You might have seen some very bad abstractions. In my experience, they almost always make code more flexible, if designed & implemented sanely. My $0.02.
Yes, this was my observation, but I see a pattern with the modern engineering workflow. It's convoluted. What could be done with basic npm scripts is now Webpack, so another abstraction that the beginners have to smash their head against, all in the pursuit of making a basic todo app. Not lying, I use these tools myself, but I try to survey a technology before using it. I ask myself the questions a) is it stable, by looking at any major GH issues and b) can I do it better natively and do away with using a library.