I did like what I saw of Mikleo too though! He had a sort of dry sense of humour, right? He was the only one that stood out from what I saw, but I could've just picked up the other characters wrongly, idk. Abyss feels more like Symphonia so far which is good, it makes me think that there must've been a change in writers somewhere along the line after Abyss, but I'm not sure? I don't think I know enough about the other games to really say either lol.
You've still played more than me, and I'm glad that you've been able to tell me so much! I'd love it if you could tell me how the later games are once you've played more, if they're worth playing too. I know it's probably wrong of me to try to compare them all to Symphonia but you probably know how it is. When you enjoy a game so much you hope that the other games in the series meet that standard, it's a cruel curse sometimes omg. I guess it's a good idea to just enjoy them for what they are and not get hung up on your favourite.