I might be biased, but I don't find Liverpool JLA tiresome at all...
The new check-in hall is bright, airy and well-designed. The walk to the gates is very short by comparison to many UK airports, and it does the job just fine.
Landed into Manchester last night, just after midnight. Waited ten minutes for steps to arrive at the aircraft, then walked for what seemed like for ever to reach the baggage carousel. Then waited nearly an hour for the bags (which is far from unusual there). I find flying from Manchester a bit of a ball-ache these days, particularly to/from T1.
Personally, I much prefer the smaller airports like JLA, where things tend to move quicker (and yer bags don't take forever!). Sounds like the original rant was the result of a bad day, if you ask me.