I'm not saying this to be contradictory but yes I felt they were pretty bad week one. I wore them because it was the easiest way to hit 34 and I was under the false impression that the gear might actually get better. You can complete a 32 and 34 in less time than a 35 for the same guaranteed rewards and less hassle. And as far as killing Skolas at least once I'm not sure I agree with that either. I found the fight to be laughably random with the essence tainting and the mines are just artificially increasing the tension by forcing you to sprint across the map while passing taint. Is it hard? No I don't think so. Is it fun? No, I can't say as I find it fun or worth recommendation even for the "rewards". Even for the exotic bounties, I've had more drop on the 34's than I've seen for Skolas so it isn't even worth doing for those. The only value to Skolas at this point is for the triumphs if you want a shader and bragging rights.