Hmmm, just watched the end episode.
Basically, all my speculations were correct. Yasuna realizes (ya'll should really spoilerize a lot of this discussion)
Spoiler:
Yasuna realizes that she was just needing Hazumu to get through her crisis and that she really needs to "walk alone" ... though in her talks with Asuta and some of other classmates, we see that she's *reaaaallly* interested in these "boy people" (though we also get some lines about her love for Tomari too -- guess they're trying to cover all options).
Tomari's acceptance of Hazumu's proposal at the shrine felt pretty abrupt -- she never really worried to Hazumu about her concerns she'd spent so long agonizing over.
Was glad to see Asuta being treated more sensibly as a character... and that Yasuna was glancing in his direction
The episode felt rushed and chopped, as if they were trying to cram an hours worth of story into less than a halfhour. The extreme use of flashbacks to backfill all the plot points (we find out that the crossriver "ano" happens after Yasuna and Hazumu make their decisions) was interesting though it required some attention.
I believe there's a line where the alien says that the marriage violates the legal code but, hey its Christmas and all bets are off (miracles).
Basically, for my entertainment value -- the story events fit with what I figured would happen given the events in the first 12 episodes... but they should have taken the opportunity in the DVD to just have a longer running time and flesh out the conversations more. Reasonably satisfied with overall series ... either a 7 or an 8 depending on my mood (7 when I think about the lame teacher/dad gags, 8 when I focus on the core story).