The article definitely did not state or suggest that it wasn't a boring effect. It was just enumerating surprises due to gravitational theories' mismatching reality.

Discovering that the Pioneer probes were off due to the moment of their thermal radiation was not 'new physics', but it was still interesting, in that it was missed in the initial attempt at modeling. And that's fine. It's still interesting and made for good reading.

Anyway, I liked it. I don't think it was mediocre at all.