"I would love to read an example where jr creditors and shareholders teamed up during a bankruptcy to fight sr creditors."
It just happened in Peabody (teamed up against debtors - same principle though). Shareholders still lost but Peabody's case landscape was very different from SunEd's. But nonetheless, it happens, and given the massive complexities here, it could provide those creditors a recovery and shareholders an ally.
Yeah, shareholder efforts go first to creditors benefit, but ground gained is ground gained, and SunEd's has been a BK not without surprises.