Enterprise was 20 years after TNG changed the Klingons to a new design... How is that a backpedal?
They worked hard to weave the change into the lore with a well thought-out storyline.
In Disco they backpedaled in the second series by slapping on big (almost comically lustrous) wigs in season 2 and said 'oh the hair? Yeah we shave it during war'.... Nevermind the fact that they've had long hair during wartime for the preceding 60 years of ST lore.
I don't think I'm being inconsistent or unfair at all, these are two very different approaches that paint a very different picture of motives. One was to tie up a loose end in the lore that the writers wanted to remedy in a satisfying way for the lore - the other is a 10 minute fix that just adds more lore issues.