Marvel’s first Asian superhero is finally here. After Marvel teased us with a teaser of the upcoming film featuring Shang Chi, they released a full length trailer and here’s everything you missed!
For starters, the film titled “Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” focuses on ten powerful rings, each having a unique superpower. Shang Chi, a superhero and son of Mandarin, must do everything to protect these ten rings.
The film is directed by Destin Daniel Cretton and stars Simu Liu as Shang Chi. It also has actors like Awkwafina and Tony Leung in pivotal roles.
Let’s see what the trailer had in store for us!
1. All About The Ten Rings
The trailer begins with a shot of five of the ten legendary rings and Mandarin’s voice over, where he explains the significance of the ten rings and how it gave his family power. In the next shot of the trailer, we see a flag with the logo of the ten rings, with mandarin written on it.
These rings are pretty important because each one of them have a special superpower such as fire, electricity, light, mental manipulation etc. It is a lot like the infinity gauntlet, though maybe not as powerful. The Ten Rings Organization appears several times throughout the Marvel Comics.
I guess we can expect a lot of Chinese mythology and cultural references throughout. Anyway, coming back to the rings, they appear in quite a few important shots in the trailer.
So the rings are with Mandarin aka Shang Chi’s father with whom our superhero also has a pretty cool fight. Infact, we even see him pulling five of the ten rings towards himself causing a yellow light radiance during the fight.
I am pretty sure Shang Chi will be in possession of the ten rings by the end of the film but considering the kind of guy he is, I would guess that he will return them to the protector dragon only to use them when absolutely necessary.
You know, it would add all the glorious sacrifice and no hunger for power kind of tropes. So bottom line is that the rings are the most important objects out there and the trailer establishes that well.
2. All The Appearances And Expected Characters
The trailer manages to turn quite a few heads with the shots of expected character appearances from the comics. So if you’re a fan of the Marvel comics, you can expect to spot your favourite character from the pages.
Let’s begin with dragons. Interestingly, dragons are also an integral part of chinese religious tradition and mythology. There are several legends about their powers. By the look of the trailer, we can assume that the makers borrowed a lot from Chinese legends.
In one scene, Shang Chi is seen fighting a dragon under water. My strong guess would be that it is Fin Fang Foom, the popular dragon from the Marvel comics.
There is also the protector dragon and if you notice closely, there are two statues of traditional chinese dogs which are the symbol of protection. The protector dragon obviously is protecting the rings.
The two most exciting appearances in the trailer are those of Abomination and Wong. We finally see Abomination back in the trailer after The Incredible Hulk and from the look of it, it pretty likely that the other one in the scene is Wong.
The appearance is quite familiar to Wong from the comics, so I would think as much.
3. Shang Chi’s Parents
Boy, our hero does have cool parents. On one side there is Mandarin, who owns the ten rings and actually hires people to beat up his own son. He claims that it is simple to make Shang Chi stronger. Whoa, there.
The trailer also introduces Shang Chi’s mother, who we also see displaying some amazing skills. So both the mom and the dad is super powerful and special. In one scene, in a flashback a young Shang Chi can be seen as his mom trains him.
We also see short flashbacks in the beginning where Mandarin tells his son that in order to inherit the ten rings he must prove himself worthy of it.
Mandarin obviously wants his son to be strong and as cool as him while his mother also tries to inspire him to start working towards it. Then ofcourse, there is a pretty well done fight sequence glimpse between father and son.
There is also a lot of tension between father and son. In one scene, Shang Chi calls Mandarin a “petty criminal.”
Two young lovers are seen in another shot, and a wild guess would be they are Shang Chi’s parents in a flashback. So yeah, both of Shang Chi’s parents are expected to play a significant role in the film.
4. Other Details And What To Expect
Wait, did you spot Captain America’s shield? I think it appears twice.
Another important observation is that during the under water fight sequence, Shang Chi was not wearing his regular clothes. If you look closely, he was in his special suit. So, it is likely that this fight is from the climax or pre climax.
All in all, Marvel fans are in for some good action sequences. Marvel films are known for its brilliant use of VFX and the action scenes, it’s not something new. But here’s the unique bit: this time the action is not the usual stuff we see in MCU films.
The focus is on authentic martial arts and that’s a first time in a Marvel film. The action sequences are done well from what we see in the trailer, and the style is similar to Chinese martial arts. So we can expect some fun stuff there, if you’re an action person.
5. About Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten rings is an upcoming American superhero film directed by Destin Daniel Cretton. It is based on the Marvel Comics character Shang-Chi.
Cast members include Simu Liu, Awkwafina, Tony Leung, Michelle Yeoh, Fala Chen, and Ronny Chieng.
When Shang-Chi is drawn into the clandestine Ten Rings organization, he is forced to confront the past he thought he left behind. Set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the movie will be a part of its ongoing Phase Four.
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