#shang chi home screen

[jennyboom21]

This past September, a group of Marvel creatives, including studio chief Kevin Feige, assembled in Palm Springs for the studio’s annual retreat. Most years, the vibe would have been confident — even cocky — given how the premier superhero brand, owned by Disney since 2009, has remade the entertainment business in its image.  

But this occasion was angst-ridden — everyone at Marvel was reeling from a series of disappointments on-screen, a legal scandal involving one of its biggest stars and questions about the viability of the studio’s ambitious strategy to extend the brand beyond movies into streaming. The most pressing issue to be discussed at the retreat was what to do about Jonathan Majors, the actor who had been poised to carry the next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe but instead is headed to a high-profile trial in New York later this month on domestic violence charges. The actor insists he is the victim, but the damage to his reputation and the chance he could lose the case has forced Marvel to reconsider its plans to center the next phase of its interlocking slate of sequels, spinoffs and series around Majors’ villainous character, Kang the Conqueror. 

At the gathering in Palm Springs, executives discussed backup plans, including pivoting to another comic book adversary, like Dr. Doom. But making any shift would carry its own headaches: Majors was already a big presence in the MCU, including as the scene-stealing antagonist in February’s “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” And he has been positioned as the franchise’s next big thing in this season of “Loki” — particularly in the finale, which airs on Nov. 9 and sets up Kang as the titular star of a fifth “Avengers” film in 2026.  

“Marvel is truly fucked with the whole Kang angle,” says one top dealmaker who has seen the final “Loki” episode. “And they haven’t had an opportunity to rewrite until very recently [because of the WGA strike]. But I don’t see a path to how they move forward with him.” 

Beyond the bad press for Majors, the brain trust at Marvel is also grappling with the November release of “The Marvels,” a sequel to 2019’s blockbuster “Captain Marvel” that has been plagued with lengthy reshoots and now appears likely to underwhelm at the box office.  

This is all an unprecedented turn of fortune for a company that has enjoyed a nearly uninterrupted string of hits ever since it started independently producing its movies with 2008’s “Iron Man.” That wildly profitable run culminated in the $2.8 billion success of 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame,” a high-water mark for the studio that has earned nearly $30 billion over 32 films. 

Replicating that kind of phenomenon is never easy. However, the source of Marvel’s current troubles can be traced back to 2020. That’s when the COVID pandemic ushered in a mandate to help boost Disney’s stock price with an endless torrent of interconnected Marvel content for the studio’s fledgling streaming platform, Disney+. According to the plan, there would never be a lapse in superhero fare, with either a film in theaters or a new television series streaming at any given moment.  

But the ensuing tsunami of spandex proved to be too much of a good thing, and the demands of churning out so much programming taxed the Marvel apparatus. Moreover, the need to tease out an interwoven storyline over so many disparate shows, movies and platforms created a muddled narrative that baffled viewers.  

“The Marvel machine was pumping out a lot of content. Did it get to the point where there was just too much, and they were burning people out on superheroes? It’s possible,” says Wall Street analyst Eric Handler, who covers Disney. “The more you do, the tougher it is to maintain quality. They tried experimenting with breaking in some new characters, like Shang-Chi and Eternals, with mixed results. With budgets as big as these, you need home runs.”  

“The Marvels,” which opens in theaters on Nov. 10, will struggle to get the ball past the infield, at least by Marvel’s outsized standards. The movie, which cost $250 million and sees Brie Larson reprising her role as Captain Marvel, is tracking to open to $75 million-$80 million — far below the $185 million “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” took in domestically in its debut weekend last year.   

Directed by Nia DaCosta, “The Marvels” unites Larson’s heroine with two superpowered allies, Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau (introduced in the 2021 Disney+ series “WandaVision”) and Iman Vellani’s Kamala Khan (first seen in the 2022 series “Ms. Marvel”). But instead of seamlessly building on the success of “Captain Marvel,” this move resulted in four weeks of reshoots to bring coherence to a tangled storyline.   

Then eyebrows were raised again when DaCosta began working on another film while “The Marvels” was still in postproduction — the filmmaker moved to London earlier this year to begin prepping for her Tessa Thompson drama “Hedda.”  (A representative for DaCosta declined to comment.) 

“If you’re directing a $250 million movie, it’s kind of weird for the director to leave with a few months to go,” says a source familiar with the production. 

“The Marvels” has seen its release date moved back twice, too, once to swap places with “Quantumania,” which was deemed further along, and again when its debut shifted from July to November to give the filmmakers more time to tinker. But that extra time didn’t necessarily help. In June, Marvel, which traditionally only solicits feedback from Disney employees and their friends and families, took the uncharacteristic step of holding a public test screening in Texas. The audience gave the film middling reviews.   

But Marvel has never been in the business of being average. “Kevin’s real superpower, his genius, has always been in postproduction and getting his hands on movies and making sure that they finished strongly,” the source adds. “These days, he’s spread thin.” (Feige declined to comment for this story.) 

Feige isn’t the only person showing signs of strain. Marvel’s entire VFX battalion, including staffers and vendors, is struggling to keep pace with a never-ending stream of productions. This past February, when the credits rolled at the world premiere of “Quantumania,” shock rippled through the Regency Village Theatre in Westwood over some shoddy CGI. “There were at least 10 scenes where the visual effects had been added at the last minute and were out of focus,” says one veteran power broker who was there. “It was insane. I’ve never seen something like that in my entire career. Everyone was talking about it. Even the kids of executives were talking about it.” 

The schedule swap with “The Marvels” had left the “Ant-Man” sequel in a squeeze, pushing up its postproduction schedule by four-and-a-half months. Marvel films are known for coming down to the wire, given Feige’s ability “to foam the runway and land a plane that way,” says one executive familiar with how the company operates. But this level of unfinished was unprecedented and would be noted in scathing reviews when the tentpole with the $200 million budget opened 11 days after the premiere. Critics weren’t the only ones dismayed. Fed up with 14-hour days and no overtime, Marvel VFX workers voted unanimously to unionize in September, sparking an industrywide trend. 

“The year 2023 was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” says former Marvel Studios VFX assistant coordinator Anna George, who appeared before the Congressional Labor Caucus on Oct. 19 to testify about the studio’s untenable deadlines and working conditions. “The pay and long hours at Marvel were the reason we had to start our unionization process there. The conditions were completely unsustainable.”  

Disney’s top brass, including newly returned CEO Bob Iger, was said to be apoplectic about Marvel’s VFX troubles. One month after the “Quantumania” premiere debacle, the guillotine fell on Victoria Alonso, who oversaw the studio’s physical production, postproduction, VFX and animation. While the reason cited for her abrupt firing was her unauthorized role as an executive producer on the Oscar- nominated film “Argentina, 1985,” insiders say Disney was incensed that quality control on its Marvel productions was plummeting, particularly on the ever-expanding TV front. The VFX logjam had been evident for some time, with some final effects for such Disney+ series as “WandaVision” and “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law” inserted after their streaming debuts. That Alonso was busy promoting her art-house project while Rome burned certainly didn’t sit well with Disney’s leadership. (Alonso’s attorney says her client is unable to comment.)

But some internal sources suggest Alonso was a scapegoat and point to the “She-Hulk” VFX issues as a symptom of a deeper rot — namely a lack of oversight on script development. In the original arc of “She-Hulk,” a flashback of star Tatiana Maslany’s transformation into her Hulk character didn’t take place until Episode 8, the penultimate episode. But after Marvel’s brain trust watched footage, it realized the scene needed to happen in the pilot episode so that audiences could see more of the character’s backstory early. That meant that the VFX team was tasked with fixing the mess in postproduction.

“The so-called bad VFX we see was because of half-baked scripts,” says one person involved with “She-Hulk.” “That is not Victoria. That is Kevin. And even above Kevin. Those issues should be addressed in preproduction. The timeline is not allowing the Marvel executives to sit with the material.”

All the while, Marvel was bleeding money, with a single episode of “She-Hulk” costing some $25 million, dwarfing the budget of a final-season episode of HBO’s “Game of Thrones, ” but without a similar Zeitgeist bang. The August 2022 series premiere at the El Capitan Theatre foreshadowed what was to come six months later at the “Quantumania” bow: the “She-Hulk” special effects were out of focus in multiple scenes.

There are signs that the flood of product is leading people to tune out. “I’m not prepared to call it a permanent fall. But based on the numbers that go with Marvel podcasts, Marvel-based articles, friends who do Marvel-based video coverage, all of these numbers are significantly down,” says Joanna Robinson, co-author of the New York Times bestseller “MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios,” who is a writer and podcaster at The Ringer. “The quality is suffering. In 2019, at the peak, if you put ‘Marvel Studios’ in front of something, people were like, ‘Oh, that brand means quality.’ That association is no longer the case because there have been so many projects that felt half-baked and undercooked.” 

As public criticism mounts, Feige is pulling the plug on scripts and projects that aren’t working. Case in point: the “Blade” reboot. With Mahershala Ali signed on for the eponymous role of a vampire, things looked promising for a 2023 release date. But the project has gone through at least five writers, two directors and one shutdown six weeks before production. One person familiar with the script permutations says the story at one point morphed into a narrative led by women and filled with life lessons. Blade was relegated to the fourth lead, a bizarre idea considering that the studio had two-time Oscar winner Ali on board.  

Amid reports that Ali was ready to exit over script issues, Feige went back to the drawing board and hired Michael Green, the Oscar-nominated writer of “Logan,” to start anew. Speculation around town is that the studio is looking to make the film, now slated for 2025, on a budget of less than $100 million — a deviation from Marvel’s big-spending strategy. 

With Iger publicly acknowledging the downside of a Marvel TV glut that “diluted focus and attention,” the keepers of the comic book empire are considering some dramatic moves. Sources say there have been talks to bring back the original gang for an “Avengers” movie. This would include reviving Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man and Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow, both of whom were killed off in “Endgame.” (That shouldn’t be a stumbling block — in comic books, beloved characters are often killed off, only to be resurrected thanks to the power of things like the multiverse.) But the studio hasn’t yet committed to the idea — if it were able to bring those actors back, it wouldn’t come cheap. Sources say Downey Jr.’s upfront salary for “Iron Man 3” was around $25 million.  

Will that solve Marvel’s Majors problem? When the “Quantumania” actor was arrested in March, Disney executives insisted that they could afford to play a wait-and-see game, given that “Avengers: The Kang Dynasty” wasn’t expected to begin shooting until early 2024. But then Majors was dropped in quick succession by his publicists and managers. (He remains a client at WME — the agency where he landed after CAA parted ways with him, pre-arrest, for his “brutal conduct” toward staff, says one source. CAA declined to comment.) In April, other alleged domestic violence victims of Majors began cooperating with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. Then, ahead of a key hearing in October, media outlets including Variety obtained a court filing that referenced a police incident in London involving Majors that led his ex-girlfriend to seek medical attention. Making matters even stickier, the ex-girlfriend also worked on “Quantumania” as a movement coach, and the London incident took place while Majors was shooting Season 2 of “Loki.” On Oct. 25, a New York judge denied Majors’ motion to dismiss the case, which ensures that the actor will stand trial in late November. His legal team is attempting to keep some material in the case sealed. 

A studio source notes that regardless of the actor’s legal issues, Marvel already had considered moving away from a Majors-led phase because of the box office performance of “Quantumania,” which will struggle to make a profit. “It gave people pause given that ‘Quantumania’ didn’t exactly land,” the source says.  (On Oct. 27, Disney removed another Majors film, Searchlight’s “Magazine Dreams,” from the release calendar.)

Recasting Majors is also an option, as Feige did when he replaced Terrence Howard in “Iron Man 2” with Don Cheadle.  In fact, Marvel isn’t afraid to change direction, even after making splashy announcements. “Armor Wars” was first unveiled as a series and is now being developed as a feature, while the studio’s push to adapt the comic book “Inhumans” into a feature film generated headlines but is now dormant. (The now-defunct Marvel Television mounted an “Inhumans” TV series in 2017 that ran for one season on ABC.)

Still, there was one bright spot in 2023: “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” which became Marvel’s biggest draw of the year with $845 million worldwide. The fact that it was directed by James Gunn, the guy now running rival DC Studios, was lost on no one.

“With Marvel, it used to be as close to a guarantee as you could get,” says Paul Dergarabedian, a box office analyst at Comscore. “So, going all in on the budgets made sense. ‘Guardians 3’ was a bit overlooked in how successful it was. But that had James Gunn and Chris Pratt, and I think star power is becoming more important. Then there was ‘Quantummania’ with $476 million. Anything under a half billion dollars is viewed as a disappointment. And these overreaching expectations are a result of so much success over the years.”

The key to reinvigorating Marvel may lie with the superhero arsenal that Disney acquired during its 2019 purchase of 21st Century Fox. That deal brought several blue-chip heroes, such as the X-Men and the Fantastic Four, back under the studio’s control. Already fans are geeking out about next year’s “Deadpool 3,” which unites Ryan Reynolds’ merc with a mouth with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine, and a reboot of “Fantastic Four” slated for 2025. As a bonus, the Fox additions give Feige an opportunity to reimagine the “X-Men” franchise, the very property he cut his teeth on as a young executive at Lauren Shuler Donner’s production company. Now that the WGA strike is in the rearview mirror, Marvel has started talking to writers about bringing the X-Men into the MCU fold.

While Feige recalibrates, the rest of the industry is anxiously hoping that Marvel’s best days are not behind it.  

“Writing the Marvel obituary would be ill-advised,” says Jason Squire, professor emeritus at USC School of Cinematic Arts and host of “The Movie Business Podcast.” “Kevin Feige is the Babe Ruth of movie executives, and Marvel has the most profitable track record in movie history. No question.”

[mcu-and-buckybarnes-things]

Went to see Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and found it actually pretty good.

There are some small problems, "Black Panther" didn't have much screen time, action scenes are kind of plain, and it lacks star charasma (like Tony Leung in Shang-Chi), but I do think it has a solid plot and some very good performance.

Overall it is very well-balanced, probably is the best one in Phase 4.

But as soon as I get home I just kind of forget it--which happens to most of the Phase 3 & 4 movies.

I mean they are all entertaning, some are better than others, but I really miss the excitement that movies like TWS & Iron Man once brought us...

[suffering-and-happy-about-it]

Every once in a while, I gather all my courage and open my Facebook to see what boils my guts this time and the winner of today’s evening is “MCU died with Iron Man” and listen *cracks her knuckles* strap in cause we’re in for a ride. Before we get into it - yes, this is my opinion and you’re more than welcome to disagree.

MCU has its problems, it undeniably has - I wouldn’t want to get into the bigger ones since I’m still educating myself (biggest issue marvel did and I disagree with is whitewashing characters for the MCU’s needs) but to be honest, even if there’s much more content to keep up with (movies x series at the same time), I was never happier to watch the stories unfold.

My personal favorite is Ms. Marvel aka Kamala Khan - I’ve came across her in the Avengers game and immediately, I ran off to buy some comics to read about her because she’s so fricking cool. When I saw first trailer for Love and Thunder and realized that Taika is about to adapt the Mighty Thor arc on screen, I almost lost my shit because Jane’s story is one of the most meaningful ones I’ve ever read. I’ve never heard about Moon Knight (I just knew that somehow Dracula owns him money) but going through the adaptation of Steve, Marc and Jake’s story left me breathless and eager for more, so I learned about the ever changing adaptions of Moon Knight. MoM making Wanda the villain and introducing America - chef’s kiss. Sam Wilson officially becoming Captain America - YESSS!!! Shang-Chi made me laugh so hard I cried because home girl Awkwafina was slaying so fucking hard. Now, I’m just waiting for Miles Morales officially appearing there (yes I know about the Spider-Verse) and I’ll be more than happy to die. And Loki? Loki was a fun trip down the memory lane sprinkled with new lore which I super enjoyed! And who could complain about No Way Home?

So no, no, no - the MCU didn’t die with Iron Man. And it won’t. There’s plenty more to come and to explore various characters from various settings. The problem for the people is that there’s not just five dudes and Nat in tight spandex to follow around but a lot of ministories of distinguishible characters to follow. And I love each second of it.

[helenofsimblr]

She-Hulk on D+

been watching this... oh my lord, its so bad! And not even so bad its good kind of bad, just plain bad. Fucking awful.

The protagonist - Jen Walters - is just completely unlikable. She's irreverent, condescending, and a bit of a know it all. The writing is weak, and lazy and her little rant in episode 1 about how she is better at controlling her anger than Bruce is....

"Here's the thing Bruce I'm great at controlling my anger. I do it all the time. When I'm catcalled in the street. When incompetent MEN explain my own area of expertise to me. I do it, pretty much every day because if I don't, I will get called emotional or difficult or I might just literally get murdered. So I'm an expert at controlling my anger because I do it infintely more than you. So all of this feels like projecting a lot of shit onto me!" (Starts turning into She-Hulk and then changes back)

Bitch please! You're complaining about being cat called?! Your cousin was hunted like a fucking animal for over a decade of his life, with death squads coming to kill him. And you're worried about cat calling? Fuck right off and keep going till you reach the ocean!

Oh no incompetent men explain your area of expertise... well at least you have an area, your cousin, the Hulk, a world renowned and decorated physicist literally lost his career. And if men are explaining shit to you, and this happens frequently with various men doing it, then are you really that expertise in your field and are the men incompetent after all? And you think incompetent men don't explain areas of expertise to other men too? That never happens... and if it does it doesn't matter right? Only matters when it happens to a woman.

And you might get murdered?! Fucking hell that escalated quick... were the writers on drugs when they wrote this!? I hope they were, because if this is the dialogue a sober mind came up with then... oh I have no idea... She is saying about being killed to a guy that has literally been target number 1 for the US military for over a decade! And statistically far more men get murdered annually than women do. At nearly a 10 to 2 difference.

This is just unbelievable! Knowing everything the Hulk has gone through, and she says this to him!?

But she's right about one thing, and this rant is not aimed at him, its aimed at men generally, about how terrible they all are and how put upon women are, this is the writers' directors' projecting their shitty fantasises and insecurities and axes to grind onto the screen using Jen as their mouthpiece and her character is suffering for it in these first two episodes.

But yeah there are some shreds of truth to that for sure, there are some pretty awful men out there, but I think a lot of these blinkered bitter feminists forget that awful men are awful to other men and to women. Honestly though, I digress... Phase 4 (Phase Bore) is in big trouble if Marvel don't up their game and ditch all this "me too" girl power, M-She-U, general woke shit, then its fucked to put it bluntly... So far the only decent phase 4 film was Spider-Man No Way Home and they can't ride those coat tails forever...

Some of these hacks need to, and I mean this is ESSENTIAL, go and sit watch such great films as: Aliens, Supergirl (1978), Star Wars (4,5, and 6 to study princess Leia), Terminator 2, The Long Kiss Goodnight, and The Bionic Woman to grasp how to write a likable but flawed in some way female hero / lead. Because the current crop haven't got a fucking clue and its getting cringeworthy!

The only thing that will even remotely convince me now to tune into episode 3 is Tim Roth reprising his role as Emil Blonsky / Abomination.

"Hi! I'm Emil Blonsky, you may remember me from such films as; The Incredible Hulk, and my cameo in Shang Chi" - Said in a Troy McClure voice

[firelxdykatara]

Have you had a chance to watch eternals or other recent marvel movies or did you kinda trail off after black widow?

Uhhhh, I had to go check dates to remember what came out when cause I'm terrible with time management lol

I did watch Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (which I loved dearly!) as well as Spider-Man: No Way Home (which I also loved despite my dislike of the way the MCU had been handling Peter Parker/Spider-Man to that point, and the fanservice worked for me so there's that), but I haven't seen Eternals or Multiverse of Madness yet--I keep meaning to, I just never got around to seeing them in theaters and I'm very good at just forgetting to watch something I really want to when it's entirely up to me to track it down on a streaming platform. (I still haven't finished Hawkeye even though I absolutely love what I've seen so far. It's genuinely just a 'can't make myself Actually Sit Down and Watch' thing, I'll catch up eventually though.)

Of the recent MCU films, I think Shang-Chi is thus far my favorite--I have more personal investment in Black Widow, with Nat being My Prime Blorbo in the MCU, but it's also wrapped up in a lot of bitterness and unhappy feelings about her treatment in the MCU as a whole, and the fact that her solo movie (which she has been due since 2012) didn't come until after her in-universe death still sticks in my craw. With Shang-Chi there's none of that baggage and just the joy of seeing Tony Leung on my screen. (Simu Liu and Meng'er Zhang are amazing too and I loved their characters, but let's be honest, we all know what really got me invested lmao)

[agentem]

"Marvel's back" people are strange.

Back from where? The movies are all still big box office draws. Maybe they haven't had one hit a billion dollars since 2021 (which is not that long ago) but that's mostly because of COVID.

They have put out movies and projects that got high rankings on Rotten Tomatoes (Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever are two that got above-average reviews) but projects like WandaVision have reached new audiences. My THERAPIST wanted to talk to me about that show because she knew I read comics.

I don't think it's an accident that none of those three projects were led by white men.

But there's so much talk about how it's been bad since Endgame (hot take: Endgame sucked) that I almost believe it's true. We all know No Way Home would've been bigger than Endgame if it weren't for COVID. It was shorter--so it could play on more screens--and you didn't have to study before you went into the theater.

I'm just noticing all LOT of the comics media are buying into this. But it's just the ones they care about. Because they are all white dudes who wish they were comic book writers but are instead writing for a comic book movie site.

[hua-wangs-blog]

Marvel fans, hold onto your seats, because Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is here and it's bringing a whole lot of exciting new projects to the big screen! Since its beginning in 2008 with the first Iron Man movie, the MCU has been a fan-favorite, with its inter-connected storylines and lovable characters. But what can we expect from Phase 4?

To start, Phase 4 will introduce a lot of new characters to the MCU. We will see the debut of Shang-Chi in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, played by the amazing Simu Liu. Also coming to the big screen is The Eternals, a team of immortal beings played by a star-studded cast including Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden, and Salma Hayek. And let's not forget about the highly anticipated Black Widow film, finally giving Scarlett Johansson's character the spotlight she deserves.

But that's not all! Fans can also look forward to the Disney+ series that will be a part of Phase 4, including WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and Loki. It's clear that Marvel is expanding its universe outside of the big screen and onto our TV screens as well.

Looking to the future, there are some exciting projects in the works for Phase 4. First up, we have Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which promises to be a trippy and mind-bending adventure. We'll also see the return of Thor in Thor: Love and Thunder, with the added bonus of Jane Foster (played by Natalie Portman) taking on the mantle of the mighty Thor. And of course, we can't forget about the highly anticipated Spider-Man: No Way Home, which promises to bring back some familiar faces from previous Spider-Man franchises.

All in all, it's clear that Phase 4 of the MCU is shaping up to be just as exciting and action-packed as its predecessors. With new characters and storylines, as well as the expansion onto our TV screens, Marvel is showing no signs of slowing down. So grab your popcorn and get ready for some epic superhero adventures!

[rookie-critic]

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023, dir. James Gunn) - review by Rookie-Critic

The Guardians, to me, have always been the MCU's dark horse. James Gunn was odd choice for a Marvel movie back when he was announced for the original film in 2014. His style didn't really fit the mold and these characters were ones that absolutely nobody outside of hardcore comics fans really cared anything about. It was one of the MCU's first uncertainties; nobody was really sure how it would play or if it would be successful, but lo and behold, it took the world by storm. Not only the lovable characters, but also the film's soundtrack, which revitalized the popularity of almost every single song on it. The characters became so synonymous with Gunn that, even in team-up films not directed by him like Infinity War and Endgame, he was on set to direct specifically them. They're a phenomenon that no one saw coming and now, 9 years after their debut on the big screen, Gunn has brought their story to a close, and man was it glorious.

I haven't fully given up on the MCU, they've shown they're still capable of producing quality superhero films a few times post-Endgame (Wakanda Forever, Shang-Chi, and No Way Home spring to mind), but Guardians Vol. 3 is the first time I've felt, for lack of a better term, the magic of what the Infinity Saga films brought since Endgame. You can tell that Gunn was fully aware of the weight of what this movie meant to not only the fans, but to himself and the cast and crew of the previous Guardians films. He pulls from his entire bag of tricks, even bringing things stylistically from his catalogue that we haven't necessarily seen in his comic-book movie work. There were moments were I had completely forgotten I was watching a Marvel movie and just felt like I was watching a really good James Gunn film. Which I think worked in the film's favor, but also gave everything a much more serious tone than the previous two films. Even with that, though, it doesn't ever feel like you're not watching a Guardians film. The characters are still the ones you love, they've just been through a lot and are naturally changed by the things they've seen and survived. That and the story of this installment requires a bit more seriousness in tone than the first two did. I don't consider this a bad thing, again I believe it's actually one of the film's greatest qualities, and it shows to the masses that Gunn is capable of writing more than just quippy, humorous characters.

I've heard complaints that it is overlong and messy, but I really didn't get that from it. I never once felt like it was overstaying its welcome, especially compared to a couple of the other post-Endgame Marvel films, and the plot seemed like it moved a very even pace and everything made sense. The one complaint I can understand, and this is mainly coming from fans of the source material, is how Adam Warlock is handled. Adam Warlock is one of the most important figures in large scale Marvel Comics conflict. He was possibly the second most important figure in the Thanos conflict other than Thanos himself, and the decision to leave him out of the storyline in the films has always baffled me, and now that he is here I am definitely confused as to why this was his introduction. He's not a super important character and he is a far cry from anything the comics have ever portrayed him as. Now, there is an avenue for him to become the character the fans were expecting, and a reason is given as to why he is the way he is in the film, but it definitely felt like an odd choice to include him the way they did. However, ultimately, this isn't his story, it's the Guardians', and more specifically, it's Rocket's.

Bradley Cooper (and Sean Gunn, who has done the mo-cap and on-set acting for the character in all three films) act their asses off as Rocket in this, and the movie gives the spotlight to a character that was long overdue for it. The villain, the High Evolutionary, played by Chukwudi Iwuji (who I think is a massively underrated actor after seeing him in both this and Gunn's Peacemaker show on HBO Max), isn't going to win any awards for "Greatest MCU antagonist" or anything, but he's a far cry from the cookie-cutter, boring villains the MCU has begun to just copy and paste throughout their chronology. His motivations are vague and never really explored, but that almost brings a weight of severity and stakes to his character and his plans that make him feel like more of a threat. As always, I'm specifically talking around anything actually related to the plot, but I don't think it's any secret that we see Rocket's origin story in this, and the entire A-plot of the film puts him as the central focus.

As always, with my glowing reviews, I feel like I haven't really reviewed the film so much as just gushed about it for a few paragraphs, but for me it just succeeded. James Gunn succeeded in putting a beautiful endstamp on his trilogy, the cast succeeded in giving these characters wonderful life (even two of the cast members I've never been that impressed with, Karen Gillan as Nebula and Pom Klementieff as Mantis, gave terrific performances), and the film succeeded in making me believe that their is still some gas left in the 'ole MCU tank. It wasn't perfect, but it was really damn close. It's an amazing final act for the Guardians, an amazing entry into both the MCU and James Gunn filmographies, and it's an amazing story about moving forward and finding the beauty in all of our imperfections. I might be biased, but I absolutely loved it.

Score: 9/10 (but a 10/10 in my heart)

Only in theaters. "We'll all fly away together into the forever and beautiful sky." "I love you guys."

[dsneybuf91]

Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings Review

(Originally posted on November 17, 2021)

Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings marks the first Marvel Cinematic Universe movie I’ve seen from Phase 4, the first I saw theatrically since Spider-Man: Far From Home, and the first I watched on an IMAX screen since Guardians of the Galaxy. When 2018 brought word that Marvel Studios would give Shang-Chi, Master of Kung-Fu, his own movie, it designated the fourth known attempt to bring him to the big screen. Previous attempts included aborted projects from the 1980s and 2000s, followed by a deleted cameo from The Avengers. (The first project, in particular, would’ve starred Bruce Lee’s son, Brandon Lee.) The timing for this latest try seemed mainly like Marvel wanting to cash-in on the public’s growing appreciation for films cast either mostly or entirely with Asian-descended performers, especially after Marvel roped in Crazy Rich Asians cast members. Major Shang-Chi comic appearances I read prior to The Legend's release include Master of Kung-Fu Epic Collection Vol. 1: Weapon of the Soul (1973-77, by Steve Englehart and Doug Moench), five storylines teaming him up with other Asian crimefighters (2017-20, by Greg Pak), and Shang-Chi Vol. 1: Brothers and Sisters (2020-21, by Gene Luen Yang).

With the fluctuating quality of Marvel Studios’ Infinity Saga in mind, Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings intrigued me mainly because it could give additional exposure to Asian-descended filmmakers, and inspire additional, potentially better movies about Asian superheroes. Non-Marvel films I would watch from director/writer Destin Daniel Cretton before the premiere included the compelling Short Term 12 and the evocative Just Mercy, which demonstrated his skills at intimately and emotionally presenting character dramas of varying scales. When the 2020s rolled around, the need for empowering media portrayals of Asians and Asian-Americans grew even more apparent, as the COVID-19 pandemic sparked an alarming increase in hate crimes against Asian-Americans. Since The Legend began filming before the pandemic, looks like I’ll have to wait for either a sequel or a spin-off to address this crisis. (It would probably only do so indirectly.) Regardless, even if Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings doesn’t mark my favorite Marvel movie, sometimes it feels too good for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings

Release: September 3, 2021

Director: Destin Daniel Cretton

Writers: David Callaham, Destin Daniel Cretton, & Andrew Lanham

I'm not who you think I am.

-Xu Shang-Chi

"Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) must face the past he thought he left behind and confront his father (Tony Leung), leader of the dangerous Ten Rings organization." (Disney+ description)

Marvel Studios movies and shows usually have a tendency to under-utilize or sideline Asian characters.  The hiring of Japanese-Hawaiian Destin Daniel Cretton to direct and help write Legend of The Ten Rings made me hope that it would provide an exception, especially after the first two movies I saw of his successfully invested viewers in other examples of protagonists under-represented in Hollywood. (Female-led Short Term 12 stars Brie Larson, who's since appeared in everything Cretton directs, while Just Mercy stars African-American Michael B. Jordan.) With his supervision, the respective quests of Shang-Chi, his best friend Katy (Awkwafina, the cast member whose filmography I feel the most familiar with), and his sister Xialing (Meng'er Zhang) to make names for themselves provide a refreshing diversion from Marvel's efforts to find direct successors to the founding Avengers.  Even though no one in The Legend calls Shang-Chi, "Master of Kung-Fu", the most inventive and dynamic hand-to-hand combat sequences could help deem him worthy of the title.  Cretton and his performers also feel more successful than lesser Marvel director/cast combos at integrating comedy into a story with tragic and action-packed elements.

By fulfilling his dream of becoming a Marvel superhero, Simu Liu skillfully balances charisma he exhibited across various sitcom appearances with more dramatic material.  Shang-Chi shares an archetype with the likes of Black Widow and Gamora, as an assassin on a path towards redemptive heroism.  Compared to them, and his portrayal in the original Master of Kung-Fu comics, he stands out for embarking on that path without ever taking orders from a white man.  While Shang-Chi impresses with his selflessness, athleticism, and resourcefulness, his leisurely persona, insecurity as an immigrant, and occasional need for a relative or friend to help him out of a jam ensure that he still feels human.  Liu's dedication for portraying Shang-Chi as both commendable, and as realistic as The Legend allows, ensures an engaging first impression for the character.

Katy and Xialing benefit from Cretton's ability to provide female characters with intriguing dilemmas, that don't revolve around their love lives or beauty.  Katy seems less powerful or knowledgeable of Chinese culture than do Shang-Chi and Xialing, but she otherwise proves an intellectual and resourceful match for Shang-Chi.  While Katy's storyline about learning not to squander her potential feels predictable, it helps the audience form a connection to her.  Xialing effectively fulfills the need for a physically tough woman on Shang-Chi's side, while earning the viewer's admiration for overcoming negligence from her male family members.  Together, these fast gal-pals turn The Legend into what feels like one of Marvel Studios' few movies in which two women change for the better by the end.

In the standout role of Shang-Chi's conquering father Wenwu, Tony Leung provides a pleasant surprise.  I hadn't seen the In the Mood For Love co-star act in English before, but he enhances his scenes of The Legend with evocative, bilingual line deliveries, and universally-understandable facial expressions of poignancy.  Unexpectedly, he elicits a rather high level of sympathy as the fearsome, yet romantic, wielder of the magical Ten Rings.  It never sounded that difficult for screenwriters Cretton, his recurring partner Andrew Lanham, and David Callaham to depict Shang-Chi's father more sensitively than did the original comics, but it did sound hard to do so in a positively memorable manner.  After The Legend's initial public announcement, skeptical reactions of "Marvel's making a movie about Fu Manchu's son?" suggested that Marvel Comics' copyright-induced efforts to replace the Yellow Peril caricature, with the sorcerer Zheng Zhu, failed to leave an impression on readers.  Despite Marvel Studios' spotty track record for engrossing antagonists, Leung and the writers truly impress for giving The Legend a patriarch capable of endearment and mercy as well as intimidation.

Given Marvel Studios' tendency to stumble near or at the end of their stories, it didn't necessarily disappoint me that The Legend takes a drastic tonal shift in its third act.  The middle feels so grounded compared to the fantastical opening, that it feels jarring - especially for unspoiled first-time viewers - to return to the fantastical tone well over an hour later.  The third act does reinforce agreeable themes, demonstrating the need for a balance between holding connections to the past, and looking towards the future.  Unlike assassins who increased their chances of redemption the further they distanced themselves from their roots, Shang-Chi and Xialing draw more power from reconnecting with their parents' customs. Even if most Asian-Americans don't come from magical backgrounds, the need to maintain a knowledge and appreciation of ancestral culture, even when growing up in conditions geographically and socially disconnected from the previous generation, feels profoundly relatable.

The next two paragraphs contain this review's biggest spoilers.

Meanwhile, Wenwu's obsession with relieving an amorous yesteryear leads to his demise.  Marvel Studios' writers can't seem to agree how severely to punish characters who take extreme measures to reunite with a deceased lover.  Steve Rogers created another timeline to marry Peggy Carter, and suffers no negative repercussions.  Wanda Maximoff brainwashed the town of Westview while forming a nuclear family with Vision, and even though she escaped punishment from the townspeople, her now-scattered family seems unable to ever achieve Wanda's dreams of domestic bliss.  Wenwu unleashes monsters out of futile hope in freeing his murdered wife, Ying Li (Fala Chen), from a non-existent trap, and gets his soul sucked out by the Dweller in Darkness.  Initially, I deemed it unfair for him to receive the deadliest fate.

Eventually, I acknowledged that the reasons Wenwu had to die outnumber possible justifications for keeping him alive.  Most obviously, it allows Shang-Chi and Xialing to inherit his literal and metaphorical power, respectively.  Thematically, it discourages the prospect of living completely in reminiscence, the extreme opposite of Shang-Chi's efforts to abandon his heritage.  Wenwu's refusal to heed warnings that the Dweller's cave doesn't contain Li could make his fate seem like a demonstration of the needs to both truly respect her people's history, and for the younger generation to learn from their predecessors' mistakes.  Ironically, the Dweller's victory over Wenwu increases the latter's chances of reuniting with Li.  At worst, this ending for his arc lessens Marvel's opportunities to again utilize Tony Leung's charms in a live-action film.

During and after the end credits, the stingers firmly establish Shang-Chi, Katy, and Xialing as pawns in the Marvel Cinematic Universe's greater plans.  As Shang-Chi and Katy meet other MCU crimefighters, and Xialing accepts an influential position, the question arises of how well their subsequent appearances will build upon this one.  Marvel Studios' tendency to under-utilize Asian characters has unfortunately continued beyond the Infinity Saga; WandaVision never allowed Jimmy Woo to contribute anything important to any Wanda-centric episode's A-Plot, or to at least finish his own subplot to find a missing FBI witness in Westview.  Since it feels like quite a while before Marvel Studios will release another crossover in the vein of The Avengers, one can only hope that their writers will learn by then how to do Shang-Chi and his allies justice. (Unlike Black Panther and Captain Marvel, whose relatively small Avengers appearances Marvel wrote and filmed before Black Panther and Captain Marvel exceeded the studio's box office expectations.) In the meantime, the enjoyable and captivating Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings feels harder than most MCU productions to lobby serious criticisms against.

Plug

Violence towards Asian-Americans has reached alarming levels.  I've donated to charities dedicated to eliminating hate crimes towards AAPI people, and would like my readers to do the same, even if I personally take no share of the funds:

Stop Asian Hate: Support Asian Canadians Fund

The AAPI Community Fund

Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Atlanta

[emisirrelevant]

My MCU Phase 4 MOVIE Ranking 

Since MCU Phase 4 has come to a close, and I just watched Black Panther Wakanda Forever, I am going to give my ranking- did anyone need this? No. But I'm the one voluntarily choosing to state my opinions online.

DISCLAIMERS: not ranking the shows, just the movies- maybe I'll do a separate post for the shows?

I thought about it but I will be mentioning spoilers. I didn't know how else to rank them without using evidence from the films to back up my justifications.

The movies aren't in position of best-worst or anything like that, they are only just listed in the order they were released.

Okay, let's get into it.

Black Widow:

7/10, or maybe even 8/10 for me. Overall, I personally thought it was decent. I know there were a LOT of people who gave it negative reviews. I remember seeing so many bad things about it from people when it came out. But honestly, is it the worst thing Marvel has made? Imo, no. I won't get into the nitty gritty, or the Taskmaster stuff, but I liked getting to see Natasha again- even though we know this was before she died. And Florence Pugh as Yelena stole the show for me. Black Widow is (was?) also one of my favorite Avengers, so I personally have a soft spot in my heart.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings:

8/10 or maybe 8.5/10 for me. I am hesitant to push it toward a 9/10. Here's why and let me explain. I am aware that some people are THIRSTY for Tony Leung. I don't understand that, however it's your life, not mine. BUT I will say he did a damn good job being a complex character. I don't like him for giving Shang Chi trauma, but I think he did good being morally gray. Even though I got frustrated as F sometimes with his character. Shang Chi I actually liked. His dynamic with Katy? Great. I like Awkwafina tbh. Xu Xialing being the badass sister? Iconic. Although I hope she doesn't turn evil based off that post credit scene (another reason why I'm hesitant to give it a 9/10- I just want her to be good okay? Can't have TOO many morally complex people) The cinematography was great. Finally, as someone who is Asian (specifically Chinese0 but I was adopted) the Asian representation was decent. You know, it wasn't anything super mold breaking but for big names like Disney and Marvel, I give a nod.

Eternals:

3/10 or 4/10 at MOST. I honestly don't even remember most of this movie. I didn't even really have many expectations going into it, but.. yeah let's just say it was not my favorite. I didn't really like Sersi and Icarus together. I honestly felt like their characters were boring tbh. Druig and Makkari though? That's the REAL ship. And representation for the deaf! It's a start! Also, I will be crying eternally over Gilgamesh dying. The one thing about the plot that mainly interested me was Dane Whitman. I admit I am interested in seeing how the Black Knight storyline will be explored further. Other than that, Eternals was not really a memorable MCU film for me.

Spiderman No Way Home:

A solid 8/10. I think we can all agree this one was the MOST hyped up movie from Phase 4. Like ever. The hype was so real. I LIVED through it all. What a world to live in. Everyone was avoiding spoilers left and right. Anyway. I DID like the film overall since it continued the storyline of Peter's identity being discovered, and a bit of Dr. Strange's storyline. Obviously, the cameo from Tobey and Andrew was great to see. Although I admit I did not grow up watching Tobey and Andrew's versions of Spiderman, I felt the kind of "magic" experience of seeing the original folks back on screen permeate through me. HOWEVER. The only reason I cannot score this one any higher is because I didn't like the ending. I haven't really seen much and it has been a while, but do others hate the ending? What is the universal opinion? I may just look it up on a Reddit thread later. Anyway, I personally didn't like that ending. Why would you do the memory wipe trope??? I mean, was that actually the ONLY solution to Peter nearly tearing apart the space time continuum and fabric of the universe??? So Ned and MJ are just gonna have to continue on. I can't think about it too much or I may get emo actually. To end it on a good note, it was cool seeing the old villains from the universe as well.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness:

7/10. Yeah. I had to think for a second. But 7/10 feels right for this one. It wasn't really my favorite, but I didn't think it was the worst. And oh god, there seems to be a LOT of controversy around this one. By controversy, I also just mean basically mixed opinions. From what I've seen/heard, people either really hate this one or they're like, alright. It's mid. Also, for a movie that has Doctor Strange in the title, I sure did see the entire world talking mostly about Wanda. I don't know. It feels like this movie was just chaotic? Specifically in terms of the storyline, I mean. Like, I thought it was interesting that this was the movie they decided on to introduce America Chavez into the MCU. I think it could have been easier for people to follow maybe just one major character? So the focus isn't constantly shifting? Maybe that's just me. Also, is Stephen just destined to be alone now? Idk about the comics because I don't really read those, but like, I guess he's never ending up with Christine in any universe. Is the Darkhold like actually destroyed for real? What the fuck is the storyline now?? I've seen/heard rumors of the next movie actually being Dimension of Darkness (hence the post credit scene) but like what would the plot be? Again, I don't read the comics so idk if they touch on that, but yeah Doctor Strange's timeline/story and character arc is just one of the weirdest in the MCU for me I guess.

Thor Love and Thunder:

8/10. Yes, I WILL defend this movie. Despite it being another Phase 4 movie which got crapped on, I liked it. If Thor Love and Thunder has 100 fans, I am one of them. If Thor Love and Thunder has 10 fans, I am one of them. If Thor Love and Thunder has only 1 fan, I am that fan. You get the gist. I think people were just so shocked for once that it wasn't their usual type of superhero movie. First of all, what does that even mean. Just let people enjoy their silly little movies, damn. I will admit, was it the strongest plot? Meh. But I did enjoy the dialogue a lot. I liked seeing Thor, Jane, and Valkyrie again. If you can't even think of Korg without getting offended, then you can just leave. Also, Christian Bale did an amazing job at being a villain. I will give him that. I will say that was one of the highlights of this movie probably tbh. I was so shook. As someone who watched Newsies, I was just like "he was Jack Kelly and now he's this" LOL.

Okay. And I know- most of know by now that Jane died, and some people didn't like that- yeah, I was sad too- but I thought it made sense for her character. Like I said, I'll play the defender. Also, because I thought it was impactful about how it paralleled Gorr and Love's relationship. And it was a metaphor for her going to Valhalla. She died in her OWN battle. But yeah, the storyline now with Thor will be interesting. I wonder what his next adventure will be. And if there's people out there still pressed about this movie, I'll just say I don't think Taiki Waititi cares.

Black Panther Wakanda Forever:

8.5/10. I just recently watched this one and I am still processing it. So I may not have as many fully formed thoughts on this movie compared to the others, but if I were to give keywords, I would say impactful and emotional. I went on Instagram and Twitter and there seems to be a majority of people who liked it. However, the main negatives I saw were issues with Shuri or Riri. Which is a whole discussion within itself. Also the storyline and length. I understand people thinking it dragged on. I went with one of my friends to watch the movie and she told me afterwards it felt a bit long to her. I can get that. But I WOULD argue with you on the cinematography. I thought that visually the film was great. The underwater scenes were fine with me. The costuming as well. I thought it did fine honoring Chadwick Boseman. To those who say it wasn't enough for them though, I just have to ask, ok, what would you have done instead? Like, yeah I saw some people saying Riri shouldn't have been introduced in the movie, and Shuri should have just stayed a scientist. So what would YOU make the storyline? And that's all I have to say on that. Aside from that, the soundtrack was great though. Overall, I think this film was one of the best for me of Phase 4. And it was a beautiful way to end it.

[irvinenewshq]

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Joins Marvels Marvel Man Disney Collection

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II attends a screening of Ambulance on March 24, 2022 in Madrid, Spain. Photograph: Pablo Cuadra/Getty Photos for Common Footage (Getty Photos) Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is a multitalented performer—incomes accolades for his work on the massive and small screens, in addition to the Broadway stage. Nevertheless it certain looks like he has a delicate spot for style fare, and the star of Candyman, Aquaman, Watchmen, and The Matrix Resurrections (however not, alas, Furiosa) is including one other huge function to his resume: the title character in Marvel’s Disney+ collection Marvel Man. Deadline broke the information that the Emmy-winning actor is coming aboard the in-the-works venture from Dustin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings), who will direct and govt produce, and Andrew Visitor (Hawkeye), who would be the present’s head author. We additionally already knew that Ben Kingsley might be reprising his function as Trevor Slattery—aka “the Mandarin”—as seen in Shang-Chi and Iron Man 3. Because the commerce reminds us, the Stan Lee, Don Heck, and Jack Kirby-created character of Marvel Synthetic his debut in 1964’s The Avengers #9; “The character in any other case often called Simon Williams is the son of the industrialist Sanford Williams and assumes management of his munitions outfit following his passing, seeing its successes restricted when it comes into competitors with Tony Stark’s Stark Industries. The youthful Williams positive factors ion-based superpowers, together with tremendous energy, whereas working underneath the villainous Baron Zemo and establishing himself as an antagonist to the Avengers, although he later decides to grow to be a part of that very same superhero crew.” No phrase but on when Marvel Man is likely to be premiering on Disney+, however it appears unlikely it’ll beat Abdul-Mateen’s different huge superhero venture to the desk: DC’s Aquaman and the Misplaced Kingdom, presently due out Christmas 2023. Need extra io9 information? Take a look at when to count on the newest Marvel and Star Wars releases, what’s subsequent for the DC Universe on movie and TV, and every thing it’s worthwhile to find out about Home of the Dragon and Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Energy. Originally published at Irvine News HQ

[regsenny]

Phases Then and Now: Delivering Narratives in the MCU

If you’ve spent any amount of time on Marvel Twitter/TikTok/Reddit/etc., you’ve likely seen the following few takes said in some way:

1. “The MCU is pumping out too many projects as of late, and I’m tired.”

2. “These Disney+ shows are way too short and none of them connect to the greater MCU.”

I’ve personally found myself bouncing back and forth between wholeheartedly agreeing with these critiques and completely refuting them as baseless complaints. As the MCU has been moving forward, I’ve been using this post Ms Marvel hiatus as an opportunity to look back on how the MCU has structured its stories in the past, and if that structure still fits the ever-evolving new cinematic universe.

Firstly, let’s talk about the phases of the MCU. As of this moment, there are four. In general, each phase has a central theme in which it exists. Phase 1 establishes the origins of our founding Avengers, concluding with their first team-up film, The Avengers, in 2012. Phase 2 depicts the fall-out from the Battle of New York in more solo projects like Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Iron Man 3. Phase 3 set the last pieces into place for Avengers: Endgame and, for some reason, closed Spider-Man: Far From Home despite that film’s story fitting much better if it opened Phase 4- but I digress. Point is, they all fit into their respective themes: origins, consequences, and the ultimate battle.

So... what’s the theme of Phase 4? Based on what I’ve seen so far, I have no guesses- and I feel like that’s a problem. As of right now, we’re 12 movies and tv shows into Phase 4 and I can’t catch an overarching narrative to be resolved in another phase or two. And I know, I know, I need to be patient and give Marvel time to set it up but I have. I mean, Avengers teased Thanos 6 years before he completed his gemstone collection in Infinity War, and he showed face several times after his original debut. And while I’m not necessarily saying we need another central villain to root against, we do need something, some larger plot, some... direction. What Phase 4 feels like is right now is a superhero draft, but with no upcoming game, you wonder why you’re even building a team in the first place.

That being said, I love the character work being done this phase. The revisiting of existing heroes like Clint Barton and Wanda Maximoff with new arcs and the introducing of new heroes like Stephen Grant and Kamala Khan is being balanced quite nicely, but the idea that I have no clue where any of this is going is constantly in the back of my head. Like, what is the next team-up movie going to look like? Is Avengers 5 and 6 just going to always Scarlet Witch, Photon, Captain America, The Winter Soldier, Shang Chi, Hawkeye 1 and 2, Spider-Man, Moon Knight, Doctor Strange, Ms Marvel, Thor, AND company sharing the screen every time? Who knows! Will there be Young Avengers? Beats me! I have an equal lack of understanding of the overarching plot or theme of Phase 4 when I started WandaVision in January 2021 as I did finishing Ms Marvel a couple days ago.

Another bummer that comes out of this mass of seemingly directionless content is that I see a lot of people failing to recognize the quality of these projects. It’s generally agreed upon in the fandom that WandaVision is a genre bending work of art and it dominated Twitter’s top trends for days at a time, but as we continued getting more shows, their support from fans decreased. So much so that I only found tweets discussing the Ms Marvel finale by actively looking for them. Which is a shame, because Ms Marvel and WandaVision are both wonderful! It’s just that the fatigue of keeping up with all these projects and the frustration from lack of cohesion is appearing to catch up to fans.

So why isn’t the new MCU working? Why isn’t this new content resonating with fans as much as the old stuff? Looking back one more time, Kevin Feige announced at San Diego Comic Con in 2019 that Phases 1 through 3 would holistically be called The Infinity Saga. Makes sense, the biggest point of those movies was to gather an all-star group of the Universe’s Mightiest Heroes to fight Thanos and his Infinity Gauntlet. The grouping of the movies by phase then saga makes sense for what Marvel’s storytelling was doing then. But does it still makes sense to call everything we have so far one “phase”? 12 projects in, there doesn’t seem to be a stopping point or transition in theme coming anytime soon as there would be between phases 1, 2, and 3. I see general ideas like multiverse exploration and themes like grief and identity popping up, but a general story? Not really. So why is it still considered a phase? Is this what future phases in the MCU are going to look like in the future? Because, if so, we’re in for a concerningly large amount of content that will quickly get overwhelming, as it’s proven to be.

Marvel Studios’ SDCC slot is next week, where there are rumors and leaks galore about new information that will be announce and as usual I’m super excited. But more so this year, because I’m holding out hope that the creators at Marvel will give us a better idea as to what to expect going forward into the franchise. Because, right now, I’m kind of getting tired.

Anyway, I’m going to go start my rewatch of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. Put some respect of Captain America’s name.

[rebecca--barnes]

Shang-Chi Aesthetic 🐉

[luna-writes-stuff]

Exhaustion, Xu Shangqi

For those of you who have yet to watch Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings; please go. It’s an amazing movie and cinematically beautiful! It’s most definitely in my top three favorite marvel movies at the moment. If you have the opportunity to watch it, I truly recommend it!

Fanfic, female reader

Fluff, spoiler-free

Tw: Kisses? Exhausted reader (overworking), near burn-out, passing out from exhaustion, getting clothed (but it’s not sexual), one (1) innuendo.

Summary: For days you have been working for extra hours, but the exhaustion of it has finally started to sink in for you. Upon finding you passed out in your bedroom one night, Shang-Chi takes care of you and makes sure you take a break.

Work had been specifically tiring today. You had already arrived two hours earlier upon request from your boss, but when a colleague was struggling with times to pick up her children from school, you had kindly offered to take her shift too - which lasted four hours longer than your original one, excluding the hours your boss made you work extra.

As you had arrived home, you had ordered a single pizza for yourself, planning on eating it in bed. Shang-Chi was going out with Katy tonight. He had offered for you to come too, but you had politely declined, claiming you needed some rest. And that had not been a complete lie. You had been exhausted for a couple days; your boyfriend had nearly forced you to take days off, yet you were too kind to take days off when they were not for medical reasons.

So there you sat, in your bed, eating a nearly cold pizza whilst fighting to urge to fall asleep with the box on your lap. The tv had been turned on in the background, but your attention had no longer been on the screen. It had been on the text message your boss had just sent you, asking you if you could come in earlier tomorrow again. And for once, you did not feel like replying. You knew you needed to refuse in order to spare yourself, but the extra money it would give you was tempting. And you had not been particularly good in saying no. You just left the text unread, promising yourself to respond to it before going to sleep. It would be a problem for later.

But later was not two or three hours; it had been ten minutes. The second you threw the left over pizza in the fridge and your back hit the mattress, you passed out. You can’t remember whether you left the tv on or not, or whether your switched the lights off. Everything slipped your mind as your vision slowly grew black. Yet, instead of panicking or standing up, you let it consume you. You knew sleep was much needed and with those extra hours you had been working, a form of relaxation was hard to come by. So you just lay there, and hoped to stay there for the entire night.

“Babe?” A voice suddenly called out. It had been soft, nearly whispered, but you heard it. A warm hand made its way to your bicep, slowly awakening you.

“Are you okay?” The voice asked. Your eyes slowly opened, trying to focus on anything in the room. It had been pitch dark, the only source of light coming from the power button on the tv in the distance. But the voice was familiar, almost welcoming.

You let out a tired hum in response, turning towards the person. Shang-Chi was kneeling beside the bed, one hand holding yours as the other softly stroked your forehead.

“Are you okay?” He repeated, searching your eyes in an almost worried manner. You frowned at his words, not understanding his worry. In truth; you had forgotten how you ended up here. Everything after you had arrived home came to you in a confusing blur.

“I think I passed out.” You concluded in a mumble, though you did not sound nearly as worried as him.

Shang-Chi quickly put on the nightlight beside your head, making you close your eyes at the sudden brightness, covering the with your arm, knocking away his hand.

“Sorry.” He whispered, though he did not switch off the light.

“Well, it would explain why you are still in your working clothes and not in your pajamas.” He offered, standing up and sitting down on the empty space next to you.

“You’re taking tomorrow off. I’ll talk to your boss, I’m sure he’ll understand.” Shang-Chi concluded, rubbing your arm in a loving manner before grabbing your phone.

You had nothing to hide from him, so instead of trying to fight it, you just let him. Half of you wasn’t even sure whether you were still dreaming or not, so you saw no point in resisting.

“He asked you to work earlier again?” He mumbled in a disbelieving manner.

“That’s what I forgot.” You mumbled to yourself, now turning your back on him to try and catch up on your sleep again.

“I hope you’re not planning in sleeping in those clothes.” Your boyfriend warned.

Instead of giving him a verbal answer, you lazily threw your arm over your shoulder, trying to hit him but miserably failing.

“I’m too tired to change.” You defended, grabbing hold of the pillow your hand landed on and cuddling into it tightly.

A moment of silence was followed after that, the only noise being heard was he sound of a text message being sent. The wave of exhaustion hit you again, nearly drifting you off back to sleep. That was, until you felt your socks being removed from your feet. You quickly drew them back in reflex, having seen too many horror movies.

“Relax, it’s just me.” Shang-Chi answered, the bed dipping slightly, indicating he had been seated next to you again.

“If you won’t change yourself, I will.” He said, half of it sounding like a joke, but you couldn’t care less.

“Be my guest.” You answered, straightening your legs out.

A low chuckle was heard from beside you as your socks finally left your feet, your pants following closely behind. With great effort - and zero aid from you - a pair of jogging pants had been slipped on instead.

After a moment of hesitation from his side, Shang-Chi placed his arms under yours, helping you up in a sitting position and letting your back rest against his chest. Still, you made no move to help, and kept your eyes shut in content.

His hands slowly found the buttons of your blouse, carefully opening them, trying desperately not to rip one of or make the wrong move and touch your bare skin instead.

“Would this be under any other circumstances, this would be hot.” He jokingly remarked.

“Ssshh, I’m trying to sleep.” You whispered, resting your head against his chest, simultaneously making him take on more of your weight.

It did not seem to bother him, though. He kept on working on your blouse, immediately stopping when he reached the last button.

“You’re not wearing a bra.” He spoke, nearly sounding confused.

“I took that monstrosity off the second I set foot into this apartment.” You explained, reaching for the sides of your blouse and throwing it off, your eyes still not opening.

You did not seem bothered by the fact that you basically were laying on top of Shang-Chi, your upper half completely naked. And neither did he. You were too exhausted to care and he was too worried to say anything about it. Instead; he grabbed the shirt from under your pillow and threw it on for you.

As you finally found yourself in your pajamas, Shang-Chi gently tucked you in, making sure your shirt was not wrinkling so it would annoy you when you were asleep (he takes great care in noticing small details about things like that).

After he made sure you were content and safe, he threw on his own sleeping clothes, folding yours and his clothes neatly and stacking it on top of the nightstand. He’d take care of it tomorrow. For now, sleep was more important.

Switching off the small light, he crawled into bed beside you, the blankets shifting only a little, though you knew you’d have lost them by the time you woke up. In his sleep he always manages to knock the blanket off of the bed so neither of you will have anything to cover yourselves up with.

His arms lovingly made their way around your waist, pulling you into his chest once again, spooning you tightly, yet not tight enough to suffocate you. Your legs both entangled as one of your hands found his, resting on top of it as a form of satisfaction. A soft kiss made its way to the top of your head, making you smile slightly.

“Don’t pass out again, please.” Shang-Chi mumbled into your hair, stroking your hand in affection.

“I won’t.” You answered, bringing his hand to your lips and kissing it in return. Your lips lingered for a while, the familiar light feeling in your stomach returning. Even after so many times of laying next to each other, he would still have this effect on you, and the thought of it made you more excited than anything.

As your lips left his hand, he gently squeezed your hand, holding it closer to himself. In this movement, you felt him shift lightly, now holding you just a bit tighter than he had before.

“Sweet dreams, darling.” He quietly bid, resting his head on top of yours, before closing his eyes.

“Goodnight, my love.” You returned, snuggling into his hand, letting sleep finally consume you once more.

[tom-whore-dleston]

Introducing professor!Shangqi

Pairing: professor!Xu Shangqi x college f!reader

Genre: Fluff and Smut (lime and lemon)

*18+ only; please do not consume if you are younger than 18 years old*

Warnings: professor x student/TA relationship, implied smut (only explicit towards the end), oral sex (f receiving), fingering, squirting, body worship, Shangqi giving reader hella TLC

*Please note that you are responsible for your own media consumption. If any of the following warnings trigger you or make you uncomfortable, please do not read!*

Summary: Headcanons for Teach Me Tonight AU

Word Count: 2.1k

Beta Read: N/A

*all errors and mistakes are mine*

Notes: Well, after going back and forth with thot squad about professor!Shangqi and then marinating on this for about a month, he's finally here 🙌🏽 I have a million ideas for him (are we surprised tho?) so imma make this an AU. You can find the plot of this AU linked below. Thank you to le thot squad for filling my brain with thots of this man bc he's the one thing keeping me motivated for my last semester of college :')

Navigation | Main Masterlist | Shang-Chi/Shangqi Masterlist | Teach Me Tonight AU

Becoming professor!Shangqi’s TA (and lover) was a journey in itself.

While you were his student, you would visit his office hours to continue the back and forth exchanges during discussions. With each visit to his office hours, you found yourself catching feelings for him, but never pursued anything since you were his student.

After finals, Shangqi invited you to a coffee date off campus where no one would see you. It turns out the reason he invited you to coffee was to ask you to be his TA for the upcoming semester. Of course, you accepted without hesitation.

Feeling more bold than usual, you would brush your foot against his leg to test how he would react to it. He would react by staring at your lips and licking his own. You didn't know in the moment, but playing footsies with him made him hard.

By the time the date was over, it was pretty obvious neither of you wanted it to end. When you reached your car, you exchanged goodbyes before you decided to hug him. He pulled away to stare into your eyes and you simply replied with “You can kiss me if you want.” Shangqi let out a laugh before holding your cheeks to press his lips against yours. After the kiss, you both finally confessed your feelings to one another before you followed him to his place to relieve all your sexual tension from the semester.

You both started seeing each other in secret and managed to sneak around with no suspicions from faculty or other students. If you weren’t by his side during his office hours or lectures, you were at his place either studying or fucking each other silly. Sometimes, you did both simultaneously.

And you could never forget all the times he would cancel office hours just to bend you over your desk and pound you from behind. It’s not like anyone came to his office hours to begin with.

Whenever you would be at his home, you both liked working close to each other whether it be in bed or in his study. If you were both working in his study, you would be sprawled out on the small couch while he would be at his desk.

“You know studying like that isn’t good for your back,” he’d say without taking his eyes off his laptop.

Then you would reply with, “To be fair, you’ve fucked me in crazier positions so I think I’ll be good.” Shangqi would chuckle and continue clicking away at the keyboard.

An hour later, he would push his screen down to check on you and find you knocked out with your head buried in your notes. The drool dripping from your mouth would stain the lined paper, turning your notes into a blue blob.

You were so deep in your sleep that Shangqi would be able to grab your notes and laptop from underneath you and move it to the ground. He’d even throw a blanket over you and kiss you on the head, but you still wouldn’t move a muscle.

Sometimes, he’d join you on the couch and adjust you so then your head would lay in his lap. He’d continue grading papers while stroking your hair. You would start rolling around, indicating you were about to wake up, and once you finally fluttered your eyes open, he would smile down at you and rub the side of your face you fell asleep on.

“Still with me, bub?” He’d coo as you started to come to your senses. You would lightly giggle, “Yeah, I’m here, baby.”

It’s safe to say that he was a soft dom in bed who loved to praise you. He also loved to worship your body and could spend hours caressing and kissing your skin.

“So beautiful, bub,” he would mumble in between kisses against your inner thigh. “Always so beautiful.”

Ever since you slept with him after the coffee date, Shangqi opened your mind and pussy to so many new things in the bedroom. He loved how you were so willing to try something new, which you would find to enjoy. The more trust you had in each other, the hotter and kinkier the sex became.

The first time he made you squirt was something you and Shangqi would never forget. With the mixture of his fingers rapidly pressing against your G-spot and the vigorous sucking on your clit, you lost control of your body. You were mortified because you got his whole face and glasses wet.

But Shangqi simply yanked his glasses off and smirked. “That was so fucking hot! I wanna make you do that over and over again.” And that is exactly what he did.

*Thanks for reading :) Reblogs and comments are greatly appreciated. Your responses are what keep me motivated to write. However, please do not repost or translate my work anywhere.*

[redroomwidows]

hi 😭

i hope youre well!! i saw that your requests for shang-chi are open and lksdjfnaslkjfn i love this man.

i looked at the "an intimate moment" prompt list and what about looking at your crush or lover only to find them already looking at you and when you make eye contact, they smile at you with shang-chi??

anyway ily and i hope your day's kind to you <3

💕💕💕

(I love him too, so much omg. Also, you are always so sweet)

SUMMARY: Y/n reads what twitter thinks about her boyfriend.

REQUESTED BY: @angelicwasp

WARNINGS: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings spoilers!

WORD COUNT: 600

I planned this fic really fluffy, but it turned kind of crack-y once I started writing it lol.

Send in a Shang-Chi request

Shang-Chi x fem! readers

Sundays were quiet. Shang-Chi usually booked it off and Y/n was always so exhausted from the long week and night at the karaoke bar the night before, she usually stayed in bed watching Netflix.

Today however, she’d taken to sitting at the small desk in her and Shang-Chi’s shared living room, typing away on her laptop. She worked as a publicist for The Avengers, and God, were some of them hard to like. She was currently sending an email to the one and only Bucky Barnes about how no, he couldn’t go around threatening anti-vaxers, even if it’s ‘What Steve would have wanted’ and she completely agreed.

After the email was sent, she sighs and leans back, minimising her email tab and going on to twitter. It was technically work if she looked at the Avengers tag. Which...was trending. As soon as she saw it, she begged the gods it was something good.

She clicks on the tag and surprisingly sees a video of her boyfriend kicking the arses of the assassins that attacked him the other week. The top tweet reads ‘Is it wrong I’m turned on by this?’, Y/n bites back a laugh and keeps scrolling.

Most of the tweets were talking about how he’s definitely a secret Avenger, or how he’s probably already been recruited.

Some were @-ing the official Avengers account (which Y/n had access to), saying how they should hire him. But a lot of the tweets, and Y/n means a lot, were people simping over him. She can’t help but laugh at some of them.

Because no, he wouldn’t do that, and that’s a completely unrealistic size for someone’s penis. She likes a few as herself, and a few from the official account, retweeting Sam’s response to a fan which said ‘He can’t be your favourite avenger, he’s not one!’.

One tweet reads ‘God, I bet he gives the best hugs'. He did, Y/n could agree with that. He always hugged her after a bad day, or even if she just asked. He hugged her if they’d been a part for a few days, and after the...situation, with his father, he came back home and gave her the longest hug Y/n had ever experienced. He’d muttered ‘I missed you’ and ‘I love you’ into her neck several times that night, even when they were cuddled up in bed, half asleep.

Lord, he was a sweetheart. He always knew the right thing to say and do. He brought her flowers every time he could with his small wage and he cooked her delicious meals. Sure, they went on simple dates, but he made them all worthwhile. He chose to wake up to her face every morning when he asked her to move in with him. He loved her, and wow, how did she manage to find a catch like him?

Y/n smiles, thinking of how God damn lucky she was before looking over at the sofa, behind her shoulder, where she knew Shang-Chi was sat. However, instead of looking at the TV screen, he was looking at her.

“You alright there?” she asks, a soft smile on her face

“Yeah, you?” his voice is soft and gentle

“Yeah,” Shang-Chi’s grin widens for some reason “Why were you staring at me like a weirdo?”

“I just really love you,” he whispers and Y/n can’t help a giddy grin taking over her face

“I really love you too,” she turns back to her screen, and Shang-Chi keeps looking before turning back to his phone, where his latest text to Katy read ‘I think I’m going to propose’.

Again, I’m just tagging whoever I want lol, I’m not gonna be doing this forever though, so remember to fill out my taglist google form!

@florenceyelena @badass-dora-milaje @lovelybarnes @stydiapercebeth12 @lazyunknownwerewolf @saturnsneptune

If any of you want to be permanently added, fill out out my google form