I have to agree with you completely on that. I talked to a Super Hornet pilot who used to be Tomcat Driver. He said that the plane just doesn't fell like what a plane is supposed to.
The other thing is can these new planes take the punishment of combat like an Eagle or Phantom II? How hard would it be to brake a Raptor? Could it survive anything as close to what the F-15 demonstrated when it lost a wing-and that F-15D continues to defend Israel today. Can the F-35 deliver as much of a punch as a Viper with out losing its stealth to pylons? Can it live up to its predecessor, the P-38,'s glory?
Despite the Su-35 and Su-30 having MFDs and FBW and all sorts of amazing modern things it does still have that style.