As you probably already know by now (either you've seen for yourself or you've read one of countless reviews), "X-Men" DOESN'T suck. In fact, it was everything that I wish the Batman movies could be (but so far haven't been -- yes, even Tim Burton's); and this is coming from a die-hard Bat fan.

This is quite possibly the best comics-to-film adaptation ever. It's at least right up there with Superman II and The Crow (the original w/ Brandon Lee). And it was pulled off by Marvel! Remember "Captain America?" Or more recently, that made for Fox "Generation X" movie, or the Nick Fury movie starring David Hasselhoff? Is it any wonder everybody expected this new movie to suck?

All of the fears I had about miscasting were unfounded. Everybody carried their parts admirably. This movie even made me like Wolverine, a character I don't usually care for.

Of course I have a few complaints, but those are all nit-picky comic book geek stuff, and not even worth mentioning here. It was as faithful an adaptation as the cartoon (the old one on Fox Kids, not the new one coming out this fall on KidsWB), which is pretty darn faithful.

The best thing about this movie (are you listening, Warner Bros.?) was that it didn't try to make the audience feel like they were transported inside a comic book, but instead took the characters and their problems very seriously and translated them into a world that felt very real. They didn't make a "comic book movie," they made a film about characters that happened to originate in a comic book.

The other best thing was that it seemed to put the fans first. It was loaded with cameos and inside references, winks and nods that were just for us; yet at the same time it stayed broad enough that those who had never picked up a comic or seen the cartoon would have no trouble understanding it.

It's not just a good X-Men movie, it's a good movie, period.