So clearly Balance was designed to be unique. No school shield or any prism, triple shields instead of dual shields, triple dispels, blades, traps & shields too, and universal everything except dispel. But is different really better? I've got to go now, but I'll let people respond with opinions on the issue that they haven't expressed before or want to express again. I'll add my own thoughts shortly, but consider this.
A Sorcerer with no mastery, against a boss with Elemental & Spirit shields for days. Who wins?
Even Stormblade is stronger than Balanceblade, and it doesn't get wiped out when you try to use a Myth wand to get rid of the Weaknesses that the Dragonspyre residents like to use so much. Many non-Balance wizards can and do get the triple blades for the extra boost, too.
So Balance is rubbish alone, but a completely different story when playing in a team.
These complaints are coming from people who don't recognize that for every pro there's a con. Balance has so many pros, this is the tradeoff. There are ways to combat this long before Shrike is introduced.