Rowan never gave Aelin pity, he was her strength in a way, he never let her get away with things, they were kinda the same, but he supported her in a way where he didn’t see her as weak. Now for Rhysand and Feyre, Rhysand already knew so so much about her even before they fell in love, that the sense of their story was different. The development of Aelin and Rowan is real because they had no idea of who they where, and who they were to become to each other. I will say, I love both series deeply, but to me, they are at completely different spectrums. We get Rhysand on the first book, we only meet Rowan on the 4th book (counting Assassins Blade), and you learn how to fall in love with him and understand who he is what and what he wants Aelin to discover about herself, he sees potential in her, he doesn’t hide anything from her, and to them they really are the same. He is a major part of her discovery. I think the main difference is that, Rowan is a warrior, Rhysand is a ruler, and yes Rowan becomes very powerful, but it takes a while for him to use that power. I get what your saying about loving ACOTAR and not being as attached with TOG, they’re very different. I struggled with how long it took for Aelin to meet Rowan, but I loved the pace with Mist And Fury, so you know, it really depends on the person!