I'm not entirely sure what you expect. There does come a point where new and different also becomes cumbersome and unusable. Make a design too different and its no longer ergonomic or user friendly. Honda is known for their simplistic layouts and ergonomics. Its what makes the cars easy to drive and live with on a daily basis. Get too out of the ordinary and you lose those traits. Also, what do you expect from a sub 20k class of cars? This isnt a luxury car or a super car, and if you look at the best cars on the market (in any price range) you'll note most of them have a pretty simple interior setup. Its not about flash and distractions on the interior. Its about driver centered, ergonomic, cost effective design. And its perfectly in line with the other 3 new hondas that have come out recently in terms of familial design.
The reinvention of the civic is more about the essence of the car. Sporty driving dynamics that bring a smile. Clean exterior design that gives a sporty presence. And an interior thats clean, simple, with better, more upscale materials and new and must have tech not seen in other cars in this class.
If you want radically different from the norm you need to increase the price point by about 30k or more. And if top gear taught me anything about those crazy super car interiors it was that they were confusing to operate and too niche' for the mainstream customers that the civic still needs to appeal to (as well as the enthusiast crowd)