After a year and a half without any new releases, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has made a major comeback in 2021. Thanks to the release of three new Disney Plus TV shows and the premiere of Black Widow this month, Marvel Studios has been dominating pop culture once again, and they’re still far from finished.
Marvel’s next film in the pipeline is Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, due to release on September 3rd, 2021. Shang-Chi himself has never been the most well-known character, even among comic buffs, so it makes sense that the film hasn’t been the target of much fan speculation. However, with every new trailer released for Shang-Chi, hype has been steadily starting to build, and it’s easy to see why.
The MCU has been known to broaden the definition of what a superhero story can be by combining it with other genres. Guardians of the Galaxy is a space opera, Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a political thriller, and Spider-Man: Homecoming is an 80s-inspired high school comedy, but they’re all still superhero movies. Shang-Chi is following this tradition by exploring another genre: the martial arts film.
Of course, die-hard fans will be quick to point out that this isn’t the first time Marvel has tackled the martial arts genre in live-action — that would be Iron Fist, the Netflix series first released in 2017. While it’s still hotly debated among fans whether the MCU's various Netflix shows are still canon to the movies, they still have no shortage of supporters. At least, most of them do.
Iron Fist is one of the more controversial entries in the MCU, infamous for receiving unusually negative reception from fans and critics alike. Lovers of the Iron Fist comics who hoped for a faithful live-action adaptation were left disappointed — until now, that is. Shang-Chi has the unique opportunity to improve on the mistakes of the Netflix Iron Fist show, and live up to the full potential of a martial arts story in the Marvel Universe.
The flaws that earned Iron Fist its bad reputation are numerous, but one notable criticism is that its tone deviates drastically from the source material. In the comics, Iron Fist is known for his mystical powers and fantastical adventures, often delving into the more magic-based side of the Marvel Universe. The Iron Fist comic is typically closer in tone to Doctor Strange or even Dragon Ball than it is to Daredevil or Jessica Jones. However, despite possessing the same backstory as the comics, the Netflix Iron Fist presented a much more mundane story. Instead of mystical cities and other dimensions, Iron Fist does battle in apartment buildings and abandoned warehouses. His opponents aren’t fire-breathing dragons and immortal demi-gods, but generic henchmen and faceless ninjas.
Most of these issues are likely due to the Netflix Marvel series having much smaller budgets than the ones possessed by the MCU films or even the new Disney Plus shows. As such, the crew of Iron Fist simply lacked the resources to bring the fantastical battles of the comics to life. But as a result, the show failed to capture the over-the-top style that made its source material so beloved by fans. By contrast, the trailers for Shang-Chi clearly demonstrate that the film will have a major emphasis on stylish, colorful visuals and dynamic, spectacular action set pieces. It’s also clear that the film won’t be shying away from supernatural elements one bit, but instead be leaning heavily into them. By taking the opposite approach as the Netflix Iron Fist in regards to tone and style, the Shang-Chi film looks to be much closer to the Iron Fist comics.
Another major problem with the Netflix Iron Fist series was its villains. A great superhero story needs a great supervillain, and the antagonists of Iron Fist proved painfully lacking. While the other Netflix Marvel shows received acclaim for their main antagonists — Kingpin in Daredevil, Kilgrave in Jessica Jones, and Cottonmouth in Luke Cage — Iron Fist lacked a charismatic central enemy to serve as the titular hero’s nemesis. The antagonists of the series typically fall into one of two main factions. One faction is the Hand, the painfully generic group of evil ninjas first introduced in Season 2 of Daredevil, who are no more compelling in Iron Fist than they were in that series. The other faction is Rand Enterprises, a completely mundane company with no secret supervillains lurking behind the scenes. Neither group serves as a particularly engaging big bad for a superhero series.
By contrast, Shang-Chi has a well-defined villain from the get-go — one who will be a sure draw for longtime MCU fans, no less. The main antagonist of Shang-Chi is the title character’s father, better known as the Mandarin. Anyone who’s seen Iron Man 3 will likely recognize the title of the Mandarin as the name used by that film’s supposed antagonist, played by Ben Kingsley.
The Mandarin has been Iron Man’s archenemy in the comics for decades, and the news that a big-name actor like Kingsley would be bringing him to life on the big screen got Iron Man fans hyped to see an epic clash of nemeses. However, the events of the actual film incited controversy when it was revealed that Kingsley’s character was actually an actor named Trevor, used as a decoy by the movie’s real villain — Aldrich Killian, played by Guy Pearce.
A 2014 short film, All Hail the King, packaged with the home release of Thor: The Dark World, continued Trevor’s story and teased at the existence of a real Mandarin, though this plot thread was thought forgotten by fans for years. But now, against all odds, the true Mandarin will be making his MCU debut. And though he may not be facing off with Iron Man, his battle with Shang-Chi has the potential to be just as thrilling.
Finally, one thing that sets Shang-Chi apart from Iron Fist is the casting of an Asian actor in the lead role. Though Danny Rand, Iron Fist’s most famous alter ego, has always been white in the comics, the Netflix show drew controversy for the use of a white lead in a series rooted in Asian martial arts and iconography. Meanwhile, in Shang-Chi, both the title character and the actor playing him, Simu Liu, are of Chinese descent.
Though some fans might claim that the protagonist’s race doesn’t affect the quality of a story, the runaway success of Black Panther proves that embracing diversity in superhero movies can make a massive cultural impact. And in a year where racism and hate crimes against Asian-Americans have been making headlines, there’s no better time for an Asian superhero to star in a major motion picture.
While Iron Fist may have been a disappointing first foray into the martial arts genre from Marvel, Shang-Chi has the potential to correct its errors. The films of the MCU have always found success experimenting with new genres, so let’s hope Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is no exception.