Iīve always said that his solos are generally very good, and people seem to generalize too much when they call his soloing style bad. People tend to imply that he only plays fast runs of notes. Most solos in SFAM are killer, and SDOIT features stellar work, too. The problem started with TOT. TDS is not very good, although I think there is a melodic pattern that is discernible in the song, is not just a bunch of notes and effects. The same happens with ES, but HTF probably fits the description of too fast. The solos on SoC and ITNOG are at least decent.
Octavarium was a step in the right direction, IMO. True, TROAE features the blueprint for his solos in subsequent albums, but it feels still fresh, and again you can tell what heīs playing. The solo on SS is good and the one in Octavarium is perfect, itīs not praised enough IMO. The other two albums do not feature his best work, but again, his work in those albums in very varied and the fast solos (Constant Motion, AROP, maybe TSF although I love that one) are not representative of his work. People always say that he cannot restrain his playing, but the wonderful atmosphere he brought to ANTR and Repentance proves the opposite, but again, people seem to ignore that he can play that kind of music very well, too. Those are perfect examples of JR not playing too many notes at all.
I geniunely believe that he gets bored playing simple things in the piano, and thatīs why he adds all those flourishes. He plays that way for his own enjoyment. If you donīt like it, well, thatīs your problem, I think it is definitely part of his style.