A very balanced episode. Now that there's one less person to cover, we have more time to devote to the rest of the characters without the feeling of constant scene changes.
Anyway, content wise, this episode is probably best described as a transition episode from Makoto's route to Mai's route. Personally, I think it occured quite naturally. With Mai's connection to Makoto, it's reasonable that Yuuichi would approach her next, hoping to learn more from her, as well as about her. (How to go from Mai's end to the next route is still a question for me though) But it's kinda sad that Mishio is probably not going to show up anymore, considering Yuuichi got along with her so well by the end of last episode.
Spoiler:
Ayu moving in served as a good way to fill the hole that Makoto left behind, it also increases her appearance rate from random enounters in the street to everyday in the house. It's a nice way to keep the character interactions lively even with Makoto gone.
That beef don scene in end looked like something Saber would've done.
Mai's sword swing animation sure is detailed, you can really feel the weight of the sword just by looking... Good job again, Kyoani.
The preview was great too. Mai's "Hachimitsu Kuma-san" and "Ponpoko Tanuki-san" inserted between the student council president's talk made me laugh.
And what's with this at the end?
"I want Yuuichi to stay with me....*ahm*"