1. Has it? AFAIK the rapid decline just plateaued. If there has been any sort of "revival" it's b/c people realized that they could get a "best of both worlds" scenario by using a hybrid approach (record to tape, comp/edit ITB). It's either that or hipsters.
2. When used correctly it offers superior resolution despite it's noisefloor and can pushed to get distortion and compression often considered desirable.
3. Tape has an inherent noise that while always present can really be a nuisance on quiet tracks. Tape machine maintenance is imperative and can be a PITA. Tape can lose resolution and high end the more you play it. Have you ever had to bake a tape to make it playable? Have you ever edited takes with a razor blade? No "undo" button.
