Blaming all of frontend for Next.js' issues is a bit much, but I agree; people have been complaining about Next.js for a long time. It's slow, complicated, and a PITA if you need to do anything outside the box.
Unfortunately, options for SSR in React are all pretty limiting compared to other languages' frameworks, unless you go the full DIY route which isn't usually feasible.
Of course, if you don't need SSR there's no reason to chain yourself to Next and Vercel's whims. Starting a React project from scratch is a lot less painful now with Vite (there was a time when just setting up Webpack & stuff took half a work day).
This is just my personal experience, however. I know a lot of people live and die by Next.js.
