I agree with all of you
As it has been discussed in perpetuity. Kirby doesn't make many drastic design changes, in fact they have only done it twice in 100 years. They do ongoing updates and changes from different models, and refresh with color changes, pretty much some on this site did not witness the G3 introduction because they are too young.
I actually appreciate this about Kirby, rather than others, usually of the bagless designs, that change names, colors and models sometimes several times a year. By them doing that you can't find parts for a machine that is only a year old in some cases.
Then there are others that follow the same practice, and no one says a word. Hoover used to produce the same Convertible every year with minor internal changes and maybe a variety of colors available.
Filter Queen hasn't changed their basic shape or design since it's beginning. The Brand new right out of the box 2018 machine is basically the same as the model 31 in a different color.
There is a reason that Kirby and some of the other premium brands keep their proven machines, and only release them to the public after extensive testing. They do their own testing rather than having the consumer do it for them. You can pretty much go back to some of the very early Kirby models and still find repair parts. Try doing that with the most current Dyson.