Next.js is infuriating

The post's author seems to conflate the edge runtime with the server runtime. They’re separate environments with different constraints and trade-offs.

I struggled with Next.js at first for the same reason: you have to know what runs where (edge, server, client). Because it’s all JavaScript, the boundaries can blur. So having a clear mental model matters. But blaming Next.js for that complexity is like blaming a toolbox for having more than a hammer.

The biggest issue is that the complexity is self-inflicted. The term middleware has a pretty well understood meaning if you've worked with basically any other framework in any language: it's a function or list of functions that are called at runtime before the request handler, and it is assumed those functions run in the same process. The fact that Next.js puts it on the edge and only allows one is breaking that assumption, and further, most applications do not need the additional complexity. To go back to your toolbox analogy, more tools mean more complexity (and money), so you wouldn't get a new tool simply because you might need it, you get it because you do need it, and the same applies to edge functionality. If Next.js wants to allow you to run code on the edge before your app is called, that's fine, but it should be opt-in, so you don't need to worry about it when you don't need it, and it shouldn't be called "middleware".