But that's a generalisation and has many exceptions.
In this case, the long 5V input wire is good:
It acts as a weak inductor and shields the ESP8266 board a little from the noisy power at the GBS input (caused by the GBS switcher).
The ground return should ideally be shorter, so that current for powering the ESP8266 doesn't prefer to go through any of the other wires.
This is just theory though, and in my setups with external ESP board, I also use a similar connection.
So I noticed another thing:
There don't appear to be any ground connections for the RGB on the SCART socket?
I spot a single ground wire, probably Sync return.
You should populate the 3 x ground wires for RGB and terminate that ground near the analog section.
If you want to conserve wires, you can tie the 3 ground pins together on the SCART socket, then use one wire for termination.
I'd recommend using all 3 though.
If you must have the sync stripper in that location, try powering it from the GBS board.
And whatever you do, do not use Vcc or ground from the ESP8266 on the LM1881! (It will open the path for creepage currents.)
Edit:
To remove the old SMD caps, you can add a bit of solder on each side of the device, then alternate heating each side.
The capacitor will quickly come off, especially if you push it slightly with the solder tip, once both sides are heated.
When pushing, make sure the capacitor will only move directly forward, and not touch any other devices.
This is to prevent it sticking to other parts, which is a little harder to fix.
Tip: Practice it 3 times on an old board. Once you know how it works, it's super easy
