I figured I'd put my two cents in, and I could only put it this way: The new missions are glorious.
To me, the difficulty is only a part of the experience. If SWTOR was going to put the entire space fight on rails, this is how it was supposed to be done.
When you do a sweep by a massive frigate, your shields are hammered. It is easy to forget you're driving one of the most advanced FIGHTERS in your respective fleets. In the past it was easy to get comfortable in your small fortress, razing away cruisers without a care in the world. In reality, you're still piloting a small vessel that requires a minimal crew verses large ships that require dozens to just get it moving. I'm sure it takes a "small" group of a hundred or more to operate the armaments on some of the largest vessels.
Now it feels more appropriate. Shuttles and ships are far less likely to park themselves right in front of you for a free kill. Such fighters are now more often caught trying to strafe YOU, or swinging around to get a better shot. This means you're taking down less fighters and spending more time taking on the massive cruisers and frigates that are hammering your shields.
Blasting everything in sight is not enough. Your ship spends more time trying to find cover and exacting evasive maneuvers, taking you through tight spaces and around massive asteroids. Larger vehicles move around in a similar manner, forcing you to stay on target whilst avoiding environmental hazards. In some cases, a tactical approach is more necessary, and holding down the first mouse button is an early trip to the RETRY prompt.
Taking down the target is often so difficult that attacking other targets become unnecessary. Finally, I say. FINALLY. There's tons of new recruits on multiple planets to shoot down feckin' fighters. Now they call upon the BEST of the BEST to tackle massive targets. Ones that would shred other, lesser pilots. When you walk away, your ship is often smoking, but you leave crippled fleets in your wake.
You have to fight tooth and nail often, meaning each mission is now a valiant struggle against the opposition. In other words, getting to that mission success is finally -glorious-. For a rails shooter, space is finally appropriate in difficulty.
Bring on more I say.