Wow this thread is old...I remember reading this waaaay back when. Anyway, it wasn't Tom's drumming that made TiO an inferior album when compared to the others.
I actually like TiO very much. Through the looking glass, church of the machine and Orion make this album one of my favorites, and dont get me started on lady of the snow, such a great soft song.
although if you compare it to jewels like V and Divine then it might be overlooked, i can see that.