Oh, and I sure hope that they ...
Spoiler:
... make the rebirth of the Ellcrys the heart-wrenching scene it was in the book. If Amberle does NOT transform into the Ellcrys just to have her available for Season 2, they deprive the season of one of the most bittersweet endings I ever read in a fantasy novel.
I expected many endings, mainly the Ellcrys being instantly healed, or sprouting anew and growing within seconds or something, but I did completely miss the possibility of Amberle's sacrifice; probably because I'm used to the many happily ever after endings.
===
In the Bloodfire Quest, book two of the Dark Legacy of Shannara, which is set hundreds of years after Elfstones, another girl has to go looking for the Bloodfire. Now, however, this girl and her sister know she will have to sacrifice herself to renew the Ellcrys, and while the bloodfire quest will be undertaken, they will also be looking to avoid this sacrifice. I wonder how it plays out this time... if the girl sacrifices herself, it won't be much of a shock, because everybody will know what's coming.