How do you make Age-Gap Romance NOT weird?

[0:00]Is it possible to make Age Gap Romance not weird? I think so, yeah. How? Assuming that everyone is consenting adults, the main thing that makes Age Gap Romance problematic to most people is the power imbalance, but you can fix that. Again, how? I assume we're talking about a relationship within a patriarchal society between an older man and a younger woman? Let's go with that. Take Edward Rochester and Jane Eyre for a moment. That starts out pretty problematic. Yeah, he has his first wife locked in the attic. Even without that, Jane is his employee and they live in a society where even though Jane can technically support herself, she's going to have to get married in order to secure any kind of long-term stability. Good point. Charlotte Brontë fixes this by having Jane come into a large inheritance, so she no longer needs anyone. I did love that for her. Rochester also suffers an accident that makes him physically dependent on the people around him. Hadn't thought of it that way. To top it off, Brontë also makes sure that Jane has another suitor to show us that she has other options. She does. By the end of the book, I would say the power imbalance between them is gone and Jane and Rochester come together as equals. I agree. But I don't think all Age Gap Romances pull that off, and that's why so many people just think they're all icky.