I'm surprised how only Rhaegar is acknowledge as "pedo" for his relationship with Lyanna in the fandom, but no one cares or mentions that Oberyn Martell sleep with a 16 year old (and beat Obara's mother), Cersei sleep with Lancel, also a kid, Renly had a relationship with Loras, another kid, and Robert impregnated a 14 year old. Robert also was obsessed with the "teeneger Lyanna" 20 years after her death. And there are many other examples in the series. Rape, cheating and relationships with kids.
Yet, these are popular characters in the fandom. I'm not sure why only Rhaegar and Lyanna are problematic. Should people be more consistent?
Welcome to asoiaf fandom, which should be renamed the double standard fandom!
If people truly had a problem with the age gap between Rhaegar and Lyanna, they would also apply the same standards to other asoiaf adults who have or had relationships with teenagers. But they don't. Because the don't care as much for the age gap or the cheating as much as proving that Rhaegar and Targaryens as a whole are the vilest people ever, while Starks (Lyanna's family) and Martells (Elia's family) are the purest snowflakes who never did anything wrong .
I feel the need to clarify here that I totally understand fans who feel uncomfortable with Rhaegar x Lyanna and other relationships with similar age gap. And I respect it if they don't feel comfortable talking about these kind of pairings.
However, if any fan claims that ships like Rhaegar x Lyanna are problematic within the story due to the age gap, they are totally missing the author's intentions. Unlike them, Martin doesn't find pairings with big age gaps problematic and in Rhaelya's case he even finds them romantic.
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