The mainstream hype that happend a few years ago really burned a lot of people, and redeemed a lot of pundits who were against it, especially the ones calling for bitcoin to a million etc...
It’s really to bad because the merits of crypto do work, and they can really do a lot of good for people where access to funds can take days, and cost huge percentages. There is so many things that can be done with tokenized investments etc... it can literally change the world, and create so much liquidity for many, but we are stuck, because the old way of doing things scares a lot of people who have a monopoly on keeping you locked away from your funds, and delaying transfer of funds which in turn makes them so much more.
What we saw a few years ago was the beginning of something, now it has to be turned into a more finished, and secure product. I feel bitcoin will always be a base coin, much like gold, so if you want to start somewhere that might be best, don’t get caught up with to many alt coins, you will drive yourself crazy chasing them up, and down.