But the question is: will steem ever recover to what the early adopters paid ?

I'd say the chances are just as good of it going up to $1.00 as going down to $0.01.

steem lost 9/10 of it value if not more, and it is still going down.

It actually hasn't been going down since early November. It's been trading sideways and slightly up since then.

steemit.com is taking forever in development, I am not sure we will ever see it go viral, to be honest and seriously doubt it.

Well, it's a good thing that Steemit.com is not and will not be the only interface for the STEEM blockchain. There will be other options for the use of STEEM.