No it wasn't, it only seems that way on the surface. It introduced a number of mostly forgettable Pokemon, Johto is the smallest region, Kanto is mostly empty and the experience system sucks.
Oh, and Red's team sucks. Battle-wise, Cynthia and Barry have superior teams.
Only reason why people think Gen 2 is good is because they think its so awesome they can travel to another region and get more than 8 badges.
Wow, you're just trollin' today, ain't you?
I liked Gen 2 not for the nostalgia, nor the whole WOOHOO I CAN GO BETWEEN REGIONS AND GET 16 BADGES, but for the overall tone of it. Gen 2 pretty much defined the spirit of Pokemon for me, but I suppose nobody else could understand for me.
And the only reason Cynthia's team is good is because of Togekiss. Any other part of her team can be taken down easily in 1-2 attacks, and Barry more-so.