Thanks Guy for the info! It looks like I'm going to buy the flight. I was confused about what was the best value based on the different $$/mile combos. I wanted to share this analysis, valuing 1 mile = 2 cents:

$$ only: $1456 on CX in H, earn 19K AA elite miles + 25% gold bonus (AA code share is >$2500, too expensive)
-$1456, +23,750 miles = -961

points: OW award 70K in coach, 110K in business (cost $250 to buy the 10K points I need)
$0, -70,000 miles = -1400
-$250, -110,000 miles = -2450

or AANYC to NRT (free), OW award 40K coach, 60K business (Asia 1 to Asia 2)
$0, -40,000 miles = -800
$0, -60,000 miles =-1200

or AANYC to NRT (free), buy NRT -> KUL ($494 on CX in H), earn 6800 miles +25% bonus
-$494, 8500 miles = -324

pass: CX All-Asia pass $999+ tax.
-$999, 0 miles = -999

Based on the above, the most efficient use would be AANYC + buy an onward ticket. On the other hand, the CX H ticket beats out the pass, would rack up the most points, and is a slightly better value than the pass. Is this a valid way to think about these choices?

I noticed that CX sometimes has a codeshare on the HKG->KUL flight with Malaysian Airlines (MH). Does CX have a codeshare on MH's flight from EWR->KUL?