I had this same mindset when React started gaining popularity. "Vanilla JS all the way". Then I saw the power of React, and fell in love with it. Then I landed a position that uses jQuery and Vanilla JS for everything a few years later... and oh my. It's absolutely awful.
I know, I know, vanilla JS is most likely going to work in 5+ years as opposed to the React codebase, but damn. Wretched.
I know no React. I am neck deep in vanilla TS (not JS, small mercies)
What is "Wretched"?
My needs are simple (nobody at my org gives a single care about beautiful pages, it is an interface to an industrial process - big, feature-full interface, but not public nor a selling point)
For simple interfaces, vanilla is preferable, of course. But when you're working with mostly dynamic content and huge datasets, it really is a nightmare compared to using something like React.
With vanilla, it just takes more effort to build things. A file could easily become 2,000+ LOC.
I know, I know, vanilla JS is most likely going to work in 5+ years as opposed to the React codebase, but damn. Wretched.