Could Chinese airtravel be more comfortable than in the US?

We’re flying back to Shanghai on China Eastern. We were stopped as we boarded the plane and told to leave our carry on bags since the plane was too full. Now that we are on board, I see the overhead compartments are almost completely empty. I don’t see how that made any sense. My fingers are crossed that our bags will be waiting for us on the other side. We had one pleasant surprise on the flight. We were served dinner! I’m too used to American flights where cost cutting has eliminated food service and double drink service. Here, we got a plate of hot noodles with beef, bread, and dessert. Not exactly five star, but better than McDonalds.