I've done the hardcore second-job MMOs before (EQ, Asheron's Call) and I really have no appetite to do another one ever again given current life demands of a job, a wife, and a son. WoW lends itself to the flexible kind of time schedule such as I need far better than any of those ever did. So I agree with Jason's point that there is a need for this type of MMO just as there is for one for people who want the harder leveling curves/greater involvement.
I'm enjoying TBC for the most part so far. One thing that is nice is that so far, the itemization gap between the hardcore raider and casual player that defined pre-TBC WoW hasn't manifested itself so far. From what I can see, raid epic gear that is out there now is no longer leaps and bounds past stuff you can craft, grind, quest, or 5-man for. I'm liking Blizzard's getting away from the "Raid or Die" mentality.
And I've played TBC for a month; I've maxed out on level (and weapons--have
Fireguard and
Vindicator's Brand) but all else is still very much a work in progress. I still haven't been to half the new instances, haven't started a lot of the key quests for Kharazan or any of the other raid stuff...so by no means do I feel maxed out otherwise.