I think awk is better than any of the alternatives if the problem you're solving matches a pattern-expression paradigm and, as others have said, you have no ext

I think awk is better than any of the alternatives if the problem you're solving matches a pattern-expression paradigm and, as others have said, you have no external dependencies. Granted, this is quite a constraint and perhaps there aren't many problems that fit this model, but when you do encounter one of those problems it's good to have the right tool for the job.