the thing about bakoda. is that even if they didn't get rid of bato (the fact that they DID is proof of what i'm about to say) they would not have made it gay because that episode/tension that would ensue is actually too good. like it's Too thematic. these new showrunners would not... they would not be able to juggle katara's "why are you trying to replace My Mom bato?!" and sokka's "so what does that mean for my concept of masculinity then?!" in a way that brings the story to a new place while honoring the original. it would be awesome if they could. but. alas.