The recently closed tab list issue is solved to my satisfaction, and I'm grateful the devs listened. Yes, I would prefer the older means, a more intuitive icon that opened the full list of closed tabs immediately, but that's a nitpick, because the list is there in its original spot and although it displays only three, more are available with a single click. Well done.
I presume the devs felt searching tabs was a high priority and, based on our rancor, sought to find a way to provide legacy functionality (reopen closed tabs) while offering the new sexy feature of searching open tabs. They succeeded as well as can be expected in this latest update.
I have yet to search a tab. But I reopen closed tabs frequently, if for no other reason than I accidentally close one I meant to keep open while closing a slew of others I had opened.