My bad,
function wp_loop_change_order($query) {
$query->set('orderby', 'menu_order');
}
add_action('pre_get_posts', 'wp_loop_change_order');
in my child theme was interfering with image order on admin page. Strange that it was not affecting type ‘thickbox_image’ and ‘image’, took me a while to find the culprit. Again, sorry for not testing it first, loving this plugin, keep up good work.