I was a teenager when I first read the first book, and I found it to be ridiculously bland. It seemed like a second rate copy of Sword of Shannara, which itself was a poor man's version of Lord of the Rings (Granted, Terry Brooks was quite creative in his other novels. But that is a different discussion). Because of these resemblances, I had a difficult time getting into the book. It seemed fairly obvious to me that the author was simply following an accepted formula in order to make money. I didn't hate the book or the story - the formula works for a reason - but I wasn't what you would call a wotmaniac.

I pretty much had the same impression as you when it came to the story and characters. The plot was a resounding 'meh' to me. It wasn't bad, largely because the typical Tolkien formula works, but it definitely didn't scream 'bestseller' to me.

I had almost the same opinion about the characters. I sort-or-enjoyed Rand, but felt that he wasn't really fleshed out. I didn't like Mat, largely because he seemed the traitor type. I actually enjoyed Perrin's story quite a bit, and his bit about the connection with the wolves. I didn't like Egwene, because she seemed selfish. I didn't like Nyneave, because it was annoying to read her dialogue. I remember reading about Lan and thinking "Jesus, he might has well as named him Aragorn". On the whole, I enjoyed the characters, but didn't really grow attached to any of them.