Sheba learned at her father's knee to be a tough, ruthless warrior, but the story makes clear that she was very jealous over her father's affections and adopted this persona in a desperate effort to maintain his approval. During the course of "The Living Legend," she learns to question her father's judgment after seeing his occasional duplicity exposed and experiencing the saner, more other-directed leadership styles of Adama and Apollo. The Cain hero-worship is tempered and she learns to be gentler and more accepting of other people, particularly Cassiopeia.
Her strong affection for Cain never dies, though, and after she loses him, her easy manipulation by Count Iblis is largely the result of her yearning for a father substitute. When this proves a disappointment (to say the least), Apollo's self-sacrifice to save her life naturally leads her to focus on him as a partner in a more balanced relationship.
It all makes sense to me. There's a difference between arbitrarily changing a character and developing a character. Sorry if Mr. Bennett considers this a "reduction," but I disagree. The seasoned combat pilot was still there when needed, but Sheba became a more rounded, independent, well-adjusted character the more she left that one-note "tough fighter jock" personality behind.
Lastly but not leastly, Sheba may have whimpered on occasion, but she never simpered!
