I didn't really notice the braid-pulling -- or at least, because I'd heard it mentioned so much beforehand, I thought it was going to be on every other page, so it wasn't as bad as I was imagining, and it's only one character who does it. What I grew way more tired of was 'smoothing skirts' and 'clattering bracelets'. I get that he's trying to show rather than tell, but he really needed to expand his repertoire of movements. And stop making every character so angry and impatient.
So yes, the characterisation is lacking, though the main six or so characters do enough and change enough that they're still readable. I'd say the books are worth reading for the sheer scale and imagination of the story, the world and the magic system, and he really puts effort into creating different cultures and people (but then shoots himself in the foot again by having them all behave the same). Plus the last three books, when Branderson comes in and gets rid of all the fluff, are fast-paced and just downright epic. It's interesting reading the very last chapter, which Jordan wrote beforehand -- you can really see the difference between his bits and Branderson's.
