[LocalPCGuy]

I'd say what you call bloated is in many cases basic functionality that I don't have to go looking for some third party package to fill. There is something to be said for having a straightforward and built-in way to do things, which leads to consistency between Angular projects and makes them easier to understand and onboard to.

IMO, it is only as complicated or simple as you want to make it these days, and claiming otherwise likely is due to focusing on legacy aspects rather than the current state of the framework.

FWIW, I'm not arguing that it's the "best" or that everyone should use it. Or that it doesn't still have flaws. Just that it is still firmly in the top set of 3-5 frameworks that are viable for making complex web apps and it shouldn't be dismissed out of hand.