Maining Hanzo

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About

"Maining Hanzo" refers to frequently selecting the Overwatch defense hero Hanzo Shimada, who is often considered a poor choice in team matches due to the level of skill required to play him effectively.

Origin

On May 24th, 2016, Blizzard Entertainment released the multiplayer first-person shooter Overwatch, which features the defense character Hanzo as a playable hero. As one of two sniper characters, Hanzo is equipped with a bow that is capable of inflicting high damage against enemies. The hero quickly gained a reputation for being unhelpful to team play, as many who select the character lacked adequate aiming skills. On June 28th, 2016, YouTuber FUNKe uploaded a parody video titled "Want to Main Hanzo?", which mocks players who refuse to play other heroes in Overwatch (shown below). Within four months, the video gathered upwards of 375,000 views and 1,500 comments.

Spread

On May 26th, 2016, a picture of a shaved man next to a bearded man with the caption "when she says she only dates Hanzo mains" to the "Overwatch People" Facebook^[5] page (shown below, left). In July, iFunny^[4] user FishBoyChico submitted an illustration of Hanzo pleading "It's not what you think" in reponse to being called a "weeb" (shown below, right).

On October 10th, 2016, Redditor clockworkpotato72 submitted a post titled "A Day in the Life of a Hanzo Main" to /r/Overwatch,^[1] featuring a story written from the perspective of a selfish teenager. Within one week, the post gathered more than 5,500 votes (92% upvoted) and 530 comments.

Trump is Not a Team Player

In mid-October 2016, the Cards Against Humanity political action committee (PAC) Nuisance Committee launched the anti-Donald Trump campaign titled "Trump is Not a Team Player." The campaign's website^[2] highlights various illustrations of Trump by comic book artist Daniel Warren Johnson, in which the presidential candidate is depicted as various Overwatch characters including Hanzo (shown below, left). On October 14th, the PAC purchased a billboard ad featuring an illustration of Trump seated at a computer along with the description "Trump mains Hanzo and complains about team comp in chat" in Orlando, Florida (shown below, right). The following day, Redditor o0shad0o submitted a post asking "What does it mean to 'main Hanzo'?" to /r/OutOfTheLoop.^[3]