You said he had a bling fit T3 cruiser that was insta-popped in the missions. I take it that meant by the NPC’s and if so, then he either didn’t fit it right or he didn’t work the triggers correctly.
Lot’s of mission runners usually review Eve Survival: Mission Reports for more informed intel before accepting each mission. Check it out, some players even post their ship fits and tactics in the comments section of each page.
Anyway, I used a bling fit Loki to run all of the level 4 epic arcs solo and it worked great. Send me an Eve Mail in-game and I’ll give you the fit.