The powerful use of JavaScript for me is that I can render the exact same templates on the server and the client. That's a lifesaver when you want a fast, client-based app that is also search engine indexable.

And JavaScript is really not that great to start with

It's fine. IMO, all languages have warts you have to work around, once you know them it becomes a non-issue. I can't think of the last time one of those "JavaScript WTF" moments actually tripped me up in real code.