It depends on how big a step you want to make. For a small step up, go with the Mini UltraStick. I totally agree with you that its an ugly looking plane, and although I got two used ones in a deal on the internet, I have resisted assembling and flying them for exactly that reason. However, they are the most popular plane with the intermediate and expert flyers at my field and at any given time there may be three or four of them in the air. They fly absolutely great, but I can't get over how much I dislike their appearance.

Another great plane for you to consider is the ParkZone Typhoon or Typhoon2. Start with the transmitter set to low rates and just fly it like a regular plane, without trying to do anything fancy. It doesn't fly too fast, has terrific response to the controls, and has tons of power to get you out of trouble. The only draw back is that it flies so well upside down, that its very easty to loose orientation. For this reason, everyone at my field that flies one (there are seven of us) has either painted it different colors or added Day-glo tape to the wings to help distinguish the top from the bottom. If you want to go for more speed, consider the Stryker. If you are set on a war-bird, the E-flite P-47 is one of the best. Another good one seems to be the newest PZ warbird, the Spitfire. The new PZ T-28 Trojan looks like it should be a great plane, but it has not been made available yet.