i do feel that there is generally a lot of confusion between technical excellence and showmanship (not with us discerning lot on here i hasten to add!) - and where does one stop and the other start?
imho the best technical guitarists around are coincidentally ones who are the least flashy - all the showboating is often intentionally or unintentionally at the expense of technical excellence - entertaining it may be but bit its like a big mac meal and usually leaves you wanting something of substance
some manage to straddle the border and sit on the fence and tease us with showboating on minute then blinding us with technical expertise the next - its all a matter of taste and there is no accounting for it
personally i cant get my head around how any guitarist can squeal with delight at malsteen fretw***ing himself into oblivion, and be completely uninspired by the likes of holdsworth or fripp - but i guess it would be boring if we were all the same - it would be like a bland musical version of 'new labour's diversity and inclusivity where everybody would be joint equal number one in the charts all time regardless of whether or not they can play the bloody thing