You know, in beta they had a radial icon system for sending items to another player. I wonder how hard it would be for them to implement such a system that could be used for casting spells and abilities, kind of like Temple of Elemental Evil.
The multiple bars beats that away even. Radials are ok, cycling bars are ok. Having 90% of your move to move options displayed in a few bars you can click once to activate your choice is better. It's the evolutionary step for TB combat, since the pace is slower, you want all your choices available to you in the least amount of clicks as possible.
Minimum improvement is a hotkey to cycle the bars, perhaps kick the 3 given up to 5.