That second topic just irks me for whatever reason. Not just because it's stupid easy to refluff things so they fit your character better, but also the contradiction between the initial premise "let's see how mediocre, unoptimized characters do" and the characters presented who display at least some degree of optimization (even if it's to deal damage/whatever). Yes, deride optimization as being part of a theoretical, imaginary universe and then turn around and use it, albeit only slightly, in your example party.
I dunno, you'd think that after years of having the forum right there they would have at least dropped the mindless optimization-bad, mediocrity-good stance.