We are in agreement, the difference in experience as you move between denormalized key/value style modeling and normalized relational modeling is the core of the post. DynamoDB has added relational-like features, but using them in a traditional relational way goes against its architectural grain.

Is it necessary that data modeling flexibility must decline as an application matures and scales, though? This was one of the larger millstones around our neck at Twitter and what we are building Fauna to avoid.