Let’s face it, the Fantastic Four, while a great comic, has a really bad track record with live action adaptations. From the never released movie in 1992, to the one that made it to the theater in 2005 and even got a sequel in 2007 (with future Captain America Chris Evans as Johnny Storm, the Human Torch), and yet another reboot in 2015, they keep trying, and they just can’t seem to get it right. So I had some very mixed feelings when I heard Marvel Studios was trying again, with a version that would, eventually, link to the MCU. Well, I’m absolutely a fan of the MCU, despite the fact that seems to be getting to be an unpopular stance, so I had some hopes for Fantastic Four: First Steps.

As it turns out, hope was warranted. It was easily the best live action adaptation of the Fantastic Four I’ve ever seen, granted that’s a low bar. They also did something that’s a growing trend in hero movies I approve of: skipping the origin. For a lot of the better known superheroes, we know how they started. The MCU’s Spider-Man did this, as did the most recent Superman movie. We don’t need to see Krypton explode, or Uncle Ben and the Waynes get shot again. This FF is a well established team, outright celebrities, and world leaders. Interestingly, the country that hasn’t signed on with the Future Foundation is home to the Fantastic Four’s biggest foe, who is also notably absent from the movie. The FF also seem to be the only superheroes on their world; while several of their villains get namechecked, and one even has a few scenes, there’s never a mention of any other hero.

After we get an intriguing few glimpses of a world that is not only definitely not ours, but not the main MCU Earth either, the main threat emerges. Since the trailers have showed many hints and quick looks, I don’t think it’s a spoiler to say the big bad is, in fact, really big. Galactus, the Destroyer of Worlds, in fact. If you know anything about the character from the comics, you know this isn’t going to be anything approaching an easy fight for the Fantastic Four.

The big final fight with Galactus doesn’t go as planned. It does hinge on Reed’s brilliance (as do most Fantastic Four plans), but there is a surprising amount of raw power from a member of the team I’ve never seen perform at these levels in any incarnation. It was really impressive, and a well done scene. There was also the first appearance in live action of a very long time member of the FF family that they handled well. And, while I’m a huge fan of shared universes (the MCU, the DCAU, the Arrowverse), the team being literally in their own world worked really well.

What I Liked: One of the ways previous Fantastic Four films have failed, at least in my opinion, was in the relationships. They argue like anyone at times, but the FF are a family first and foremost. That was so very clear here. They also not only give everyone something to do, but they all do their assorted tasks believably and well. Not only did we skip the origin (thank you, whoever is behind that trend), but also skipped Ben’s self-pity and rage at Reed stages. They also touched on Ben’s Jewish heritage, which gets skipped a lot, and gave a subtle nod to both Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, who created most of the main Marvel heroes, in one quick scene. There was also a “Timely Comics” sign at one point, which is what Marvel was originally called. The running joke about Ben’s catchphrase was funny. The two end scenes (c’mon, you have to expect those by now) were both good.

What I Didn’t: Almost nothing. There was a scene on their space ship (love that’s it’s called the Excelsior) where I was wondering just how much time and money they spent putting that 4 on everything in sight. My wife theorized HERBIE did that when he didn’t have anything else to do. Ben has a very long standing love interest in the comics that was utterly ignored in this movie (although her father got a brief callout). I’m sorry John Malkovich got cut for time. I would have loved to see him and the villain he was supposed to portray.

I’m giving this a 4 ½ out of 5. I really enjoyed it and I can’t wait to see them come back in Doomsday.