React is great, and judging by the growing ecosystem, many people agree. If you don't like it because it requires you to learn a workflow you are unfamiliar with, don't use it.
But, React is still just another tool in our toolboxes.
If we're building prototypes or short-term apps, slap it together with whatever tool is fastest for you. If we're engineering something that needs to last and provide a great experience, it's important to know when to use a Philips head screwdriver versus a flathead, or either, or when we really just need a hammer.
However, my websites tend to be backend heavy and front-end light... no more interactive than Reddit.
Unrelated to the technical side (which I haven't investigated in much depth yet as a third party to this discussion), I don't like it because of the patent license, which AFAICR is a valid concern for a non-trivial number of large firms.
I can look at external analyses, but the firms I've spoken with have had their own IP folks examine it and have each made their own decisions, so I'm merely parroting the accounts of those I've spoken to.
Edit: my initial comment (thread root) sits in the negatives but this one is high in the positives. It's interesting observing what I can only conclude is a proxy battle between the technical crowd and the crowd that understands legal realities.