hunk of a shadow ninja. Kayn doesn't know a healthy relationship (platonic or otherwise), he only knows violence and power, and that seems like what he's attracted to. Which is why him and Rhaast have such good chemistry together and are the most enjoyable part of his character (for me at least).

And I mean purely character chemistry, not necessarily romantic chemistry. That said, Kayn x Rhaast 4eva. XD