Case in point. Pop really is the pinnacle of GNOME Ubuntu derivatives IMO, I've run it for years.
And if it wasn't for the 18.04 base of Elementary, Budgie would've slipped under my radar completely.
Agreed. Pop is the distro to beat for daily use for me at least. I've been using Linux as a daily driver since 1998 and until Pop, the only thing I felt comfortable with was Window Maker.
What is window maker? Never heard of it
WM is a highly configurable window manager that just stays out of your way. Light, efficient, and fast.