Blizzard gain a flash of insight?

[Athenau]

Also not true. The only "gear dependence" melee classes had was a good weapon - a requirement even the Amazon had. The Sorceress and Necromancer, OTOH, could do without one - but that was the same case in Diablo as it was in Diablo II. I found tying skill damage to weapon damage to be one of the best changes in Diablo III. Of course, because of the item dependency it becomes a double-edged sword.

This is totally wrong. Melee characters needed a hell of lot more than a "good weapon". Melee needed AR (or a way to bypass AR, like ITD), vit, resists, and a healthy amount of either +FHR or faster block (unless you were a paladin with holy shield).

90% of the most lethal threats in D2 were in melee. MSLEB? Bugged FE LE explosions? Stygian dolls? ES EF Fanat moon lords? Almost every single threat in D2 was significantly worse in melee, because unlike ranged you have to be able to take damage, and that means getting appropriate gear.