But the whole Egwene/Gawyn "relationship" sees to stand out even among these.

Most of the characters had at least some "courting" time with their love interests before that love was declared, and even more underdeveloped cases, like Rand and Elayne, had "it was fated to be" to fall back on (which isn't as satisfying as a developed romance, but is at least a valid reason for one in a story where fate plays such a heavy role). Egwene and Gawyn...didn't. She goes from being engaged to Rand to lusting after Galad to...being madly in love with Gawyn. With no reason for it except for that creepy dream she got pulled into...and even that isn't really an excuse, since a dream like that would need some preexisting feelings for the other person in order to make it pleasurable, otherwise it would technically be like some sort of rape).

And most of the relationships in the series also have to involve a lot of compromise, given that they are between very powerful and/or important people with lots of obligations and often many cultural differences as well. And while I've often complained that it seems to be the men who do most of the compromising, I can't deny that most of the women have to do some as well. But not Egwene. Nope, Gawyn comes pre-whipped, and her only problems with him involve him not being whipped enough and the things she'll have to do to make him so. And you know in the end, she'll be sucessful, and this will be portrayed by the story as a good thing, and they'll have a happy relationship for the rest of their lives.

Which of course, irks me to no end, because Egwene is one of the most ruthless, single-minded "good guys" in the series, and one of the least altruistic, and yet she doesn't have to pay nearly the price the other characters have to pay for their ruthless and single-minded actions, even though they may be forced into them for the greater good far more often than Egwene is. Yet they have to suffer (often romantically) for these actions, and pay the price dictated by fate, and yet you KNOW Egwene is going to end the series with all the power and respect, a loving relationship with a perfectly whipped husband, and the love and loyalty of all her "friends," despite her treatment of them, while the other characters may or may not be left to twist in the wind.

Blaugh! God I hate that character!