Doesn't really make Han much better than the slavers he is suppose to have recued him from.

Not true, unless Han is actively pushing him to hold to the life debt. Otherwise Han is just letting Chewie do his own thing.

I also never liked the Chewbacca family situation that originated from the Holiday Special, where Chewie leaves his family to go follow Han around the galaxy and only comes to visit once a year or so. This makes him out to be a pretty lousy husband and father, and I always prefered to see him as a rather upright and honorable kind of guy (well, other than the whole smuggler/criminal thing).

Well this is the same Holiday Special that named Chewie's relatives Itchy and Lumpy, so you can't expect much.

General question for anyone on this thread, does this life debt thing mean we're to assume Chewie wasn't genuinely emotionally attached to Han and just stuck with him due to this life debt?