I'm trying to recall if Bioware has done any other tragic / unrequited romances with their LIs. The only one that comes to mind is the encounter Shepard has with the romanced Virmire survivor on Horizon.
It just makes me think back to this quote from the Building a Better Romance panel:
"Patrick Weekes later added that in the end,It is all about "writing stories that we need to tell...hoping that we have the trust from the players to know that we've hit that pretty rigorously."
A tiny part me (the bruised part) wants to question if this romance was really a story that needed to told. It feels like an odd thing for Solas's character because you doubt it has any impact, the story outcome is the same for everyone. It feels like small compensation that the players romancing him might have gleaned a bit more of his personality.
The other part is blown away by the superb storytelling. My Lavellan got to fall in love with a god. In a story both well told and unexpected. It's a tale worthy of greek mythology. So, to the devs I want to say: Thank you! (From this part of myself, at least.)