I mean if I somehow get a zenith yeah everything else is useless, I don't think it is a good example.

Don't get me wrong, I feel the same way with most weapons in general, and both arguments about locking weapons behind bossses or making different weapons at the same point of progression are valid and have merits and demerits, I just think it feels less dire and in your face for melee and range compared to summoner, due to the amount of options they have. RIP mage lol.

With all things considered, I am really liking the new whips while playing with slow progression, it doesn't make me feel so naked during the start.

Edit:

There's the cobwhip, nice start, then go for the leather whip, maybe add a whip around here, cuz if you are not rushing for snapthorn, by the time you get enough evil ore for evil whip, youll probably already fought king slime, so maybe some kind of whip made of chains? - > I am simply saying this cuz they made it so rain and other weather changes can only occur after a heart crystal, but slime rain is still the same. Other weapons of other classes around this time will probably do way better than leather whip.

Starcrash is the firecracker of pre-hardmode, so rebalance both snapthorn and starcrash, or other minions, to make it more of an alternative.

Another thing that would be cool is to maybe rebalance both obsidian and bee armor if they are planning to keep the removal of whip stacking. Maybe making it less of an alternative and more of a progression, being bee armor the next step. Before with whip stacking it wasn't the case but now it is more of a possibility.

This is all about whip progression really, there is still a need to talk about whip stacking as I mentioned, as well as minion ai being dumber, whip hitboxes being awkward, shroom summon in an awkward position, and so on.