DV restoration workflow: critique requested

[taigi]

Posting this workflow for a critique.
The process was developed almost entirely through the advice of this forum’s members; my own contribution was minimal.
Source material is DV footage from a single consumer camera with a vertical stripe sensor defect. The workflow is tailored to handle this, especially with the use of santiag.

Preprocessing in AviSynth+
Deinterlacing, dehaloing, antialiasing, and resizing are performed here:

video = FFMPEGSource2("1.avi", atrack=1)
video = video.ConvertToYV16(interlaced=true)
video = video.QTGMC(Preset="Very Slow", SourceMatch=3, Lossless=2, Sharpness=0, Sbb=0, MatchPreset="Very Slow", NoiseProcess=1, NoiseRestore=0, NoisePreset="slow", StabilizeNoise=true, NoiseTR=1, NoiseDeint="true", Sigma=2.0)
video = video.FineDehalo(rx=2.7, ry=2.7, thmi=80, thma=128, thlimi=50, thlima=100, darkstr=2.0, brightstr=1.0, showmask=0, contra=0.0, excl=true)
video = video.FineDehalo2()
video = video.santiag(strv=3, type="nnedi3", nns=4, threads=0, nsize=4, halfres=false, scaler_post="LanczosResize")
video = video.FineDehalo(rx=2.7, ry=2.7, thmi=80, thma=128, thlimi=50, thlima=100, darkstr=1.0, brightstr=1.0, showmask=0, contra=0.0, excl=true)
# video = video.Levels(16, 1.0, 242, 16, 235, coring=false, dither=true)
video = video.Spline64Resize(1024,576)
video
Prefetch(2)

FineDehalo is applied again after santiag, since santiag tends to generate new halos.
I would like to recover more detail using Levels, but this also reveals the same vertical stripes that santiag was used to suppress.
I use Spline64Resize because I cannot accurately assess results during the process - primarily due to Topaz’s processing.

After AviSynth+:

NeatVideo denoising.
Results in a noticeably “plastic” look.

Upscaling is executed using NNEDI3.
If Topaz VEAI, Artemis HQ is run without prior upscaling, it introduces excessive plasticity.

Upscaling with Topaz VEAI (Artemis HQ)
Commercial software, I'm not a pro.

Return to AviSynth+
Edge detection with mt_edges.

Frame Extraction and Sharpening
All frames extracted and processed with Topaz Sharpener AI, then recombined.

Restoration of noise to escape plastic and LUT processing are planned for a future.
Constructive criticism is requested.