Well, there's a reason VII has so many cliché characters, since it invented a couple. Cloud was the original angsty, brooding swordsman of console RPGs, to my knowledge. Unless you count Cyan, but he's a lot better explained, and broods less. Aeris...not so much a trendsetter.
And I don't know why people disliked the Midgar parts. I love eco-terrorism and intrigue.
Anyway, Final Fantasy VI remains my favorite of the series, particularly for storytelling and characters. I'm going to give a shout out to V for gameplay, but it kinda...lacked in the plot department. I recently replayed FFVIII, and got over much of my previous dislike of it. Mostly since I payed attention after Disc 1 this time, and realized the story wasn't quite as disjointed as I remembered. Seifer still needed a bigger part, though.