Dragalge
"Orange" Magical Girl
With Larry he is supposed to be generic! He is the most normal and relatable person ever. When you are calling Larry generic you are complimenting him!The specific example was Lana who is not an e4 member and again even specifically talking e4, SM designs were no more revealing of their type than other games. The point you make about SM isn't really about character design but I personally loved how SM handled the creation of the league, it was a refreshing take on a concept that was growing stale. That said, Galar got rid of the e4 altogether for gym leader rematches so by that definition it should be worse.
In terms of the design, I get the element of surprise but at the same time I find the Paldea e4 more generic in terms of their designs. Previous e4 members and even the Paldean gym leaders give you a lot more character and ultimately are the stronger type association makes them more memorable. That said, I haven't fought the e4 yet and am mostly going by what I've seen of them online. I've only met two of them in game and they haven't left a strong impression so far.