Everyone complaining about how React is just a trend is missing the point of React. It's not some revolutionary flash-in-the-pan technology based on a mystical black box, it's an aggregation of best practices that everyone (including yourself) has been clamoring to have implemented for years. Web components? Check. Object.Observer? Check. Virtual DOM? Check.
I work on a web components library, so I'm very biased here, but web components will very soon have broad compatible support across all the major browser engines. It's the only interoperable solution going forward, because every framework out there right now is a silo unto itself.
Thanks, that's my understanding too. I've used Polymer in the past but before 1.0, will look at it again. No doubt web components are the future though, I only wonder if widespread browser support will be a reality in a 12-18 months timeframe.