"The 'full up' naval version had new main gear units retracting into pods, a strengthened nose gear, and a periscopic system for high Alpha approaches."
That sounds like an utter monstrosity. A bit like the old HS.1154(RN), after the F-4 fans in the FAA had finished mucking about with it. That one even had a podded main gear - with tiny four-wheel bogies in one incarnation.
The speculation about the dumping of STOVL is not surprising. I don't see how F-35B is going to be operating routinely with Storm Shadow, for instance, except on a fairly cool day. The bring-back isn't there. Also, the F-35C has much greater range.