It doesn't really read like it's meant to be praise or a compliment the same way, "eh, it was okay, but I wasn't blown away by it," isn't necessarily a complime

It doesn't really read like it's meant to be praise or a compliment the same way, "eh, it was okay, but I wasn't blown away by it," isn't necessarily a compliment--a statement which I think is probably an accurate "synonym" to his original statement.