So the plan was to blindly walk into a repeat of the Georgia situation? Is that what was brewing for eight years? I can't rule it out, of course, but it seems so counterproductive for both Ukraine and NATO. If that was the case why even bother training the Ukrainian army?

As for the "not Western enough" argument, that might have been the case if it wasn't for Turkey. Which was obviously included in the alliance by grace of its proximity to the USSR. By which token Ukraine is not just desirable, but ideal for NATO integration. The EU, on the other hand, will indeed keep its distance from Ukraine for the very reasons you mention.