I hear ya there. I wasn't a big fan of the Draw and Junction system either. I would rather watch my characters' stats increase permanently through leveling or moving around the board as opposed to attaching magic to them.I really want to start VIII again. but everytime i got to set it up, I always think about how boring it is to draw magic from enemies. I hate drawing X(. I know there's other ways to get magic, but drawing is a big factor with FFVIII.
FFX's was my favorite as well. More control over the characters FTW!