Yes, something IS wrong! Here are the answers I got during a chat with a Microsoft tech agent:
"If i understand right, you're needing help with your application updates? Definitely a known issue with the series 8 at this point. The Live Tiles on your device will prompt you for an update if you go to the store manually, but at this point the rollout fix is planned just not available as of yet. Found that you're not the only one having this issue as of late. 7.5's still update just fine, just not the 8's. I'll add your account as one of the known issues with it and ultimately as soon as an over-the-air update occurs for the device, it should resolve your issue. They're estimating mid January still, but again that's just an estimate."