The desktop mode isn't all that's supposed to be pleasantly usable with Windows 8, is it?
Moreover, while I can't use the new interface with my old tablet PC with too small a screen, Chrome desktop doesn't work well with this other computer of mine but IE works fine, except the font rendering, of course. It's usable but not easy on the eyes. I found out Firefox and Flash isn't a very good mix in general so the solution is to use Comodo Dragon with my tablet PC which is also based on WebKit.