And what about the fact that for the first time they picked a (relative) rarity to honor The Number of the Beast, ditching all together the same three ultra-classics? never in a Maiden setlist 666, Hallowed and Hills were missing all together, at least one was always there.
I too am not crazy about Alex the Great but it was, well, great live. I'm still thinking people are obsessing over it 'cause it was never played live; To Tame a Land is even better but it was played in the Piece of Mind tour so people are not asking "why you never played TTAL live?".
And yes, Bruce was great beyond any expectation during Caught Somewhere in Time, and let's remember Nicko had a stroke, hopefully with some months of rest and more therapy he will be back to his usual self.
And since I haven't commented on it.... when on the web I caught notice of rumours about 2025 Bruce solo dates I wondered "well, next year it could be Bruce solo time and writing time, so maybe in 2026 we'll get a new album", so I'm glad I was right! Senjutsu is ok but not worthy of "last Maiden album" title, it does not give you the "ok if this is the last album, it was a great closure" vibe that Priest's Invincible Shield gives.