very much the angle of her being a product of the times

True about many many historical figures. But I guess it's more convenient to look at them through the lens of naughty gossip.
I've never been an actual fan of Mary, for some reason, but I've always found it hard to see her as the tyrant people were so keen to accuse her of being, you know?

There would have been a lot of pressure for her from the Catholic church to get things back under Catholic control.

Excellent observation. Not to mention all the negative connotations in her personal life associated with the reform.

We haven't changed at all. I made a post about discrediting people in today's world (just some thoughts drawn from writing this series), you might like to check it out. It's interesting to see how willing the general population are to be manipulated and lied to, to have "important" folk brought down to their level so that they can feel superior.

By the way, feel free not to upvote the post I recommended, I really don't mind. I generally don't do that precisely because I don't want people to feel like they have to. ;)