Like every Marvel movie, “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” offers viewers two post-credits scenes. The opportunity for us to dissect them and highlight the important elements. Attention SPOILERS!
Shang-Chi : the new born of Marvel Studios
After Black panther, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) decides to explore another culture: China. For that, the studio asked Destin Daniel Cretton to direct Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Worn by Simu Liu, the feature film tells the adventures of Shang-Chi, a character well known to comic book readers. Kind of homage to Bruce Lee, he is a martial arts master, able to stand up to the best fighters in the Marvel universe. Even though his story has been altered a bit in the MCU, he certainly remains a leading figure in the MCU’s future.
Second film of phase 4 after Black widow, Shang-Chi has been largely delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but is finally landing in theaters this Wednesday, September 1. Like every MCU movie, Shang-Chi reserves for fans two post-credits sequences that we have decided to analyze here. Of course, the rest of the article is reserved for those who have already seen the Marvel blockbuster.
First post-credits scene
This is the Marvel Studios tradition: it is imperative to stay after the credits. The first post-credits sequence directly follows the last scene of Shang-Chi. The magician Wong comes to meet Shang-Chi and Katy, to learn more about the ten rings. These overpowered artifacts end up in the hands of our hero. Shang-Chi, Katy and Wong then meet in the magician’s shrine to study the rings. Besides these three characters, two other heroes come to join the meeting, by hologram: Captain Marvel and Bruce Banner.
This happy group does not precisely manage to define the origin of the jewels, nor even their period. One thing is certain, they are over a millennium. Information that seems to have a relationship with The Eternals, the next Marvel studio film. Without this hypothesis being confirmed, there is a good chance that this new super-heroic team is behind the creation of the ten rings. Indeed, this race of human beings landed on Earth over 7000 years ago, which coincides with the age of the rings.
Other information to remember: Bruce Banner can take human form again. The last time the character appeared was in Avengers: Endgame. In the Russo Brothers movie, the famous scientist decides to combine his intelligence and the strength of the Hulk to become the intellectual Hulk. A decision that was not unanimous. In view of his arm still in a cast, this post-credits scene takes place shortly after the events ofAvengers: Endgame. Which suggests that Bruce Banner Has The Ability To Choose His Fitness Again, between his human aspect and that of the Hulk.
Second post-credits scene
In the second post-credits scene, which is after the entire credits, viewers learn about Xialing’s fate, Shang-Chi’s sister, played by Meng’er Zhang. We learn that the protagonist decides to take over from his father, and thus becomes the new leader of the Army of the Ten Rings. Razorfist becomes her new right-hand man as she sits on her newly acquired throne. If this footage is crystal clear enough, it can potentially have ramifications for the future of the MCU.
Logically, the army of ten rings will return. It remains to be seen where, when and above all why? Will the protagonist join the dark side like her father before her, or will she work for good? Another pending question … Logic would dictate that Xialing comes back in Shang-Chi 2. it is difficult to see where Marvel Studios would plan to incorporate it in the meantime. But at present, no follow-up has been formalized. This will certainly depend on the score of the feature film at the box office.
