I agree. One of my inspirations for a druid came from an old Dungeon adventure with a monk (druid as a class) was spying upon the party as a rabbit. Being about 'power', at the time it was neat but there was no damage like all the other characters I played at the time and only slightly more powerful than maybe the illusionist (1st Edition). Again these were my days of being all about rolling dice for massive amounts of damage, etc.
Diablo II really changed that. There were "vines" or "creepers" the druid would summon which could heal, harm, or provide mana for the druid by attacking or absorbing opponents. They would burrow through the ground (like a familiar) and then attack or decompose.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1lm7l5DdLkI never made it official for my game but basically the dead orc would add a bit of healing to the cure light wound spell the druid cast. All that was typically left of the orc was a metal helmet, etc
In my mind, I could see the druid summoning the bad side of nature - the raw natural stuff to have a creature like a shambling mound / Swamp Thing.
With those thoughts in mind, the druid to me feels a little bit cooler.