Yes they work, but the forum would run a little smoother if most everyone was using the same series of chip. I'm sure MELabs thinks that way also.
The fact that you can easily get parts with large codespace is such a bonus. You can add features over the years without
changing much.
90% of Microchip's really neat parts in the 8-bit realm are in the 18F family (18FxxKxx, 18FxxJxx).
If you write some routines in ASM, it is much nicer to not have to deal with endless bank switching.
You can use LONGs and 2000 element arrays.
Even if you don't need all the neat stuff now, why not get a chip that has the peripherals and codespace now so that you can learn to use the extra features in your spare time?

And they don't cost more. Easy decision for me. I'll be quiet now.