judge reinhold is a weak presence in these movies albeit vaguely likeable

In my opinion the villains of part 2, Jurgen Prochnow and Brigitte Nielsen, are far superior to the bad guy from part one.
That having been typed Judge Reinhold was much more fresh faced, and hot, in part 1.

I prefer the second film on the whole but think Murphy's performance in the first one was better.
Foley was always charmingly cocky, but in the second film, there's a touch of vanity as well.
I suspect this was more to do with Murphy being a bigger star by 1987 than it has to do with the character developing in the series' timeline.
The Job Interview Poem

yeah he lets go more here and is more fun to watch