>>34991934Pandering to bl/gl is actually very profitable, but they are in a position where they are attract soccer moms and 2ch keyboard warriors and they are trying hard to avoid all controversy as a franchise of worldwide family appeal. These are the same people who has bullied Pokeani and Sugimori into stopping drawing sexy woman with gigantic tits and visible cleavages like Lorelei and Professor Ivy or the Battle Chatelaine who have fucking unitits (and iirc Wicke got a lot of complains too), and also realistic firearms.
Pokemon has had many gay characters, even a trans NPC, but they are hidden so far where no parent or rating board would notice. The vast majority of the implied homo has been on the side of the villains were it's considered ok because "sexual deviancy adds to their evilness" except again parents don't play far enough to notice many of these antagonists are actually meant to be sympathetic like Matt and Zinnia. Also it's safe if it's unrequited or one is dead.
N is a Kaworu clone from head to toe, he was given a voice by Akira Ishida in Generations even, and his dialogue in BW2 implies he's in love with the BW protagonist. It's very obvious to anyone familiar with the character archetype and the trope (which Japanese love btw) that N was intended to be a love insterest for Hilbert specifically. I think that's as far as Game Freak will go. Lillie and Shauna who have actually gotten their confession-like scenes on-screen had them no homo if you play as a girl.
