Now that I’m on the final section of Wheel of Time (aka the Sanderson era) I’m going to tell the internet what I think about the romance in it ship by ship
Note: Jordan is jack shit at romantic build up and has a telling over showing problem (aka one of the biggest flaws in a lot of romance across the board) but once the characters are established to be in love, it’s pretty convincing, so I’m not rating the build up unless it’s atrocious. I’m rating what comes after
Rand and Min. 8/10 could be more interesting but I believe they like each other and I support them. I love the time she walked into his room to make fun of him and he smiled and spun her around because he was so glad she was there to make fun of him again, truly delightful
Rand and Elayne. 4/10 I certainly believe that she likes him but I’m not convinced he likes her back. It feels like Jordan went “he likes her trust me bro” but hasn’t done much to prove it other than them kissing and him getting her pregnant. Elayne has liked him long enough that I’m convinced it’s strong on her side, but sometimes it feels obligatory. Could be way worse though
Rand and Aviendha 6/10 they like each other but they’ve barely interacted since early in the series. The lack of Aviendha pov in this series is a huge gripe of mine actually (thank you for fixing that Sanderson). They had potential to be better but they’re never together anymore so… yeah. That was the WILDEST confession sequence I’ve seen in a WHILE though. I was shrieking and pacing my room like a madman. I will accept nothing less from any other author in the future
Mat and Tuon 7/10 it works weirdly enough??? It’s actually kind of hilarious. It feels like they were brought together by pure Ta’veren bullshit and literally never would have met under any other circumstances but I approve. She’s just wild enough to keep up with Mat’s bullshit and he’s just charming enough for her to tolerate it
Nyneave and Lan. 3.5/10 I have to bring up the build up this time because it came from actual nowhere. We got to the end of Eye of the World and suddenly they’re just??? In love??? Bullshit. They were not interested in each other until the very end when Jordan decided they were out of nowhere. However it’s been around for so long that I’ve accepted it. I’m not enthusiastic though. Nyneave feels almost sapphic in how invested she is in her fellow women and how pissy she is with men
Siuan and Gareth Bryne 2/10 completely uninteresting as a romance. It’s two straight people bickering their way into a relationship. They have mutual respect and go well together but not romantically. She also looks way younger than him post-Stilling, and even though they’re the same age, that’s weird to me. They would be way more interesting if it was a Moiraine and Lan situation aka “we work well as a team and you have my deep respect, let’s stick together”
Perrin and Faille 9/10 I love them. She needs to stop baiting him into yelling at her but they’re very good. Very sweet. Good for them. Perrin is the most likely of the trio to have “I love my wife” syndrome so it fits perfectly
If there are more important ships in this series, I have forgotten them at the moment and will add more when I remember them
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