Heh, what's character got to do with the Star Wars prequels?
Actually, though, I wonder how much of it was the ceremonial issue. When you see Amadala in garb compared with Amidala incognito in Phantom Menace then there seems to be a definite sense of difference. I've not watched Attack of the Clones recently enough to note how well the character building of the first extrapolates into the second - or not, as the case may be.