I'm not biased either way towards developmental or off the shelf. There are pros and cons to both, however developmental is incredibly more complex, difficult and risky. A small country such as Australia cannot afford an unprotected developmental purchase.
I'm not biased towards Black Hawks or MRH. They're two different types of aircraft with different capabilities. Each do some things well, others poorly.
There was a fundamental shift in the direction of the ADF in the early/mid 2000s and (potentially) MRH (on paper) supported that new direction better. There were also the extra political sweetners that followed (or were supposed to). The Commonwealth only has itself to blame for the mess it is in today. It ultimately was the one that signed away its protections. Australia should have been far more rigorous and self-protective in this transaction. Although that would have increased the price for us, or made it unacceptable to the seller, we would have a far better outcome. We now have an aircraft that although may perform in accordance with the contract, is not fit for purpose. It is significantly late and costs significantly more. To cap it off, the transition from S70 to MRH has been a horror show that has destroyed significant operational experience - something that you cannot put a price on.