Re: He'd better hurry - Virgin Galactic only a year away from launch!
Everything is a compromise, especially in rocketry.
You're right that the reliable and simple work horse may turn out better in the long run - it certainly has historically for rockets.
To me, the difference is that Starship isn't nearly as complicated relatively speaking given the general tech level today as the Shuttle or even Soyuz were when designed. It's more complex that Soyuz, but technology has come on leaps and bounds since the 60s and we know way more about the practicalities of orbital mechanics and re-usable vehicles than either of those earlier designs, Hell, everybody who owns a copy of KSP can mod it up to be damn near an engineering tool and test everything right there.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
