This is the kind of technology that (as it did as the NACA, before it became NASA) that NASA should have been prioritizing for decades. But it was more important to build a giant expendable rocket without a design reference mission.
I’d probably characterize it as “progress.” It was the goal, after all.
It was disappointing to lose the booster, but at the rate they’re building them, they can accomplish their mission goals without recovering them; it will just cost more. And I’m sure they’ll work out the final bugs.
[Late-morning update]
Time-lapse of today’s Starship flight, from liftoff to splashdown, in just 150 seconds. 🚀 pic.twitter.com/1jGFPK4CYV
I will note that SpaceX stock continues to decline, with a daily (and historic, for its short history) low today of $110.85, so everyone who bought at the IPO is currently underwater. But probably a buying opportunity now.