I enjoyed 358/2 and Birth By sleep but I agree, KH2 was peak. I couldn't even play the third one as the stupid Disney park rides annoyed me(even though I heard that it could be disabled)
I always considered Birth by Sleep to be the last good entry to the series. Admittedly I never played the actual game of 358/2 and only got the cinematic version from the collection.
I was a massive fan of 1 and 2 as a kid and did a full series playthrough prior to the release of 3. I had a blast through BBS, but my god it was a slough in the later games(including 3).
358/2 was good, but different. I personally enjoyed the equipment/skill system, but I understand why lots of people didn’t; If you didn’t want to spend a lot of time managing your abilities and gear, it would quickly feel like a burden.