re: Nasa wanted a shuttle, and the Saturn V couldn't launch it.
I seriously doubt NASA has the talent to make a better launcher than Saturn V.
And one the reasons they stopped Apollo is they were afraid crew would die. And one thing which is a certainty is that crew will die. Another reason was lack of public interest & and public losing interest is another certainty.
NASA is govt bureaucracy. Bureaucracies are generally incompetent- and generally, kill people and bore people. And NASA is currently boring people and killing it's crews. So, why expect any better performance in the future?