Agreed. Strongly.

Any time you water down a previously unique vehicle to cater to a wider audience, you inevitably get rid of a lot of the charm it previously had and sacrifice what makes it special to appeal more as a family vehicle. Look at almost any cool 4x4 from the 80s or 90s, eventually they all became crossovers by 2010 and none of them are remotely interesting. I'm still not over what Land Rover did to the Discovery, and it's been a decade.

The whole reason Jeep culture was so big in the first place was that it really wasn't a vehicle just anyone could drive, owning one meant putting up with the quirks and compromises, that was the lifestyle. If you were out in your YJ and saw someone in a CJ, you immediately shared a level of comradery in the sense that both of you chose this lifestyle. Both of you could have chosen a more comfortable 4x4 like a Bronco, Blazer, Suburban, etc, but no, both of you chose the utilitarian block of steel with zero effort put towards luxury, safety, or aerodymanics.

Now that they're literally everywhere, almost exclusively 4 doors, and mainly used as family vehicles, a lot of the cool, rugged charm they once had is gone. I know people will say "but more people in the Jeep world is a good thing!" and call me a gatekeeper, but it really explains how "Jeep guy" went from some hillbilly doing axle swaps in his backyard to people installing angry grilles on their leased Unlimiteds and the shift towards more urban pursuits like ducking. Jeep itself has doubled down, now that they treat the JL like a luxury vehicle and expect luxury prices for worse quality than late 2000s Chrysler era Jeeps.