It's funny I have many pieces of Temptations when they were first introduced. Those pieces are still perfect & I do bake and serve in them. No problems. I have everything from big sets to small mini pie dishes & more!
The original pieces were painted nicely, stoneware was thicker and in general more durable.
The pieces which have cracked, chip or crazed are from sets I bought over the past 4-5 years.
I started with blue old world, then blue floral lace and most recently ordered red old world paint is "pinky red", poor painting - some light some dark and rims are not outlined around but crooked☹️. yet, I ordered Floral lace red & they are beautiful.
Its just a matter of how "picky" one is when it comes to the painting. I do love how beautiful a table or buffet table looks with these pieces.
For me, I don't mind cooking in my pyrex, corning, or foil and transferring the food -- it's the presentation! Of course, lasagna isn't that easy😉 I hardly make this. Plus, I'm a organized cook who doesn't mind double the dishes.
I am "tempted" to purchase the TSV as I've sold a lot of my old world pieces that came in big original sets. The fl red is my favorite -- what's holding me back is s/h & tax takes it up another $14.