I was pleasantly surprised at how much focus Nintendo put on Wii U at this years E3, and the amount of first party games on the way for the platform was way more than I was expecting. So much so, that I've regained a bit of confidence that we could yet see an HD Metroid game on the console. Fingers crossed!
As for the systems fortunes changing, I think they will see a climb. It will never do as well as Wii, and maybe not even as well as Gamecube, but I think it can approach it pretty closely if Nintendo can keep up the positive image they've started recently. Of course this isn't taking into account the Amiibo figure line, which could very well take off like a rocket if Nintendo plays their cards right.
Nintendo had a lot of interesting ideas; many of which weren't the typical safe bets that they've come to rely on in recent times either, so there's a sense of newness to a lot of what's on the way. It sucks that there is pretty much zero 3rd party support now, but what's there has a nice variety in spite of that. I'm optimistic of what Wii U could become, but even if it doesn't find a bigger audience, I'm confident it'll be a system I'll enjoy for the duration.