I quite like Traken, and have never seen Arc of Infinity, so had no reason to assume the worst. Maybe it's just a case of a startlingly steep decline in later work, much like his namesake?

I chose Brewster almost at random, mainly for the Victorian ghost story title, and quite enjoyed it - but was a bit surprised when the ending indicated one or more sequels for a character who, on that showing, didn't have them in him.