Also... as much as Aes Sedai are supposed to be serene in the books, I think we see many examples of them losing their cool and not being serene at all. :look So perhaps it's not a completely departure anyway.
I think the tearing up in the Hall was meant for the TV audience, not the other sitters. Like the whispering. It's almost an "aside" to us, rather than something you'd expect the rest of the people there to see. I'm okay with Aes Sedai serenity being pulled back a bit, because we can't see what...
Supposedly he left during the quarantine break, which happened between ep 6 and ep 7. So, they might've had to retcon that ending in after he broke contract.