Having two fights that are 2* restricted makes DDQ feel much more like a chore. The 3* fights are open to 4* characters, so could one of the 2* fights be open to 3s? Third Time’s a Charm already consists of 3 opponents. This would be a quality of life bump, as the characters in the 2* tier are so limited and boring compared to the 3*.
The 2* fights are a bit slow and tedious… I would be okay with adding in some 3*s as options. It would give more variety.
The second match also has 3*s in it. Mystique was in today’s, and Beast was there the other day.
I don’t see the issue. The levels are low enough that 2s can clean up easily enough. Not any random three of them, maybe, but that says more about how bad some 2s are. (And don’t hold your breath waiting for any buffs to 2s*)
I just use the same team for both 2* fights. I find the biggest pain is to have to hunt through your roster to find characters. I use Hawkeye, Aries and Captain Marvel and usually get a match five to clear the board quickly enough.
You are aware that for the 2* wave node, you can use your 1* 
And I’m serious, I often do it, they are more then able to clear the 2 wave, and at least, because they have low match dmg, you have time to activate their power, the fight is more fun !
Ok, a bit longer, but fun, I even got to Ultimate Venom Black with the help of 1* Spidey web spam.
Does it have a different animation? I’ve never actually tried that hard to see (or rostered Venom at all, actually).
If it doesn’t, I think he’s even more of a disappointment than he was already, if that’s possible.
No… Same animation 
It takes a minute or two, but I find Widow, Daken, and Ares clear them quickly enough. Green is your friend, pumps up Ares damage to 1 shot something and the tokens add more damage to Widows matching proc.
I always use Storm, Hawkeye and Magneto on those nodes, collect purple for Magneto who will in turn generate a match-5 and blue for Storm, always over very quickly unless you get a really bad board.
Wolverine, Original Black Widow and Daken destroy these nodes in mere seconds.. WOD 4 Life!