MySQL's tabular explain is largely understandable once you also understand how simple its optimizer and execution mechanism is. All you mostly need to look at i

MySQL's tabular explain is largely understandable once you also understand how simple its optimizer and execution mechanism is. All you mostly need to look at is the join order and indexes used, and whether there's a filesort in there, and then it's clear enough. The linear list of steps doesn't work well for a smarter engine.