Did Fire 3 suck at 75?

Yes.

People just seem to think that even low-tier crap is okay because it's still better than what we were used to at 75 =/. Being better when we're 15 levels higher isn't a sign that something's good. It's just common sense. I'd be more worried if Blizzard IV was "suck" on a static scale, considering the whole static scale has been inflated to hell and back.

Relative scales are the only scales that mean jack squat.