We’ve hardly been starved for new Marvel content this year.
The entertainment juggernaut has already unveiled no less than four Disney Plus TV shows in 2021 — namely smash hits “WandaVision” and “Loki” — as well as the long-delayed theatrical release of “Black Widow.”
Yet in so many ways, “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” which comes to theaters Sept. 3, feels like the first truly new installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since “Avengers: Endgame” in April of 2019.
That’s not just because every pandemic-era Marvel property in 2021 has been a sequel, prequel or spin-off centered around well-established characters. It’s because “Shang-Chi” is unlike anything Marvel Studios has produced before.
Marvel’s first film with an Asian lead (it took 13 years and 25 films) moves the MCU away from star-spangled shields, Iron Man suits and flying hammers and into a world of martial arts, mystical powers and creatures.
The story of Shang-Chi (deftly played Simu Liu) rediscovering his family and the powers they wield after years away isn’t just a major tonal and stylistic departure from other Marvel movies. It’s almost completely disconnected from them, a refreshing change from installments that feel more like pieces in a movie jigsaw puzzle than their own films. Bottom line: You don’t have to see a single other MCU movie to understand what’s going on in this one.
After dozens of films that have mostly relied on CGI effects and explosions for thrills, “Shang-Chi” delivers the finest hand-to-hand combat the MCU has ever seen. The martial arts-fueled fight scenes are wholly mesmerizing, even balletic in their choreography — the first encounter between Shang-Chi’s parents is a flirtatious waltz with weaponry. Combine that with a set pieces on par with Marvel’s best, and you have one of the most captivating installments in the MCU.
Heroes like Spider-Man, Captain America and Iron Man are built-in draws due to their high-profile comic arcs. Shang-Chi’s lesser-known history gives Marvel more creative freedom with the character — like giving him a different power set and a new origin story — and also provides an entry point into the MCU for non-comic book fans. Chances are Marvel nerds and newbies will walk into the theater on equal footing.
They will both be equally confused and astonished by some settings in this movie, especially one particular scene that is reminiscent of “The Chronicles of Narnia,” with mythical creatures like dragons (yes, dragons) flying around.
Marvel was at a crossroads after wrapping up the Infinity Saga and retiring the original cast of heroes. If “Shang-Chi” is any indication, the next slate of movies and shows (”Eternals” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home” are up next) will blaze a path that is broader and wildly different than the one that Marvel took to get to the top of the entertainment world.
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Jeremy Schneider may be reached at jschneider@njadvancemedia.com and followed on Twitter at @J_Schneider and on Instagram at @JeremyIsHungryAgain.
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