I agree. One of the ugliest bits of engineering and aesthetics I have ever seen.
*edit* Even uglier than the arachnids, which I always thought were hideous.
I own two pairs of these and I promise if you can keep shoes up to them they are one of the best pedals out there. The bearings/bushes are bullshit strong and the pedals don't grab rocks when you clip them as it is pretty much just a pin clipping the rock instead of a hard edge as most pedals would present.
Ugly, yes but very purposeful however I have had to have radioactive dye injected into me a year after my pedals kissed my leg.
I strangely also have a set of .243pedals that aren't too far off the pedals pic'd in this thread, they weigh around 950g a pair from memory and people get angry with you when they see them.
I got yelled at for not caring my old HT weighed 19kg more than a few times, I'm a tubby bitch, I rode a tubby bike.