At least I didn't make a BAMF joke

I, like a whole lot of other people, went to see X2 on Friday night, and honestly, I liked it. I liked the first one, and I think this one gave everybody a little more of what they wanted. More action, more mutants, and even a little tear-jearking.

Now, I don't want to give away any of the movie, but I do want to address some points that keep coming up in every discussion I've heard or read regarding the movie:

• Nobody likes Cyclops. And this goes back as far as the comic book. Now, I'm not the character's biggest fan, but I can see why he's necessary: everyone else is screwed up. He's pretty much the only person in the story whose powers, mental stability, or legs aren't flaky and less than dependable. If it weren't for him, the entire cast would be in a constant flux of solidity and breakdown. No, the character isn't the most charismatic or flexible, but at least he's sane. Of course, it's always the normal ones that snap, climb up on the roof, and start shooting passers-by with a high-powered rifle.
• "I wish that they'd included [name of character]." Seriously, people. They squeezed in more mutant cameos than I thought was possible, and they did it well. Yes, it would have been cool to give Colossus more screen time. Yes, giving Beast more than a name-cameo would have been appreciated. But some stuff has to be saved for the next movie. And I'll tell you one more thing... I'm hoping with every fiber of my being that they don't include Gambit in the next film. I hate him. If that card-tossing twit were to drown in a giant pile of flaming elephant dung, I'd wish for them to bring him back to life just so they could kill him again. HATE.
• "But it wasn't true to the comic because [stupid reason here]." Oh, boo-hoo. It's a movie. If you want something true to the story, you've got the comic. But movies simply cannot always be true to the source material. Some things simply do not work on the big screen. I mean, I'm as big a comic fan as any you'll find, but I'm wise enough to know that a literal translation from page to screen would mean colorful spandex suits, and really. I don't think there's a person on this planet who hates himself enough to watch that.

I give X2 a hearty reccommendation. Also, the trailer for The Matrix: Reloaded is quite a thing to behold. Sure, maybe you've already downloaded it, but it's a much different kind of spectacle on a giant screen. I was kind of disappointed that there wasn't a trailer for The Hulk. I've heard rumblings that Ang Lee strayed too far from the source on this one, but I'll probably see it anyway. I think I might have said that about Daredevil -- which I still haven't seen -- as well, but you have to remember that for me, outside of a Kevin Smith movie, Ben Affleck is a repellent whose power is eclipsed only by that of Leonardo DiCrappio.

I'm tempted to make a comment on how I think that the name "X2" is kinda stupid, and follow it with a joke about "X10" being about X-Men vs. pop-up ads, but wow, would that be reaching.