"It seems like every one I apply to has a bad story or two behind it."
"It's like that in the crappy world of ESL."

Amen, brother, amen.
It's easy to warn people away from the worst schools, but almost impossible to find a real credible wholehearted endorsement of a school. Be aware that a lot of what looks like gushing endorsements are actually stealth advertising placed by a school or its minions, often in an attempt to whitewash a terrible reputation.

I look at it this way, to sort of spin the old "poo sandwich" saying: Every Chinese school will give you some bread and some poo. The best you can expect is to find a place where the bread is decent and the poo is held to a level you can cope with.