I will say that I do not hate him in S7, and I think he does grow up a lot in that season. But by that time, I've disliked him for so long, I really don't care that he's finally grown up. If he'd grown up a few seasons before, it may have salvaged him for me. *sigh*

I do love that he loves Buffy and Dawn (even if he's "I'm the one that sees things" makes me laugh) and that it finally seems platonic re: Buffy. You get a lot of points for me when you love my girls.