For years, npx create-react-app my-app was the undisputed starting point for almost every React developer. It was the golden standard—a zero-configuration miracle that abstracted away the painful complexities of Webpack and Babel. But times have changed. As the web evolved, the tools needed to evolve with it. The React core team officially removed Create React App (CRA) from their recommended starting guides, signaling the end of an era. It was slow, bloated, and relied on aging bundler tec...