When I first began delving into reactive client interface frameworks. This was one of my biggest gripes. It looks, and reads like a giant confusing mess. I finally came across http://vuejs.org/ and I haven't looked back. Simple binding syntax to html elements, and powerful enough for most projects without being heavyweight.

I mean it doesn't get any more straightforward than this.

<div id="app"> <p>{{ message }}</p> <input v-model="message"> </div>

new Vue({ el: '#app', data: { message: 'Hello Vue.js!' } })