I don't care if Destruction is overpowered or not, but using magic means you are at a distance and not so thick into the battle. So low risk / low reward is fine for me.

What I do immensely enjoy is the fireball spell. By timing the triggers for each hand and with my large Magicka pool, I can transform myself to some kind of semi-automatic fire canon. I am LOVING the hell out of Magic, especially if I am combating a dragon. Shooting a fireball with my right whilst charging the left to fire it one after another, I can take down a Dragon with some ease but still manages to be a genuine challenge.

I wonder if anyone else is enjoying being a Mage, despite the 'drawbacks' they have?

I also enjoy fireball, but frost has my heart. When my mage gets high enough I'll definitely be getting blizzard. I can also see a very battlemagish kind of lich character in my future.

For me, the pros outweigh the cons. I've always been a mage at heart.