Does the what appears to be superior raw handling make up for the interface/lack of well documented help vs say Either LR or Nikon NX2?
Every raw processing program will deliver different results. If used correctly, none of them will deliver poor results, just different. Is Capture One superior? I don't think any of the raw processing programs can claim that seat. In the hands of a knowledgeable user, each program will deliver the goods.
Although the Capture One manual may leave you wanting more, they do have
this very complete library of video tutorials. Perhaps that will help you.
The benefit of raw over jpeg is that you have far greater control over the image. The down side is you have to spend the time to fuss with your images. Some users simply try to get their raw processing program to deliver results similar to what the camera's JPEG algorithm delivers. While this might be good practice for newbies, the power and control of raw processing can really improve an image, beyond the usual "color-correct & good-exposure" stuff.
All raw processing programs require a starting point for accurate color rendering. Adobe's Camera Raw uses "Camera Profiles", Capture One uses ICC Input profiles, Raw Developer can use either. This initial camera or input profile is a critical step in acquiring accurate colors from your camera. You can either use the canned profiles that are included with the program, or you can make your own. To make your own requires additional software, color charts and time.
Regarding Expressions Media (or iView MediaPro or whatever it's called now), I use it for cataloging 8 TB of images, movies, & design documents, and I can find most images in less than a minute. I love the program and am really glad it's in the hands of Phase One because I think they'll give it more attention & development than Microsoft.