Definitely agreed. As a fan of Alessandra going way back, I remembered being pretty interested in seeing how she would approach Lui, since it was going to be a major departure for her from what she'd been doing previously. This was especially true since it was coming at a time when she wasn't being featured as much as she was back in her peak VS days, so I was hopeful that it was going to be some kind of triumphant return of sorts for her. We all know how that turned out, though. Her Maxim shoot was much better in that regard.
If Lui is off the table, though, I'd certainly love to see Kate pose for Maxim, given that the direction they've been going in for the past year-plus has been outstanding.