Please explain 5.8 Ryze

I really want to hear the Devs' thinking behind the 5.8 Ryze rework. I think it’s crass to demand a red reply to a forum post, so by all means put it in a different thread, or better yet, make an entirely new post. I’m not asking for a justification, but an explanation; because Ryze is my favorite champ and I don’t understand the changes. Many have conjectured that the reason Ryze’s win rate is the lowest in the game since 5.8 is not because he is underpowered, but because players don’t know how to play him. I think if that is true, it seems to speak to a lack of clarity of design with his modified kit. I’m not that interested in talking about power level, but in how Riot sees post 5.8 Ryze: What they envision his place in the game being and how his particular kit allows him to fill that niche.

Here are a few questions I have about 5.8 Ryze, hopefully other players can add more:

Can you sum up in a sentence or two Ryze’s identity as a champion?

How do you see Ryze? As a tanky AP bruiser? As an AP assassin? As something inbetween? As someone who can choose based on itemization?

What were you hoping to accomplish by moving some of his damage off mana ratios and onto AP ratios?

What were you hoping 30% built-in CDR would do for Ryze, taking into account that his passive in many ways minimizes the importance of that particular stat?

How do you see Ryze dealing with champions that can push the lane while standing in the middle of their wave? Do you think W and E are adequate tools to handle this?

Ryze lost a lot of reliability in his Q and passive change, how would you say he was compensated for this loss?

Do you feel like the 5.8 rework pushed him toward one or the other of his two main lanes? Was that indended?

Honestly, the Ryze rework feels disjointed to me. I do believe that there is an overriding vision of Ryze that is guiding these changes, but I can’t see it. I think there is a lot of frustration among Ryze players right now; and, at least for me, the dip in power wouldn’t feel so bad if I understood the overall direction in which the Devs are headed with Ryze.