I feel like unusual language syntax isn't an issue, as long as the syntax is understandable/readable once the programmer learns the syntax.

It doesn't take too long to pick up and become comfortable with a new syntax in a programming language.

Imo, the reason some esoteric languages fail are not purely because their syntax is obscure but because even once you learn the syntax, it is still hard to understand the code (example: Brainfuck).

With Rust, once you learn the new syntax, you can understand Rust code with relatively little effort.