Middleware in Express.js and GraphQL is discussed as a crucial component for efficiently organizing code and handling tasks such as authorization, logging, and caching. In Express.js, middleware functions are used to manage the flow of requests and responses in a Node.js application, enhancing modularity and separation of concerns. Similarly, in GraphQL, middleware can be applied at the field resolver level to streamline the execution of business logic across servers like graphql-yoga and Sangria. However, the article argues for the use of a pipeline structure, akin to the chain-of-responsibility design pattern, for executing GraphQL directives, which can offer a more efficient and flexible approach than traditional middleware. This pipeline allows for executing directives on multiple fields simultaneously and facilitates granular control over the execution process, providing advantages such as enhanced performance when interacting with services like Google Translate. Furthermore, the article suggests that the directive pipeline design can offer low-level functionality by allowing custom directives to modify GraphQL responses directly, thus making directives a powerful feature in GraphQL servers that support them well.