Endwalker was "meh" (for reasons other than technical issues)

[BrokentoothMarch]

See? Now this, I can work with. This is an honest exposure of your opinions that can be discussed as opposed to a callous remark. Do you need to dump your opinion out at every opportunity? Of course not. But if you don't intend to, it's probably wise not to make a snide remark either. Now onwards before I pass out:

Like on an earlier page I read "Is it REALLY that easy to go to the moon now? That's pretty stupid". You only go to the moon because the Telephoroi were a garlean constructed transporter (as I recall based on Allagan technology), after using the aether harnessed from the towers that were harvesting aether from all over the world to channel into a super powered energy blast to destroy the seal of Zodiark's prison (which wasn't even enough hence why Zenos and Fandango go there and we chase after them).

The technology existing is fine, despite the qualms I'll have about it's physical representation being so underwhelming. That, however, is aesthetic taste that is 100% subjective. The biggest issue that rung to me was the fact that the aether that supposedly was used to power the teleporter was completely drained just previous in the same scene in order to shatter the keys that kept Zodiark in check. Failing to break the last one with the very blatant remark that the aether had been depleted. Considering that the trek between earth and moon, regardless of technological efficiency, is certainly no small feat, I struggle to believe there was still enough for him and Zenos to be sent to it's surface. That's not even mentioning that we were sent up there as well. Whether I misunderstood the scene and mayhaps it uses the aether of the individual which would explain the WoL and Co. heading up there would justify that latter bit, but Zenos being Garlean and therefor unable to process Aether and Fandaniel stating that there was none, potentially implying the machine, himself, or both are out, made the whole thing make little sense.

Also, well, the fact that the ability to travel to the moon was taken in such stride by the protagonists. The possibility of reaching the moon was never something that bothered me, instead it's presentation. Considering it's an otherwise unheard-of ability, going so far as to require Allagan technology that was up-to-recently undiscovered to anyone that wasn't Allagan or Garlean, I expected a little more than the company going back home to enjoy a meal and discussion about how they're going to use this completely staggeringly alien technology which was only known to Fandanial because of his Allagan privy as I believe these were his designs as offered to the Empire.

Or someone criticizing the story because "this one random side character I played the game to see was barely in it".

My hostility to fandom-driven enthusiasm is becoming well-documented. I agree completely with you that hating a story because it doesn't show your favorite character in the limelight is a piss poor justification. (Though I will say, with the disclosure that I don't care for her, Y'shtola did seem strangely absent. I only noticed this well after completing the story, however, so it couldn't have bothered me that much).

These aren't serious complaints. These are, at best, entirely subjective. At worst, the result of not paying full attention. This is the result of not being able to properly examine a story as it's whole and instead fixating on insignificant parts, and failing at that because you aren't paying attention when the story is actually answering your own questions.

To pretend that every argument attacking the story is just and correct would be a move of absolute insanity to me. There are PLENTY of people who dislike the story for all the wrong reasons. There are many people who share my distaste for Endwalker, only to detail things that I believe have nothing to do with anything concerning it's quality. (Thinking Thaivnir wasn't "required" for the story is not a negative. This is not a book. Having further expansions on existing countries to play in is more than welcome). With this, I can offer you an olive branch. It seems to me that you already accept that the expansion is not perfect, something we both agree on. The negatives it has simply doesn't bother you as much as it bothers me. As two people with different priorities and values, this is fine. I'm here not to say that Endwalker was objectively bad, but disappointing to me. With this line, we must also realize that no matter what we talk about on this topic, everything we say will be inherently subjective. We're discussing our likes and dislikes, after all.

and there are also times when what you're complaining about literally doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.

Chekhov's Gun. I am not complaining about why grapes are shaped like crystals apparently or why stars are a certainly color or some other nonsense. I am discussing things that the writers have intentionally brought my attention to. If these things fail to impress or matter, that's a rather strong violation of my time with the focus the writer's brought to it. I feel like I've personally brought up many valid complaints that seldom get answered. You can disagree, but "It literally doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things" is literally your subjective opinion, as I've referred to just above in this post. It doesn't invalidate anything. It's just an expression that something that bothers me does not bother you. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Though I will agree on pacing to some degree, I did feel like there was unneeded fluff at times. The "take the loporitts on a tour" in Labrynthos quests could have been completely removed save for the Urianger scene and nothing of value would lost. It was really dumb and broke the flow of the story at that point. Especially with the serious, urgent music playing while I go show a group of tiny rabbit people around on a little tour. They do seriously need to stop adding these quests to the MSQ that the writers themselves acknowledge as chores every single time. With a story as long as Endwalker, fluff is seriously unnecessary.

It's blatant padding so people don't blitz through the story. I swear, I might've actually passed by their cutscenes in a daze. I hated the Loporrits with a concerning passion and I muted my speakers during any voiced cutscenes. Their voices actually gave me a headache.