I play a 35 1h/pole character frequently, a 29 non-heirloomed 1h/2h character sparingly, and a non-heirloomed 1h STF (as a testing/handicap character) semi-frequently. All three characters have access to shields, although I usually forgo bringing them on the latter two unless the situation demands it.
I haven't really had a problem with kicks since they were changed. Yes, they are easier to land now (which indeed has resulted in me being kicked more often than in the past) but the fact that my opponent can't block while he's kicking more than makes up for this in my book. I've found that as long as I know my opponent and know whether or not he is going to attempt to kick me, I can avoid the majority of kicks without too much trouble.
If an issue does in fact exist with 1h right now, I think it has less to do with game mechanics than with item balance.
1h weapons are currently balanced around the assumption that you will be using them with a shield, and a shield is a very powerful and useful thing to have on NA1 or EU1. It's because shields are so good that 1h weapons necessarily have lesser damage and range compared to other weapon types; if this were not the case, shielders would be too powerful.
The problem is that not all 1h pure melee players are shielders, and the ones who aren't are playing something that comes off as half-baked for anything other than duels. This is not to say that swashbuckling sucks, because it doesn't. If you are skilled and daring, you can get good results with it, but your average player is just going to feel as though he is playing a gimped 2h. Where am I going with this?
Basically, whether through the addition of new mechanics or gameplay elements or something else, I would be in favor of changes that would decouple the balance of 1h as a class of weapon from the balance of shielders--a way of making 1h weapons better without making shielders (or ranged hybrids for that matter) better. Balancing 1h weapons solely around the efficacy of shielders makes about as much sense as balancing 2h solely around the efficacy of longswords and balancing polearms solely around the efficacy of glaives.
Also, as a general aside, I'd just like to say that whoever was responsible for the dynamic turn speeds deserves a medal. It was the best feeling ever to finally be able to land good stabs with my Italian Sword again.