The energy also feels very different now, and IMO this was stronger than Campaign 2's opener; I'm hoping with the fact we have a bunch of returning characters and some already established early mystery that this campaign will get off to a more directed and explosive start than Campaign 2's first twenty five episodes. Not that there were not great moments or highlights there, like the party relationship between Caleb and Nott, or Mollymauk and Beau and... everyone, butas sad as Jester, Fjord and Yasha's kidnpa, along with Mollymauk's death was, that was really when the campaign started, and everything became focused and directed.
It's early days, but it does feel like the group is a lot more cohesive and amenable to working together. C2 did have a long span when it was a collection of angsty loners who were all waiting for someone else to ask them about their tragic backstory and who often didn't have a firm reason to hang out together. I have a feeling that was why Caduceus had such a "team dad" personality, to actually bind the group together a bit tighter.