The Road to Doomsday Part 8 — Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)

Accompanied by his best friend Katy Chen, Shang-Chi searches for his sister Xu Xialing. Shang-Chi, Katy and Chu travel to the mythical village of Ta Lo to meet his father, Xu Wenwu, who possesses the Ten Rings and had trained his son as a child to become an assassin. Shang-Chi discovers that his father is being manipulated by the Dweller-in-Darkness; he fights him, first wielding the power of the Ten Rings. Xu sacrifices himself and passes on the Ten Rings to Shang-Chi. 

In the first post credits of the movie — and this is one of its most important parts — Wong (now Sorcerer Supreme) summons Shang-Chi and Katy to Kamar-Taj to virtually meet Bruce Banner and Carol Danvers, who understand that the Rings are sending them a message. Wong says to them that “from now on, the trajectory of [their] lives will be nothing like [they’ve] ever experienced before”, which hints at Shang-Chi’s confirmed and Katy’s expected return in Avengers: Doomsday. In the second post credits scene, we understand that Xu Xialing did not dismantle her father’s criminal organization; instead, she took control of it. Although up until now that scene has not had any consequences, the film does state that “The Ten Rings will return.”

Shang-Chi is portrayed by the charismatic Simu Liu, who is confirmed to be returning for Avengers: Doomsday. Awkwafina joining the MCU as Katy Chen is also a positive surprise and her comedic timing does wonders for the movie’s overall pacing. The film is a superhero origin story feature that could potentially connect to much more significant stakes through the Ten Rings — including the signal they send in the film’s post credits and the power they are shown to hold throughout the story. 

In an interview to ScreenRant, Simu Liu talked about the fact that his character has been absent for 5 years, stating that “we don’t necessarily know what he’s been up to, but presumably he hasn’t just been sitting around. He’s been training. He’s been maybe saving the day off in different places. But he’s ready.”