Not loving season 2 - will it get better?

I’m about 6 episodes into season 2 and there are quite a few things that are rubbing nee the wrong way: some of the acting is so over the top I feel like I’m watching a sitcom or telenovela (wtf was it with that prissy lady investigating the broken vase? Lyor’s acting is super over the top, too. I feel like all the subtlety and nuance has been taken out in order for a broader, less perceptive audience to catch the drift). On top of that, the episodes feel so very crammed with too many side-quest like storylines that add little to nothing to the actual topic.

Is it only going to go downhill from here? Please tell me it gets better!

(Bonus question: I almost didn’t recognise Emily at the beginning of S2, she looked so very different. Same goes for the First Lady and of course for Seth - did they get a different makeup artist?)