Storing structured content in raw HTML with comments is not an acceptable path forward. It means that any time the HTML standard evolves, or a design change requires a change to HTML syntax, that has to be made in every post. Then, by allowing users to enter "html mode"
and manually modify the structure, they are guaranteeing that updating all the posts programmatically will fail for some posts.

When you throw away everything that is good about structured content, in the name of smooth continuity, what you are looking at is a Ship of Feceus.