Some solid suggestions, thank you!

Well, indeed a lot of constrains with deeper integration with other modules come front the fact that Forums are based on what used to be a separate product (Orca), using a "newer" framework. Makeover would be not just a matter of development, but a serious problem with upgrades, so we try to continue gradually connecting the main Dolphin and the Forums into one system.

We're considering/working on some other things you mentioned, but the pagination see more system, the way we've decided to implement it, is what we believe a superior way to handle long topics. I will elaborate more in a comment below.