As a long term MK1 MR2 owner (9 years now, personally owned 3 and driven 3 others) I would generally agree with everything you've said.
The MK1 MR2 is a fab car, no doubt about it, but I've never driven two the same as they all age differently and have differing states of repair, maintenance and suspension/steering component replacement. A well set-up MK1 is formidable on the back roads or track but can be tiring to live with as can be stiffly sprung to achieve the best out of it. The standard Puma set up on the other hand is a great compromise of handling and comfort!
I've tried softening up my adjustable Koni's on my MK1 MR2 to match the ride quality of my Puma and I have found the MK1's handling is compromised just too much if match the Puma's comfort level. So for general 'sporty' handling comfort levels which you can live with, the Puma is probably the best compromise I've ever driven.
However, I really miss the the MK1's 4AGE engine. The Puma unit is all very nice but I really miss that extra 1500 revs my 4AGE has before it redlines just before 8000rpm.