This 007 film stays true to its motif.
This begins an era of "no fun" 007 films, where the wit is very minimal and every scene is whiplash brutal.
However, unlike most later 007 films, this one stays true to its design. It doesn't try to "contrive" the story. Instead, there is a flow.
One interesting aspect is that we see something worse than "death", as is pointed out earlier, with David Hedison getting brutal treatment in his recurring Felix role.
We see the beginning of an era where evil is in charge of the world. No longer is there anyone to be trusted outside of a few men like James and Felix.
There is a "darkest before the Dawn" scenario here, but it isn't "contrived" the way later 007 movies do it.
There is a lot going for this one. Unfortunately, it set the style for "no fun in 007 films", which ultimately saw the writing and directing get worse and worse. But this one works. Bond is still a genuinely okay guy, and that's what always keeps 007 films going.