>But the 'view' components usually require very specific knowledge of the component system and also the ability to work well with the design team, which is a different thing.
They require an understading of UI basics and reading the documentation. That knowledge is rarely specific, it's mostly the same pattern applied in a different manner. If a "good backend guy" can't read that (usually super simple) documentation of the frontend framework and understand how to apply it, I would not call him a "good backend". Just like a frontend dev should be able to read and understand what a node server does, a backend dev should be able to understand basics of UI frameworks, otherwise, it's not a developer we're talking about, it's a glorified typewriter.
My experience is that fundamentally, usually good backend developers are not good UI developers. They don't know or care about how to write nice-to-use interfaces.
It's not a technical ability issue in general, though there are a whole bunch of quirks such as browser compatibility that it can seem a little unfair to expect someone who mostly deals with optimising database queries and algorithms to also have to learn.
There is always a gap between what the designer produces and what needs to be created to make a fully functioning application. A good frontend-of-the-frontend developer has the passion, experience and user empathy to fill in this gap and make a site that is pleasant to use.
I understand your view, but it's just a lens you are used to looking at. At the bottom of the rabbit-hole, you model data and state like you do on the backend and you map that via provided UI layer functions and objects to the renderer.
Yes, there are edge case quirks but most of them is stuff you don't need to care about, and when you do, are a google search away. A good frontend-of-the-frontend developer is great at state management and deriving state from the UI model the designer presented it and the data model the backend presented. I believe backend developers have the same skill, just lack experience/"passion" in applying it on the UI end.
They require an understading of UI basics and reading the documentation. That knowledge is rarely specific, it's mostly the same pattern applied in a different manner. If a "good backend guy" can't read that (usually super simple) documentation of the frontend framework and understand how to apply it, I would not call him a "good backend". Just like a frontend dev should be able to read and understand what a node server does, a backend dev should be able to understand basics of UI frameworks, otherwise, it's not a developer we're talking about, it's a glorified typewriter.