Despite all I was saying earlier, I ended up getting the definitive edition lawlz. New Horizons has been a bit a dissapointing, will have to hope the free updates do more than just catch the game back up to New Leaf, and The Last of Us 2 is a complete trash fire, so I really wanted something that I know for sure is top tier awesome. I only paid $20 for the original game on Wii U so at least I don't feel like I wasted money.
I still think I like Xenoblade 2 better overall namely for that gameplay, but I definitely am enjoying reliving a great story with minimal cringeyness! They have indeed fixed Melia, her AI actually attacks now, making more team comps viable, so my main complaint from the first game is taken care of. However, quest seem to be as numerous and tedious as before, though yes you don't have to do them, and I originally wasn't going to, but the min-maxer in me demands I get all skill trees. The graphics aren't amazing or anything but still a nice upgrade, and I was worried I wouldn't like the new arrangements, but I haven't switched to the original version for any song they're that good! Otherwise I don't notice much difference from the original, which is fine because it was already great.