THE WATER IS TURNING THE CHAMELEON CHAMPIONS GAY

@angelrose8340

5 жыл бұрын

why doesnt this have more likes?!?

@Safrina001

4 жыл бұрын

come get yall juice

@HelloItsMikkan

3 жыл бұрын

It's Mt Targon's Rainbow Gay Mist... First it's Taric then it's Varus then it's Neeko

The best explanation I can think of for her being a cute girl is that since she's clearing attracted to humanoid women, this may not be what she actually looks like. She may be more lizard-like and is CHOOSING to appear like a humanoid woman because she thinks it's pretty/wants other girls to think she's pretty. That's more of a head-canon thing, but for the time being, it feels like a reasonable in-universe explanation.

@nicogrosso8277

5 жыл бұрын

Same thought here.

@firelordeliteast6750

2 жыл бұрын

I mean, real humans do the same.

@solsystem1342

Жыл бұрын

What is the difference between liking/wanting to present as a women and being a women? /gen For a shapeshifter idk that what they "actually" look like matters. It's an interesting question

@jynxed66six54

Жыл бұрын

@@solsystem1342 because her shapeshifting is mimicry, not actual morphing. We have no idea what neekos species looks like, just that they are ancient vastaya. Its entirely possible that she looks completely animal-like naturally, and all her human features are copied. her short story says that shes familiar with the shapes of humans, it kind of implies these are shapes shes come to learn.

@TTMILKYTT

Жыл бұрын

@@jynxed66six54we do tho, and they look like Neeko, im pretty sure the card is called “Manasoul Student” is another Oovi-Kat named Daani and he looks like Neeko, being a boy with some lizard parts

She does have some interactions that speak of her being a lesbian, she flirts with Nami and Shyvana, and she makes fun of how “too beautiful” ezreal is, so that’s a thing!

@spygames5486

5 жыл бұрын

Yep, I was listening to her interactions with other characters it's pretty obvious that she's lesbian, like her quotes for others female characters makes pretty obvious, like the moment that I started paying attention to her lines the first thing that I through was "is she lesbian or wat?"

@bunnydarlin

5 жыл бұрын

Omg finally I will have a waifu

@KagamineNachy

5 жыл бұрын

Trans Ezreal Is Cannon King

@cutelilscrafty

5 жыл бұрын

"Does Dragon Lady want to eat lunch with Neeko sometime? Maybe?" My favorite line, because it's so cute and innocent, and it reminds me of the first time I tried to hit on a girl.

@Crownsnek

5 жыл бұрын

Evelynn is extreme! Neeko *curious*

Hello Mr. Skyen. If it's OK, I'd like to add my two lesbian cents. Neeko as a chameleon is very interesting in the context of her lesbianism. A very common lesbian experience is to desire to "be" other women. We aren't taught how to express our desires towards women, so we do so by desiring to "be" them. I've dealt with this very intimately. When I was a kid, I had many many fictional women I aspired to be. This was my attraction manifesting itself in the very limited romantic/sexual vocabulary I had. Whereas closeted lesbians cannot transform themselves, Neeko can, and she's out. It's a very interesting take on the concept. Neeko also has a lot of voice lines about her enjoying her time disguised as women. I particularly like her line when transformed as Ahri: "So beautiful, like moonlight on fresh snow." Her line "Wish I could stay like this, forever." is particularly hard-hitting because many of us "wish" we could be lesbians before realizing we can. It's just... it feels very real. Very few gay characters in fantasy media tie their abilities so intimately with their sexuality. I'm certain some think it's too much, but for me, it hit me in such a personal and intimate place that it hurt. I would very much like more characters like Neeko. A character's sexuality can be a core part of who they are an tied to other aspects of their character... you just need to be creative enough to do it. A lot of folks in the comments are saying "Neeko is gay and it doesn't matter." But for me? It does matter. It matters that it's so intertwined with her powers. She represents very real things experienced by very real lesbians... she just does it in a very unconventional way.

@noname-rj7dx

5 жыл бұрын

Lauren omg I didn't know that I was doing that! But yeah that's so true for me in hindsight.

@MatiasBenavides

5 жыл бұрын

Loving your take on her!

@kittypaddleplus8915

5 жыл бұрын

Woah.. I've never read or seen anything like you've described and related to it so much.. I guess it's different because I'm male but I've had strong gender dysphoria my whole life.. When I was young I would always pretend to be the female characters of any given show, game, etc and have dreams of being those characters and other female "OCs" I created in my head. Heh.. Once I got older and couldn't play pretend anymore I felt so empty. I've tried to talk to people about it but they don't understand. They think since I want to be a girl I'm just gay but I say "No. I like girls so much I want to be one!" And the mature, more logical viewpoint I have now is "pretending won't cut it anymore. So I just have to deal with being male I guess..". Anyways sorry for this random, long venting about my personal life. What you described just resonated with me more than anything I've ever heard and Neeko's concept & personality does just as much.

@WillisRude

5 жыл бұрын

I love this take so much

@oracola8282

5 жыл бұрын

yeah it's kind of a unique thing of same gender attracted people, "am i attracted to them or do i wanna look like them?"

My Counter argument for your final part of the video is that maybe she simply is patterning herself after Nidalee. Why take on a more human appearance? Maybe Nidalee taught her that she can communicate with people better with how she is now? Why are her clothes the way they are? Because she lived with Nidalee for a while, and that is about her style. It gives this feeling of mimicry of someone she likes. After all, when you're alone and unsure of what to do, why not latch onto someone you're comfortable and familiar with?

@luskart

5 жыл бұрын

Actually a great argument...!

@TheWitchvortex

5 жыл бұрын

She really does have similar clothes to Nidalee, so maybe it's true.

@intem333

5 жыл бұрын

it's a great argument if it's canon, otherwise i kinda agree with T.B. Just another reason to make a conventionally attractive woman. they go far enough to make her special but not particularly unique

@GreyscaleFady

5 жыл бұрын

Yeah I was about to write the same thing, to me it seems clear that pretty much the only reason Nidalee is in her backstory is to justify why she dresses like Nidalee and has a more human form. Whether the Nidalee connection or the design came first is a different question.

@plasmasloth8201

5 жыл бұрын

Something to note Neeko isn't a "shapeshifter", at least not in the stereotypical sense. She cant change her form to anything she wants, she sees someones "Shoma" (spiritual essence) and mimics it. I could be a little off though, because she slightly altered her face in the cinematic with the frog, but I think that is just a movie moment separate from her actual abilities. A point to make is that even if she can change her form as she desires, it is there's no guarantee that she doesn't have a "true" form, as in if she is mimicking Nidalee, she might be constantly transformed, so we aren't actually seeing her real appearance.

I like neeko speech pattern because as a shape shifter whose society is based on freely transforming into your family and tribe where secrets are not a thing because at any point you could be talking to a transformed person mimicking someone. It kinda sorta makes sense that she would have issues speaking in 3rd person instead of first person because there might not be the same sense of first person “I AM” or “ME” in such a community. Maybe Names is the only signifier a person has in her old society.

@PidgeonChair

5 жыл бұрын

Seen this on twitter

@thehoodlen

5 жыл бұрын

Hailfire Spawn Exactly I kind of think that in her native language, if she was talking about someone else she’d turn onto them or something along those lines to non verbal say “this person did this” and so when she talks about herself she’d turn back to herself which would also be “this person did this” so in spoken language she probably has to specify herself just like she would for others TL:DR she talks 3rd person because she can be more people than herself.

@tiagodarkpeasant

5 жыл бұрын

@@thehoodlen too bad she cant morph in random champions in game because the client cant load all champions every game, just imagine the taunt options she could have morphing into the rival of the champions she is taunting

@jackrush1222

5 жыл бұрын

I thought they dont really talk becae they could see through their soul

@solsystem1342

Жыл бұрын

I actually do something similar to this for "the endling" in my dnd game. The endling only refers to the endling as such because the priors (literally those who came before this world) did not have names or refer to eachother distinctly. Also because endling means the last of a species which the endling thought was the case for eons. The priors would use terms like "citizen" or "comrade" or something similar because the priors didn't have individuality, kind of, it's complicated. Therefore I don't use pronouns or a name for the endling. In order to try and translate the dissonance the endling experiences trying to communicate with other people. The priors also used to communicate mainly through memories and experiences rather than language which is really fun to roleplay.

my two cents real quick! Neeko speaking in 3rd person, at _first_ I felt the same way! like, she seemed a little cave maney or kind of animalistic when she spoke, till I actually thought more into the way that she speaks + what she is. Neeko is basically a doppelganger, and how she speaks or talks _anything_ about "identity" (or Shoma) she treats it almost like something you can simply pass around. like, for example, if we were both chameleon people who can shapeshift, and I was a doctor, and you're like a hunter. we don't call ourselves "Moron" or "Skylen" nor do we refer to ourselves as is. from what Neeko could be implying when she talks about the Shoma, I'm not actually _Moron_, Moron is simply the name of a form I use that is a doctor, and you would use yourself as Skylen, aka the identity of a hunter. if we chose to switch roles, or take different jobs, like me becoming a hunter, and you became a doctor, we would be like Me: "Ah! alright, Moron will now become Skylen, and Skylen will get to be Moron" *Swaps forms* you: "Greetings Skylen! Liking the form? Moron likes his form!" it's almost like tabletop roleplaying where you're basically roleplaying, and you're describing the actions of _your_ character in _third person_ because the person you are being is separate from the actual you, you wouldn't refer to this form as you because it's only temporary. so in the case of "Neeko" Neeko could just be her Identity, aka one of many _other_ identities she can assume for all she knows if you know her, you could love her, and if you love her, feel free to be her! she's willing to share her form with other people.

@yon9793

5 жыл бұрын

Jesus, that's... actually makes a lot of sense

@yurikz9

5 жыл бұрын

I love this, thank you

@kiddo6393

3 жыл бұрын

For a moment I was really confused why you were causally insulting yourself, then I read your username. Great point tho

@fableagain

2 жыл бұрын

Good point!

@fridaybutitssaturday1362

2 жыл бұрын

Beautiful

While I agree with most of the critiques you made for her overall design, I just wanted to point out that she isn't exactly Vastaya. In one of her direct quotes she says "Neeko is Oovi-Kat. We are not Vastaya. We are Vasthayshai'Rei. We are more colorful." In another she says "You are Vastaya. Neeko is Oovi-Kat. We are..cousins? Distant cousins." I can't say why that would account for her appearing so human-like but she's the only Vasthayshai'Rei we have/only known species of them as well. Just a thought as well, since she's a shapeshifter it's hard to say if this isn't just a chosen form/variation of her true appearance that she wears to be more approachable for her goals. That's my two cents, love your videos :)

@monkpawfire

5 жыл бұрын

Vasthayshai'Rei are vastaya but not mixxed with humans

@azurehuntress787

5 жыл бұрын

MonkPaw Fire vastaya are a product of Vasthayshai’Rei and humans, but they don’t seem to fall under the Vastayan category themselves since they don’t fit into what makes vastaya vastaya. (This is just based off me reading the riot universe tab)

Personally, I think the reason why they're not talking about her being lesbian is because they don't want her to be a token character

@diegosaez4885

5 жыл бұрын

Also, is Riot threading a delicate path for them for how controversial has their fiscal year being thus far, perhaps their worse, for how opposite how have they being when compared to the inclusivity of Neeko. To some, including myself, regardless of this inclusion approach on Neeko, cannot stop feeling this irking sensation than this is more an apologetic decision for how terrible has Riot being as a company (in regards to rather being exclusive, yet is the least of their issues) and avoid being further stigmatized by those that have opposed them throughout the year more than an inclusive one for the sake of introducing a proper LGTB+ champion.

@shayfarrelly6789

4 жыл бұрын

We have the same default pfp

@burntplastic1162

4 жыл бұрын

Bruh as a lesbian, it's great she's gay but nearly all her voicelines are just her flirty with girls it feels like she's one dimensional

@mathunit1

3 жыл бұрын

@@burntplastic1162 You're just exaggerating. It's AT MOST 60%, if only because Riot keeps making more female champion.

@TTMILKYTT

3 жыл бұрын

@@burntplastic1162 i do want to say Neeko is only just now entering adulthood and she seemingly has never had a girlfriend so i think its normal for her to be kinda flirty and awkward around female champs she finds attractive. like as a young gay boy i wasn’t able to be that way publicly but i definitely had those thoughts. and those lines only occur when she transforms into one of them and they have an audio effect on them to make them seem like they’re internal thoughts. definitely could be better but she has her own personality outside of her attraction to women

I feel like "to know neeko is to love neeko, and to love neeko is to be neeko" is like how you won't truly know or understand her until she grows on you and builds a relationship such as trust, friendship or more, being the to know = love part, and to love neeko is to be neeko could be like how you mentioned earlier in the video her form of communication is more than words, such as actions, and to say she understands or knows someone she becomes them, such as shapeshifting, and that could be what she means. It could also be referring to her open, carefree, and endearing personality

I actually feel that it is good that Neeko sexuality isn't a >main What i do agree is that riot kinda fell again in the "oh let's make every female champion pretty" and just. Did not dare perhaps to take more extreme/monstrous yet humanoid design. Maybe it was a sensible choice, since she is the first open lgbt champion they didn't want her to look monstruous so no one would be offended but who knows.

@xstoofpeer

5 жыл бұрын

Yeah I dont think they would want the only lesbian character to look grotesque. It would take away from the female representation.

@tiagodarkpeasant

5 жыл бұрын

do you mean iyaoi ?

@zkyrus1873

2 жыл бұрын

I think she takes on aspects of Nidalee's human appearance bc Neeko loves and idolizes Nidalee pretty much. I mean, we do not know how Neeko looked like before she met Nidalee.

We don't know if the Neeko we see is in her actual body. The body we see could just be a shifted shape to make her more human like. After all, if she wants to talk to humans, especially Demacians or Noxians, choosing a somewhat human form would be advantageous instead of going in there with her (arguably) real body

@zwiebeldogs

5 жыл бұрын

Ah, you mentioned that

i think the "To know Neeko is to love Neeko, and to love Neeko is to be Neeko" is something that only Oovi-Kat can really truly understand?

Thank you for still sending out content as you go through a hard time

@afallingtree9114

5 жыл бұрын

Did I miss something?

I will say, I love her accent, can't quite place it but I love it all the same. Also I do hope they update Nidalee's lore after they kinda linked Neeko to her backstory and implied she may get her shape-shifting ability from some form of Vastayan ancestry (Maybe). Also a lot of her voice lines do lean on the fact that she's gay a lot, she's super flirty with the ladies. Edit: Found udser the Vastayan entry on the universe site that the last paragraph pretty much refers to her specifically as being a shapeshifting human that may have Vastayan ancestry.

@driftnick7022

5 жыл бұрын

From what I've heard, the voice actress is brazilian.

@matiasvillarino4344

5 жыл бұрын

She is brazilian

@david18cruz1989

5 жыл бұрын

since the Xayah and Rakan launch and the whole difinition of the vaystaya species, every shapeshifting human champion is a vastaya descendant,unless their lore states otherwise.

@uniquefantasy4631

5 жыл бұрын

David Cruz Yes but Nidalee isn’t completely vastayan, she’s a cousin to their race. And the vastaya don’t change back to their animal form, they just stay as the anthropoid they are, some looking slightly more human than others

I like this. It's a champion who was her own entire lore and everything, and happens to be gay. Just the way it should be.

@davidwitcofski1304

5 жыл бұрын

That's why i loved the way blizzard handled tracer's reveal, she kissed her girlfriend, and no other mention of her sexuality was made outside of some tweets saying "yeah she gay"

@alexmercer2743

5 жыл бұрын

Did I miss something? How do we know she's gay?

@TBSkyen

5 жыл бұрын

@@alexmercer2743 .... I mean, it's literally one of the first things I cover in the video. You could watch it - or click one of the links to the info in the description.

@alexmercer2743

5 жыл бұрын

@@TBSkyen Guess I did miss it - i listen to these videos as a podcast at work and must have not been paying attention during that portion.

@therearenostars

5 жыл бұрын

@@alexmercer2743 it's obvious but just hints aside it was literally said she's a lesbian

I feel they could've had their cake and eaten it too. Maybe if she was a bit more scaly, with a wider mouth, long tongue and chameleon feet and arms, she could still be cute while being more chameleon like.

@Nparalelo

5 жыл бұрын

Yeah, that frog girl from My Hero Academia seems to be really popular. And she has big mouth and long tongue!

@leotamer5

5 жыл бұрын

At least she isn't Rammus, that looks nothing like an armadillo, and is a turtle who just happens to roll up into a ball, and even has a skin that is a reference to Teenage Mutant Ninja TURTLEs.

@Rodrigo-ge5wy

5 жыл бұрын

@@leotamer5 Maybe in the league of legends planet, turtles and armadillos are the same creature.

I personally don’t agree with the “Why is she a cute girl” arguement here because she isn’t Vastaya Shai Rei. She’s closer to it than most other Vastaya, but her tribe had still met with humans at some point so she would still have human aspects to her. Secondly, I feel that we haven’t seen her original base form, and that instead we’re seeing a version of Neeko that’s shapeshifted to look more human because she mimics what she likes and is clearly fond of Nidalee. Her clothing can be explained by her spending a lot of time with Nidalee as well who plays into that primitive, only wearing what’s necessary to cover up delicate areas culture that we see with primitive tribes in the real world. Also it would be pretty difficult from a design perspective to sell that cute, naive aesthetic that they wanted Neeko to have if she had chameleon eyes. When we design characters to be adorable we give them bigger eyes and a smaller face, making them look more baby or child-like, because that’s what registers in our minds as cute. You can’t do that with chameleon eyes because the skin covers up all of what would be the sclera.

I believe her relationship with Nidalee and her overall likeness for natural elements defines her clothing and style chpices. As for her aspect, I belive it has to do more with the directed audience. Where you to make a more chimeric and less human less "cute girl" character, it WOULD be a more interesting concept yet you just cant ignore the fact that it will not sell as well. She is directed towards the League of Legends community and, from feedback I know that she is in fact very effective in appealing to them. Just felt some of the points you made about her clothing and aspect wherent thoroughly thought out. ily fam 👌

@Fosilkat

5 жыл бұрын

Yeah, i bet if ivern where a sexy female dryad more people would play him

@thehoodlen

5 жыл бұрын

Lucas Cofre then there’d be too many sexy plants

@danieljanek6215

5 жыл бұрын

@@Fosilkat *cough* Zyra

@tiagodarkpeasant

5 жыл бұрын

rek'sai and kindred are popular in certain circles

@yurikz9

5 жыл бұрын

yes! this would very well be a reasonable thing.. what's sad is that they don't say anything about it :/

Most of the "why not more chameleon?" questions could be answered with "Because they wanted a cute girl more than a chameleon hybrid". The wide mouth and long tongue, though...that's basically an extra-big grin and a funny appendage. Weird.

I'm not as bothered by her design as much as I am with Kai'Sa. I can believe that completely separate civilizations and people can develop similarly with minimal to no contact because well, it's happened. Meanwhile the chick who fell into the darkest and most twisted part of the Rift with nothing to show for it besides a skin tight wardrobe. Hm.

(applause in lesbian)

@Denolahthebest

5 жыл бұрын

No U

@angelrose8340

5 жыл бұрын

(applauses back in bisexual)

Why not make her more alien? ... "MOE SELLS." Not saying your wrong at all. It would be amazing to have the ideas you bring placed in the character design. However they also need to be able to sell her and Riots safe place is C.G.C or "cute girls in cosplay." Love your videos. Love your work. Please keep it up. Thank you T.B.

@Kaegrowl

5 жыл бұрын

Agreed, even just dropping the hair or giving her any kind of more reptilian face would have been an improvement I think, but will get fewer boner inspired impulse buys

@anonym0sender

5 жыл бұрын

I think Tsuyu and Mina from MHA have designs that hit that spot between cute and alien-ish, so doing both would be possible. Then again, Tsuyu was kind of a breakout hit and Asido isn't exactly the most popular character in MHA, so good point.

@evilpanties8899

5 жыл бұрын

asido is quite popular in waifu wars man, and deservingly so. I really like these character designs in MHA

@tiagodarkpeasant

5 жыл бұрын

make she alien, BUUUUUT with a moe skin, they can make literally any skin for her, i really want a japanese skin for her, come on, her name is NEEKO make her a pajama skin, some decora and for a legendary a kind of elementalist skin but with the different styles of lolita

@phoenixjones2569

5 жыл бұрын

Another reason why they might have avoided the more alien or monster design could be because of the LGTQ stuff.. having the first openly gay playable character in league be too abnormal/alien/monstrous would more than likely call upon the wrath of myself and many others considering that our previous set of gay people within the league world were possessed by an evil weapon fueled by vengeance

I wonder how they will work with her sexuality given that her entire tribe could take any form How exactly can you have a fixed sexuality when everybody can have any shape and even take on personality traits of those they copy? Or is that something she figured out after finding humans with fixed form? Could be interesting to tell a story about that, but I highly doubt they will do it

@littlerainy3453

5 жыл бұрын

nid could be her first love because nid was nice to her :^D

I feel like a character being gay is such a non-news. It's great that it's the case for Neeko, but it shouldn't matter. The more we have to make a big hubbub about someone's sexual orientation, the less it's gonna be treated as a normal thing, which is kind of the opposite of what most reasonable and progressive people want in the first place. Anyway, she's really cute. Don't care if she's lesbian or not. I want to give her headpats.

@miuletzmitzu6641

5 жыл бұрын

Not that it shouldn't matter, it just shouldn't be such a huge thing, like don't make being gay the whole thing about the character, she has a personality, depth, and besides all that she's also gay, it should be like that, not the other "she's gay... oh and this is her kinda backstory but she gay". I do think it matters, especially for lgbt people (like, I don't see it as great, but I love it and it makes me feel a little bit better since Im bi), it shows lgbt people that theyre accepted into society now, by companies making such things.

@bluewolf3508

5 жыл бұрын

@@miuletzmitzu6641 for me its like, you should'nt find any difference between her and any other character, even ehr subtle interactions arent too realistic, as far as I know not all lesbians literaly dislike almost all men and like almost all girls, and her interactions where slightly like that. Idk, just me but she shouldnt have any difference? Any other non confirmed character could be gay when you think about it, just because it wasnt told they are it doesnt mean they are hetero.

@paulgibbon5991

2 жыл бұрын

@@bluewolf3508 For me, Neeko's dislike of taking on a male form seemed to be more about gender identity than anything else. I have seen shapeshifting characters sometimes criticised for presenting a gender as something you can shrug on or off casually, which is seen as diminishing just how unpleasant gender dysmorphia is. In this case, it makes sense to note that she can become male, but it's not as natural or comfortable to her as being female.

I like how she sees and hears everything in various ways. Adds to her Chameleon theme.

I bet Riot just made Neeko a lesbian only to make a “Ezreal looks like a girl” joke.

she speaks in a different way, but her quotes show that she is smart, like when she say " if neeko can be ANYONE, how neeko knows she is SOMEONE?" and she is not a caveman she is more of a distant relative as she tries to communicate with the rest of vastaya, usually by implying they are inferior

The reason why they don't talk about it is that the lore can be translated in other countries with less controversy

It was kinda obvious woth her interactions

Quinn: Hey there citizens of Demacia. This is Quinn with Captain Tristana in Bandle city to study Gnar. The primordial Yordle which was found encased in permafrost by Taliyah. All the way from the northern Freljord mountains. But is the rocket launcher necessary? Tristana: Yeah that's right and I've got this baby to kick it back in the pen if it rampages again. Quinn: Are you sure? Those two TRULY look VERY intimidating to me. *A Gnar turns to waddle towards them like a toddler. The other keeps gnawing on a bone* Tristana: Oh shush your sarcasm it's actu-wait... did you just say two? *Quinn picks up the waddling Gnar* Quinn: Yeah, why do you seem so surprised? Tristana: We only have one of those... ???: Yep that's right

Riot should probably hire you.. I've watched a lot of you r stuff and you bring up some elements that I think about when I see some of their stuff. I'm really glad you are putting out this content. Also you laugh is hilarious! lol

An important part of character design i think are parts that grab attention, and how long. Neeko's most eye-catching aspects are her tail, her eyes, and her flower crown (to me). And that really isn't enough, from a design perspective, to sell what she's supposed to be. Also, it'd be way too much work (and it'd kill skins/chromas), but it'd be cool if her color palette would change based on where she is on the map. warm tones/grey for lane, greener for jungle, blue/cold tones for river. Or even change a bit when you get blue/red/baron buff if location is too difficult. If they had to go the cute girl route, I wish they'd play with the chameleon aspects a little more. (color changing is my favorite part of chameleons so im a bit bummed)

riot was looking for a childish cute design maybe even to sell some merch, it would just be not as charismatic to have a weird chameleon monster with girl voice

Hmm, the language part, where she refers to herself as "Neeko", with shapeshifters who seemingly have a higher form of communication (one more intimate and indepth than words could ever express), referring to yourself in the third person might be to help emphasize yourself, so you don't forget who you are... a sort of identification and reaffirmation. For all we know, this might not even be Neeko's true form as she does ask something along the line of "If Neeko took the form of Neeko, what does she become?". There's also the chance, as someone else said, that Neeko is giving you permission to take her form and Sho'ma, is offering it in fact and wants to make herself known to them. It's entirely likely that for her, names aren't just names... they incorporate who YOU are as an entirety... what makes me say this is both the tropes of "names/true names" as well as the final statement in her lore: "To know Neeko is to love Neeko, and to love Neeko is to be Neeko". It wipes away the concept of I, to more totally give of yourself to others... sorta like "What is I?" Everyone is I, but no one else is "You".

I don't know if it was intentional or not but it was a great touch that Neeko comunicates with her shapeshifting. It's actually a myth that chameleons change color to blend in. They actually use the ability to communicate with others much like Neeko seems to do.

Representation is important, but it's a good idea to not just take the JK Rowling approach of mentioning that a character is LGBTQ (or whatever) without finding any way to demonstrate it. Neeko...I'm not LGBTQ, so I'm not speaking from experience, but from what I know I can see arcs about Neeko not conforming to society's expectations and trying to hide who she really is resonate with an LGBTQ audience. If I'm right, good on Riot. If I'm wrong, or if Riot made her too alien, then less good on them. 4:00: That's some impressive record-keeping, but it feels like it's trying to establish a pedigree by tracing their bloodline back to a legendary figure. (Maybe it's just the language used to describe it.) That's a bit odd for a tribe, and utterly bizarre when you realize that the legendary figure in question is legendary for being the ancestor of a _lot_ of people, especially since said group of people has well-defined physical differences from other people. 10:25: If I wanted to do something like that, I'd pull inspiration from real-world linguistic differences between people, like the lack of articles in Russian. That still has cultural baggage, but at least it's not as filthy as depictions of "savage" peoples. 12:50: I can't tell if that menacing and tonally-dissonant line is intentionally so, suggesting a darker edge to Neeko's almost childish dream, or if the writers didn't think through the implications of that particular childlike phrase. Maybe they just mean that anyone who gets to understand Neeko well enough will come to enjoy Neeko's way of life, and then want to join in it...but that's still a bit creepy, isn't it? 15:55: I wonder if the slightly alienating eyes are supposed to hint at whatever disturbing stuff goes on when people love Neeko. 19:40: Five hands... _man,_ that sounds creepy. Also like something a shapeshifter might try when they're bored. Though you should probably be careful with those kinds of experiments. For instance, don't turn your fingers into cats. 22:15: It does stink that female character designs are required to be hot. I mean, yeah, I like adorable characters as much as the next guy, but there are a _lot_ of those. Heck, there are even a lot of adorable girls with reptilian tails. (Thanks, Kobayashi-san!) I _also_ like characters who look unique, and while Neeko is that (none of the Dragon Maid girls are nearly so...floral), she could be a lot _more_ that.

@adamsrealm

5 жыл бұрын

Yeah. Just saying a character is something is one thing. Integrating it into their lore so that the player gradually finds out or is told is a much better approach.

@tiagodarkpeasant

5 жыл бұрын

definitely don't turn your finger into squirrels

She has a very Lisa Frank aesthetic. I love her. I would not be surprised to find her on the old binders and sticker books from my youth.

I guess she takes on a more human guise in order to blend in with the people around her, and appear more approachable. This sort of ties into her lore where she is willing to befriend others who want to help form her tribe. The way her green skin transitions into her human form sort of implies that she is ready to transform, and that the human form isn't permanent. She could probably change her entire body into a chameleon form if she so wishes, but I think this appearance is something she feels comfortable in. That's just what I think anyway, and I do agree that a lot more could be done with her design

Neeko is gay and it doesn't matter at all. A lot of "artists" and "authors" can learn a lot from this. There is absolutely nothing about Neeko's gameplay, her lore, or her character that hinges on her sexuality. So many writers and artists lately these days vehemently stop at nothing to make sure you know how gay their character is. The entire identity of their works are wrapped up in the sexuality of their characters (and their stories) that everything else about them falls to the wayside and suffers because of it. Neeko on the other hand likes fish women and dragon ladies. If you listen to her interactions, you hear her comments about Nami and Shyvanna and can discern she's very interested in them. But aside from that, it doesn't matter. Neeko is entirely her own character with her own motivations and her own interests. And that's great. Neeko can exist as a straight character, a bisexual character, or in this case a gay character and it will not diminish her at all. That's the way it should be in my opinion. That's the way people should be as well. Your sexual interests and identity should be an adjective to you, not the noun. Neeko is gay. And that's alright.

@sforzando

5 жыл бұрын

it's because having any perceived "gay" trait at all was "bad," so now that being LGBT is more acceptable we are making up for all those years of having to hide ourselves in shame :V but i agree with your overall message - it's better than folks making a gay character and saying, "a gay character! give us brownie points!"

@Valdyr_Hrafn

5 жыл бұрын

Though I agree Neeko is all the better for it. in our culture there are a lot of subcultures around having different sexualities, for someone being gay CAN be a character trait and they shouldn't be regarded as lesser for it.

@darklordstan6154

5 жыл бұрын

"The entire identity of their works are wrapped up in the sexuality of their characters (and their stories) that everything else about them falls to the wayside and suffers because of it." I agree with this statement.One's own personality and individuality should be on the forefront.

@meisterfluffbutt9597

5 жыл бұрын

@@shoulderacoffin i agree witg the comment, i'm lesbian and no, i have non internalized homophobia... Maybe you interpreted his statement, really differently. I don't think he wanted them all to "hide the gay" but mostly wants it to be a charactertrade. And not the character. Neeko is an adorable, sweet and funny character, who decided to be gay. And not neeko is a, adorable, sweet and funny character WHO BY THE WAY IS GAAAYYYY it's okay to say you would like to see a more gayer character but you don't really have champions savoring their sexuality all over the place. Ecxept for Rakan and Xayah, who are in a relationship. And maybe evelynn, but shes a demon and succubus so... Doesn' t count. It would throw me out of the atmosphere of the game tbh. Soo yea, sorry for any wrong spelling, isn't my mother tongue ^^

@garbunka

5 жыл бұрын

@@shoulderacoffin I wonder why dont we just accept that sexuality may not define us but (for most people) it is a big part of our personalities.

They actually put some efford into this; Her dialogue with Evelyn, Ezreal, Nidalle, Shyvana and, to a degree, Illoi, all points at this, which is pretty cool

"What does Neeko do with power? *Make people behave*"

"Sexy born yesterday"-type character trope meant as a distraction from the lawsuit against Riot games.

"The LONG ASS tongue" made me lol

Also, as a little add on, I think it's actually kinda cute about her outfit that I imagine it's almost matching with nidalee's clothes, she even has the tooths on her belt and matching boot thingies. Like, if she lived among nidalee and her people, it'd be cute that that's where her outfit design comes from.

You mentioning about how far they could have gone made me think about it a bit more. Vastaya are the descendants of humans and Vastayashai'rei but Neeko says that the Oovi'kat are like "distant cousins" to them. What if she originally looked more chameleon-like, but because it sounds like she's been around humans (or at least Nidalee) for a while now she's trying to blend in? As a side note, I just looked at the Vastayan origin tree thing again to make sure I was spelling Vastayashai'rei right, and noticed in the "Tribes of the Sea" branch next to the Marai there are two tribes called the Makara and the Raylu with a little tag next to them saying "carnivorous, ever-smiling". That could be a really good opportunity for Riot to add more creepy/monstrous looking champions, I thought maybe they could be humanoid but have heads more like Anglerfish?

I like that she "just so happens" to be gay. I really hope riot doesn't mention it every time they mention her, like "have we mentioned she likes girls". It feels natural that she has some interactions and that it's well known, but, as I stated, I hope they don't force it down our throats.

We need a NEKO skin for Neeko! "To know Neko is to love Neko, and to love Neko is to BE Neko!". Also it'd fall in-line with the whole nidalee Cat tribe thing.

I agree completely with what you are saying tbh regarding her design. The only problem I would have had if they went more with the alien and monstrous aspect with her design is that she is also the first gay character in the game. It would be a little offputting for me if they had the first gay champion be characterized as abnormal, strange, and monstrous. BUT I would much rather Neeko visually communicate that way and they possibly move the representation to a more fitting character? Thats just my opinion anyway. edit: I really do like the representation of Neeko and how she got characterized around lesbiansism. Its really stunning, I'm just glad they didnt maker her a monster and tried to humanizer her more despite it not making sense in the context of runeterra and the Vastayan history

I found this because of my recent interest in following Neeko news (as I wish to main her when she is released), but one thing I have to say is that... I don't see the... "botched grammar" as being necessarily a caveman trope, yes in English-speaking countries we have all the characters speaking in English, but there are cultures which don't use a proper "I" pronoun in their language, so in order to designate themselves they have to use their name (colloquial Vietnamese is a modern example of having no "I" or "you"). That being said it also says that she "saw only using verbal language as limiting," which in a way does limit things, think about how facial expressions effect the impact of a statement or question, it can be the difference between a slap to the face and a chuckle with a friend... so, personally, I'd say it's more like she is modifying her language to fit the culture and customs of people she has come across in Runeterra.

Could her predominantly human form be a recent development, given her recent exposure to humanity & her representation of trying to understand such through assuming a similar shape? She's also maybe using the giant eyes in order to incite the "cute response" in these beings she wishes to interact with positively & possibly integrate with? That could explain the clothes as well, which could also be elements of shape-shifting that she's using to fit in with her new environment? In that circumstance, maybe she previously appeared far more similar to a lizard in her home environment? OK you addressed those points xD. Sorry! I feel your concerns, some actual suggestion of these ideas would be nice. I assume we'd like to hope it's not due to laziness! xD Keep it up sir!

Characters can be good without being as ‘interesting’ as you want to them to be, they need to make her kind of relatable at the same time :/ Also her clothings and appearance can be explained by her time with Nidalee

Remember this channel when it first hit 20k no its almost at 50k sub's. Keep it up skyen.

The part about her clothes is pretty easily explained. She spent time living with Nidalee before coming to the league, maybe she discovered her own sense of fashion while living with her? It does seem a little similar to Nidalee's outfit, but that might just be my perspective. I personally don't mind that she appears more humanoid than chameleon. It doesn't bother me at all that a character in a fictional world's appearance isn't bound by reality, and I think she is adorable! I stopped playing league for a year, but I might come back just to try out Neeko :)

horray for ancient lesbian chameleons !! (never thought I'd say that in my life)

Dammit, Skyen. Now I am obsessed with a redesign of Neeko and will constantly deviate from my other projects! Curse you! (Also expect a corresponding drawing in the future :3)

The "colorful mage" has a new sense now LOL

@Nobody-pv9jt

5 жыл бұрын

lmfao

Isn't that like an unspoken design rule Riot has? Make every(most) character as cosplayable as possible? Pretty girl is more cosplayable than an uncanny monster girl. The same happens with Kai'sa which we both agree that felt like a missed opportunity.

Honestly, this really interesting new character + the KDA music video is making me really want to pick up LOL again. I haven't touched it in years. I wouldn't know about either if it wasn't for this channel. Thanks. ^.^ Came for the Dark Souls, staying for you.

Agree quite whole-heartedly with them not going "far enough". This is effectively a Fae Creature with shapeshifting! There are many many visual options to work with, and it feels like it got toned down. It even carries over to the kit, which feels too linear for a trickery character. It's the same issue I have with LB and being a "tricky character" despite not having much mechanically. IDK. I can think of so many neat ways to implement empathy and shapesharing, and the design and kit is too expected...

I agree they coukd have done more with her design, in regards to the skin and face there is a similar issue that kaisa has which is she has oddly perfect makeup and styled hair. Though I find it far less egregious on neeko than I do on kaisa, mostly because kaisa is so dull in almost every aspect from looks to behaviour and personality, she was a much bigger miss than neeko is, because she's atleast entertaining through her personality and interesting enough in her visual design that I think its less painful that they went for the low hanging fruit of adorable girl. I think more scaley skin areas and the long tongue would have been great, but any further than I don't think the cute aspect they wanted to convey would be as prevailant if she was too monstrous.

Y’know... I absolutely adore Neeko, and find her a completely precious character I think is a wonderful addition to the universe of Runeterra - especially thanks to her very existence explaining even more of the origins of the Vastaya than that one guy’s field journal did. BUT. As for the whole hullabaloo - or lack thereof - about her sexuality? I kinda figured she was lesbian the second I heard her voice lines vids, and my reaction was as follows; “Oh, cool.” While I’m glad there’s some LGBT representation, I honestly only care about it insofar as if it makes her a better character. Right now though, we don’t know if her sexuality has any impact on her character or history beyond her voice lines, so I don’t think anyone’s making a big deal about it for that very reason. Though I am a straight dude, so take everything I say with a grain of salt if you whole-heartedly disagree.

I really wish League would dabble in more non-humanoid champions, there's like, what, ten? Fifteen? Neekos just yet another cute female with a few animal features to add to the rest.

I am happy to be your 53.182 Subscriber, Sir! Love your Videos and i have learned many a Thing About character writing.

I think that the part of taking the appearence of allies comes from an item from the black market, trickster glass, that let you do that, thake the appearance of other allies. Another thing that Neeko gets from others

I was just waiting to hear your opinion about neeko :3 loved it

Ty for discord update

It is maybe dark in our perspectiv, But remember she is a shapeshifter for Neeko it means something totaly diffrent. :3

I love your videos man, i watch your videos all the time

Wow that was fast!

You bring up some very good points that I very much agree on. Often when I see a design of a character that is supposed to be 'alien' in some way or another they just look like humans with a twist. Which is a shame because there is so much to explore there! Like for instance, especially with Neeko who is based on a reptile, girls have boobs. Which is super weird because they are not mammals? And why would sexual dimorphism in their species be the same as in humans. Even if we just look at other species on Earth they are so diverse, why not go further when you can design something completely new. Anyway, a wonderful video. Thank you!

"She is essentially a Neanderthal." Sheet, I haven't thought of that. Good catch!

Honestly, to me at least, she seems like a massive wasted opportunity. She has such an interesting powerset. What if she progressively changed shape over the course of the game? What if she changed shape depending on the build? What it you could, like with Kai'Sa, press a button for her to become more chameleon like? I mean those are all things we have seen in Leauge before.

@plantthug9253

5 жыл бұрын

Maybe a future legendary or ultimate skin :)

@Megaman-2407

3 жыл бұрын

@@plantthug9253 her actual voice actor die so nope

When watching an "all unique interractions" video earlier I noticed there are a few voice lines that express interest in other women, so it's nice to see that even if they haven't made mention of it, it's officially-endorsed rather than just designer headcannon.

Hello there Mr. Skyen, I may have some answers why the lack of experimentation about the design. They (Riot), could have made a very interesting chameleon like character, to represent her disconnection to other vatayan kinds, but there might be a problem, that would only make her aline alike, which means that players would not feel empathy at all, I know that there are people that doesnt care about play with "monsters" (characters like Reksai), but that was not the feeling that they wanted the normal player to experience, so she needed more human characteristics. If that is true, then we have another explanation, about the clothes, because of the resonance of Neeko to a girl, taking away the clothes would not be very pleasant for legal reasons. And if you want to communicate that she is from another culture, the it would be contradictory to give her different clothes of different regions, because that would imply that she has already explore runterra. I think that is all from me, I hope you to have a wonderful day, and life in general H

I loved her concept before I found out she was gay. Now I love her even more. I can relate.

80% of comments: LESBIAN 20% of comments: actual critical commentary

love you Skyen, also what is the thing on her necklace?

TB Skyen, you ask why is she so human, but the answer is kinda clear. When Riot goes with female characters, even when they are vastayan, they have to be "sexy" in some way, because they become instantly popular that way. And a more alien or animal look than that, turns her into a "furry", which... Is much like love or hate. And they tend to always go for the safest route. They tried one time not to do a "sexy" female with Taliyah, and you saw how that went. They went so safe with this champion, they used Neko with an aditional E for her to be cute even in the name... I don't know if Neeko have meaning in some language, I'm sorry if it actually has one, and the meaning makes sense for the character. A clear example of females that could be more "animal" are the yordles, where the males are all furry and stuff, but the females are like tiny humans for some weird reason. And earlier this year, there was the Kai'Sa case. She had no need for her to be pretty, but there she is. I was just talking with a friend this weekend, about how she finds weird the males being all of different shapes and sizes and there's not many of them that "appeal" to women, while the females are almost all like that.

To know neeko (when you know her as a friend) is to love neeko ( you can't but like her because she is cute ) is to be neeko ( be one of the tribe she wants to build up) is my interpretation of this but we can go with you mind control thing too XD

My guess is the reason why they didn't do more lizard-like and went more human-like is for visability. If you haven't noticed, NOOOOOOT a lot of green champions or skins, and when there is it's either really bright or a completely different type of green (ex: Zac kinda has highlights on his skin, and Ivern is more of a brown-yellow-green but still has that white to pop out). Thing with Neeko is she's blue and green, and those colors just blend too well with most of the map...

I think of the last line of lore to be cute and nice with the idea that she is lovely to be around and when you're around she expresses herself more through taking on your form like mentioned with her first trying to express herself to the guard

I wonder if ease of cosplay was an intentional design choice for this charcter, which would probably rein in a lot of the cooler things you can do with her.

Imagine it. Enemy team: This lady, Wu Kong, Shako, Leblanc, and Zed.

One big part of the new LoL design is make compelling characters more cosplayable possible , and that's a thing you need to put on your CRITICS ! without this notion , your not putting yourself in the shoes of creator and consumer rightly . Great video thou !

I'm not sure if you can draw or not but I'd love to see what you think Neeko should have looked like that would be awesome ^.^

Im glade I'm not the only one confused on why she look so human if she is supposed to be a Vastayashai'rei(pure magical beings), now if she is just a vastayan ok i get it half human half Vastayashai'rei, but if she is a Vastayashai'rei how does a Rengar come about or a Wukong? that look way more animal than even a pure Vastayashai'rei

@j.w.7608

5 жыл бұрын

Exsus Fade a guy on KZread named necrit explains it a bit but basically there's like a tree for the race n neeko is near the roots whereas wukong and rengar and xayah and rakan are branches on the tree

Her lore says her kind lived in an island to the far east, so I assume it was the Blessed Isles or somewhere near, and the cataclysm is that place's destruction and transformation in the Shadow Isles.

I love this character right now, she's pretty great. Hopefully they don't ruin her in short stories

Maybe Neeko encountered other humans between the time in her island and the present time, and she could have looked diferently when she met that vastayan captain and Nidalee, but along her journey, after leaving Nida, she met humans and Neeko adapted partially on their form, either because she liked a particulary human and accepted that form, to be permanent, or Neeko wants to know more abut humans and altered her form to look familiar, and maybe understand them.

Watched this today and I heard about your plans for a future video on LGBTQ+ rep on League (or its lack thereof), but I couldn't find it, hope it's still on the to-do list!

@TBSkyen

4 жыл бұрын

It's on there, along with a bunch of other videos I keep meaning to get around to :)

@Shadowknight1224

4 жыл бұрын

@@TBSkyen Thank you! Wasn't expecting a reply! I am very glad it's on the list and I look forward to watching it :D

T B Skyen, could you give us a list of the music that plays in your videos? I really like them. I'm specifically curious about the song that plays at 4:10

@Ainz_Oo

5 жыл бұрын

4:10 is the theme of Kindred ^^

I do agree specially in the end. Why always has to be a cute girl? Why it has to be beautiful? Also I did read what one of the top comments say about she spending time with nidalle made her take a human form and also her clothing style. Which I agree with the clothing part but not her human for though. Why she has a tail then? Is to balance better? Why does she keep some of her green scales visible and in other parts she doesn't? WHY IS SHE A CUTE, SKINNY, GOOD LOOKING GIRLL aaaa stop riot pls ALSO there is a chameleon on the splash art which confuses me.... is that her distance cousin then? lol. About the sexuality part, I love everything on her specially the fact that she is the first gay champion in lol HOWEVER I find sad that the "lgbt" champion has to come up from a "far away land". I hope that doesn't mean that, to be lesbian you have to be a alien lol. Idk that kinda makes me think that then runtera doesn't have lgbt ppl. Small complain, I'm just happy that she is there in the end of the day. Great video btw!

I had a character design professor who had a great take on sexuality: It's great to have it in mind as an artist, but it's just another trait. Perhaps to answer your question about why people aren't talking about it more, for Neeko it's not a critical trait. Nothing on the design leans on it, nothing in her lore requires it. The trait informs how the artists show and tell how she thinks and makes decisions, and this trivia about her might inspire some players to connect with her, but yeah - not as critical or interesting as her defining ability. In a way, I like this viewpoint of sexuality in character design as it places it in equal weight to other sexualities in games without pandering.

I think it is justified in her lore as to why she looks human, after all she is from a Vastaya race and not a Vastayashai’rei which means there has to be humans somewhere in their lineage. Also the clothes are probably from her time with Nidalee, so she represents the aesthetics from the kumungu jungle or whatever it is now (Still waiting for the update on that region with her reveal, which kinda was foreshadowed in ezreals stories :D ) Still, awesome video :)

though she's curious, she's not childlike and innocent - she flirts actively & just has a petite frame (confirmed to be around 20)

So she is LOL spy class

To be Neeko is to know Neeko is to have Neeko become you and steal your cheesebreads

Love the video, thank you! To me Neekos clothes are like that because they're best bud's with Nidalee, she was like "Gurl, why you running nekkid around?" and ever since Neeko dresses like Nidalee's tribe. As to the "more animal, more alien" aspect, I never got the impression that Vastayans are not humans. They are, they're just weird humans with half-wings on backs or lizard tails for some reason.

I know what you mean by the last line in her bio, very reminiscent of Yog-Sosoth.