Arguing about fake flimsy fantasy politics is a waste of time. Enjoy your characters. Explore your wold building! Enhance it, write meta about it, but getting mad on the internet about Fodlan politics is insane.
The female character writing could be better... just because it's a few steps above some JUMP series doesn't mean it's great. So many of the girls revolve around Gintoki or another man, and while they're strong very few of them are allowed to shine.
This series is touchy for a reason - I had a great time when I was in the fandom 12 years ago, but so much about fandom space has changed (for better or for worse) and the scant APH fans who remain need to adapt to that rather than act like its 2008
I'm glad Takasugi had the limited screen time he did. Partially because I love fleshing characters out myself, and partially because it preserved his whole fucking vibe. The Joui flashbacks are great and I'd INDULGE in a Joui movie, but I think it's for the best that he's used sparringly.