I have several cast iron pans of varying vintages and styles. They see a lot of use. And my experience is that the quality of the seasoning just doesn't matter

I have several cast iron pans of varying vintages and styles. They see a lot of use. And my experience is that the quality of the seasoning just doesn't matter that much. If the pan is hot and there's oil in it, almost nothing sticks even if the seasoning is indifferent. The stuff that does stick (tortillas are terrible for leaving carbonized residue on the pan) will do so no matter how good the seasoning is. It doesn't matter, though, because I just scrub it off and the pan still works fine. Oh, and a bit of dish soap is fine, too. Doesn't seem to bother the pan any. There's a whole vaguely macho culture around cast iron and the fiddly rituals for producing the perfect surface, but you can just ignore all that and cook on the things and they're fine.