My sincere condolences.
PJ for the most parts are different than the P or the J. It’s its own animal.
Love it 
Depending on the vintage. Mim Fender of 21-23 are quite horrible with a lot of quality issues from fit and finish to fret sprouts.
Mij on the other hand are pretty predictably great with the built quality.
Personally, I’d skipped the Vintera. Taking off the neck to adjust the relief is just a pain.
The big question is what, ultimately do you want? Do you need a badge saying what brand? Do you have strong preference of what pick up configuration, neck width, neck shape?
You are still way too young to be worried about the weight issue but some of the Fender Jazz bass can be substantial. If that’s not the issue there are plenty of options available.
Well, since you are in the city of Angels, you are more than welcome to try out what you are curious about from my small collection of basses. You can check out the short scale, P, J, PJs of different variations from Leo. I have the place and the set up you can do. Many of our members have gathered here before SoCal BassBuzz meetups
Disclaimer: I don’t own every basses but I think it’s enough to answer your curiosity. Just let me know.