It seems to me they pretty easily could have made the whole "4th combo" skills a single attack and the blood of the dragon buffs modify which side gets the bonus potency.

I can understand the complaining pretty easily
Like sure ninja gets 2 enmity modifiers that are usually not needed but they are also not forced on you and they are very useful when needed
Even if it's minor you feel like you gained something

or the bard/machinist stances, Sure they are kind of useless when you first get them but they also aren't forced on you and overall do end up giving you a gain for the inconvenience

with dragoon when I hit 58 it was just like... here's more stuff you have to keep watch of and do, you can't turn it off, and you gain absolutely nothing for the extra effort.
It's like a job transferring you to a new location that increases your commute by an hour with no pay raise. It just feels bad
Even a rarely needed situational skill like a 1 Ilm punch type effect that has to combo after feint, useless most of the time but great when it's needed. You'd at least feel like you gained something more than -1 button