I'm going to sound like an echo.
I enjoyed the first Goodkind book, was done by about midway through the second one.
I read the Black Company back in high school and remember enjoying it, but couldn't tell you why. It's on my 'I should reread that' list.
The GRRM books fall under the Jordan rule (like several other folks here). I will no longer start an epic series of undetermined length until the final book has been submitted to the editor. (Anyone else remember Melanie Rawn's Exiles series? Still crossing my fingers there....) I of course feel free to make exceptions, like when an author is young, prolific, and named "Sanderson".
As for the Wheel of Time, I do recommend them. As they were being released and I reread them I realized they worked well thinking of each odd/even pair as a single novel. Now that it's finished and you don't need to be frustrated waiting between books and unresolved plot threads, I think it's a much more enjoyable read. I think many of the complaints came from people not getting much resolution from a new release and having to wait a year or more for the next one.
Drib, are you open to more suggestions? Tad Williams, Robin Hobb, and Melanie Rawn (beware of the Exiles trilogy though!) all come to mind as great examples of the epic fantasy genre, if you haven't already read them.