Is it possible to toner transfer and hand solder MSOP's?
I'd say yes, you can make your own boards with that fine of detail, if you have a bit of practice. 

For the thermal pad, simply modify it to extend out from under the chip so you can touch it with your soldering iron during assembly. Yes, it's ok to do that. I hand solder all of my home projects, and I do a lot of home projects. For instance, I did that for the following package modified for hand soldering, it worked beautifully.




Those break out boards look like they would short out on the thermal pad, I wouldn't buy them unless they have a version with the thermal pad.