I share your frustration as regards your second problem, which btw has been a long-running issue, though I’m not sure if it’s intentional. Here are some concrete examples:
1. Vs Bella : player fighter cannot block after suffering Diamond Drop if Bella follows it up with a Diamond Dynamo.
2. Vs. Bigband : cannot block after Beat Extend if it’s followed by Tympani Drive
3. Parasoul( not 100% sure about the specifics with this one. my memory doesn’t serve me well atm) Silent Scope (or it could be Canopy Bounce) leaves the player character irresponsive to blocking inputs if immediately followed by Motor Brigade.
I hope these get resolved soon, otherwise in combination with the overall difficulty spike it simply drives ordinary players mad.