That was a shame, and perhaps to a degree short sighted since DC is printing money with GREEN LANTERN CORPS stuff. Still, maybe there was a fear that editorial and other writers wouldn't follow up on it well. I mean this is Marvel, where in one week you can have a character contradict themselves 15 times in 5 comics. Editors seem to be asleep at the switch more often than MTA employees working the graveyard shift. I mean, WOLVERINE THE BEST THERE IS #1 more or less has a version of Logan that in no way matches how the character has ever acted and yet on it goes in 616 continuity. And that's WOLVERINE! If Marvel doesn't give enough of a spit to keep HIM consistent, you really think a NOVA CORPS series was gonna work? Some writers probably believe that if anyone is going to squander the potential, it may as well be themselves.
I mean in a perfect world, Philo, Ko-Rel, Robbie, Qubit, and the others would have carried on without Richard for a while and it would have added a layer to the space stuff. But it's not perfect, I guess. Maybe DnA wanted to avoid being "predictable" even when it would have been satisfying anyway (a trap many a writer has fallen for, even some of the best). But, we'll see.
Admittedly, it was pretty odd. Richard bestows some of the Nova Force to Quasar in one issue and then yanks it back by the end; it sort of looks like there was a last minute rewrite or change of plans. No writer will admit to that, though. Maybe they didn't get their pitches approved for IRON MAN/THOR or HEROES FOR HIRE and knew they'd only have room for so many series. I mean, ANNIHILATORS and ROCKET & GROOT are being merged into one book because Marvel doubts they can sell two space booms anymore (especially as THANOS IMPERATIVE underperformed compared to WAR OF KINGS, which showed the Inhumans and spare X-Men were more of a draw).