And right here is what I mean when I talk about being stuck in the past. It's the inability to compromise. Not only does SCH need more offensive buttons, they also can't be this, or that? It has to be your way or the highway. It can't be "cute"? Based off of what? Some warped idea that SCHs weave offensive spells that eat their opponents from the inside out? This doesn't sound like any SCH I am aware of. Are you really going to let the sound effect of the current Broil redefine the entire lore of this job? A ridiculously adorable fairy follows these guys wherever they go. Just in case you were not aware. SCH is a healer, and the majority of its kit revolves around supporting their allies. The job is more in line with its lore now than it has ever been.
It wasn’t only about the cute fairy; it was the combination of the learned arcanist that’s willing to do whatever dirty tricks it takes to secure victory and the playful spirit of the fairy that they call forth for their strength that was appealing to many players since the game was remade in 2.0. It isn’t a warped idea that SCH would go as far as using abilities that eat opponents from the inside out, it’s something that people would actually expect from the cold-hearted big brain strategists that are scholars.

I don’t think anyone here’s swatting away any ideas for SCH. Perhaps they get met with criticism if the idea is vague or doesn’t properly address the problem. What I do see is those that want the old poison spells back because they fit SCH’s whole shtick perfectly. Even SE’s PvP design team embraces that identity of SCH: A field tactician that utilizes poison to debilitize their enemies and shields to empower their allies.

The fact that a preference exists is case enough to show that identity and individuality are still present among the healers, and all other jobs/roles in the game. Arguments of homogenization end here. We can always boil things down to '1111', and filler rotations.
This is one thing I do disagree with, though. There is exponentially less uniqueness between WHM and SCH than there is between BLM and SMN. It has little to do with preference at this point. Healers are homogenized. This NEEDS to change. It’s simply not engaging, and there is nowhere else you can take this design. What you see as ‘filler rotation’ is the ONLY thing that can be both unique and healthy to current endgame design, where damage means everything.

Whatever “unique” identity remains of how healers use their heals matters little in endgame fights. All of it is just spamming your nuke, placing your DoT, and healing the raidwide. The kits that healers have are homogenized to a tee for sake of balance. GCD heals are avoided as much as possible by 3 of 4 healers because their excessive oGCDS take care of every little thing that happens in a fight.