Phil, we seem to be straying from the topic a bit, but I'm confused by your statements re: Strobist. It launched in 2006 and AFAIK Yongnuo didn't launch version 1 of their 560 speedlight for 4-5 years after that. Strobist suggested a few lights in the sub $100 price range, and
even made mention of getting used SB-24's for $35. There was nothing to compare a $35 speedlight to at the time, in any form factor. The SB-800 and Canon equivalent were, and remained, very expensive, and arguably overpriced.
I thought "the whole point" of the Strobist ethos was slinging a single, compact bag over your shoulder and bringing light anywhere. It wasn't that monolights were complicated, it's that at the time they were - save some in-house generic brands and Alien Bees - very expensive and cumbersome (requiring location power). And especially expensive when compared to a sub-$50 speedlight.
Now, I absolutely agree with you (&
@juggler) that a monolight is "the right way" to start lighting, but it seems a pretty recent development to get a decent monolight for the same cost as a cheap speedlight. My apologies for having my head still in a space where I thought speedlights were cheaper than monolights, it was an oversight, and frankly I have a tendency to go to Godox's more expensive Pro, battery driven line when I think of these things. I completely forgot about their recent, very affordable plug in lights.