Richard C. Meyer has some interesting thoughts about thought balloons and how an entire generation of comics creators have been getting along without them... or have they?

I saw that and it's very interesting. But, I think some writers over did the thinking or navel gazing in the '70s.

Oh, it was definitely overdone and some of the worst writing in comics, but dumping it completely is a serious waste.
One of the big tools that comics have over movies is the ability for the audience to easily see into the minds of the
characters without having to set up weird voice over narratives, or to have other characters reading from diaries, etc.

When used right, it is a major asset.
When used as a crutch or a catch-all to "introduce" new readers to histories / or when used to explain actions that
would be better shown artistically, it's a donkey suck fest.

I have no problem with the caption boxes doing the same thing as the balloons used to. I like the way DC did it in some of their books, with colors and/or logos indicating who was doing the thinking. They can be less obtrusive to the art.