I'm curious, how do you explain the frequency of stuff that rockets to the front page only to get lambasted in the comments for being a total shitshow? Are there really that many oblivious upvoters in /new who fire off upvotes based on title alone?

I have experienced this before (almost universally negative comments, but still many upvotes). In those cases, some people have reached out to me personally to tell me they enjoyed whatever it was and didn't agree with the negative feedback. They didn't comment because they didn't think it was worth engaging with people who clearly didn't get it, and it's fine that not all people get it.

A whole bunch of dynamics. Efficient markets require liquidity to measure quality, so expect reactions and counter-reactions. Psychology means people respond to perception over reality, so expect herd action. Ego means success challenges personality, so expect defenses. Probably lots more, too