Fighting gender norms and being gay isn’t bunching a lot of things into one character though. The two more often then not are linked when it comes to discrimination of LGBTQ.

Which isn’t to say you can’t be straight and challenge norms. But it’s not some huge leap or too much characterization to be gay and fight gender…

I don’t mind either way, but I think it would be more forward thinking to have Zarya just dress and act that way. That could be her thing, why does she “need” to be the gay character? I think it would be cooler if Soldier 76 or Hanzo were gay. That would be a unique decision and against any trope that might typically…

On the one hand, I think it’s great that Overwatch has a gay character and, if it IS Zarya, that’s awesome. On the other hand, I dunno. It seems kind of... I’m not sure what the precise form of prejudice is, that they tell us there’s a gay character and the entire internet just collectively decided “It’s her. The girl…

Beyond fanart, fan theory, and fanfics, Zarya is also the kind of woman/character who becomes an icon for LGBTQ people.