This user's frustration is the natural result of trying to make a legacy tool do something it was never designed for. You cannot merge objects with dropdowns in Excel because the architecture treats visuals and data as separate layers that were never meant to interact directly. That missing "Merge Objects" function isn't a feature gap; it's a fundamental limitation of the tool itself.
What this means for you is straightforward: every workaround you find, grouping objects, hiding them behind cells, using VBA to simulate interactivity, adds complexity without solving the core problem. You end up maintaining a fragile system where one misplaced object breaks your dropdown, and you lose more time troubleshooting than you ever saved by inserting those decorative elements in the first place. The question shouldn't be how to force objects and dropdowns to cooperate. The question is why you should accept a tool that requires you to ask that question at all.
An AI-native spreadsheet doesn't separate your data from its presentation. When you insert a visual element, a chart, an icon, a custom button, it understands that element belongs to the data context. Dropdowns become interactive controls embedded directly in your layout, not fragile overlays that break when you resize a shape. You don't merge objects into cells because the concept of merging is obsolete. Every element is already part of the same intelligent workbook.
If you are spending time hunting for a function that doesn't exist, you are working around a limitation, not solving a problem. The smarter move is to evaluate whether the tool you are using deserves that effort. Excel gave you a lot, but it also gave you this ceiling. The next generation of spreadsheets removes that ceiling entirely, so you can focus on what your data says, not on how to make the interface stop fighting you.