No. You said it yourself, "I am biased, and also I am dumb." Pretty much everything you mentioned involved personal preference, and not even the most skilled debateur could repair your nostalgia induced insanity.
The absurdity of connecting a hit but still missing is not personal preference. That was a terrible design choice. Pseudo-action based combat should not be governed by dice rolls. Rats should not be able to easily kill a fully grown adult dunmer with a sword.
Yes, it is. It might be one that most people would share, but it's still a subjective opinion. Personally, I don't mind the reliance on your stats and chance, but I think they could have stood to make the system a little more forgiving. Practicing a skill you're not experienced in should be difficult, yes, but not borderline impossible.