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One Line In The Shang-Chi Post Credits Puts The MCU In Perspective
One line from Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings end-credits scene perfectly sums up the circus-like atmosphere of the MCU Phase 4 so far.

One Line In The Shang-Chi Post Credits Puts The MCU In Perspective

The post-credits scene of Shang-Chi And The Legend of the Ten Rings has a line in it that puts the whole of the MCU Phase 4 into perspective. In Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, a battle is waged for the safety of Ta Lo, a mythical universe that harnesses the power to protect the realm from a dangerous soul-eating dragon and its underlings. The movie introduces the idea of other universes that connect to Earth-616, and the fact that they may have an impact on that Earth. The characters are left with a big, unexplained mess at the end of the film where the future is unknown.

Marvel’s Phase 4 has dealt with the multiverse, alternate timelines, and even mystical separate universes and realms, and it has been met with divisive responses from audiences. The direction of the MCU Phase 4 story seems to be going all over the place, whereas the first few MCU phases had a clear focus on Thanos and Nick Fury building up the Avengers. The direction was clear, and people could expect a Thanos-themed end-credits sequence that wasn’t just a new character being introduced.

In Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, though, a line from the end-credits sequence pretty much puts the whole MCU Phase 4 into perspective. While meeting with Sorcerer Supreme Wong, Bruce Banner, and Carol Danvers, a holo-projected Bruce Banner tells Shaun and Katy “Welcome to the circus,” after which they go karaoke singing with Wong. With that one line, Bruce Banner, who has survived Endgame, sums up the general view of the Multiversal Saga so far. The multiverse rollout to this point has been a bit of a circus.

Banner’s Shang-Chi Line Proves How Much The MCU Has Changed

Banner’s Shang-Chi line also proves how much the MCU has changed. The MCU, as a whole, has changed a lot since the Nick Fury end-credits scene days. Ms. Marvel featured a post-credits scene that connects her to Carol Danvers’ Captain Marvel, Eternals had a scene that introduced Starfox, Thor: Love and Thunder had a scene that introduced Hercules to the MCU, and Shang-Chi featured a scene that connected the Ten Rings to the MCU. The end-credits scenes no longer have to be connected, and they can be about anything that the property brings to the table and beyond. This is a whole new level of freedom for Marvel.

Bruce Banner’s line in Shang-Chi perfectly captures the chaotic MCU Phase 4; an era that has been just as flabbergasting for the characters as for the audience. The MCU has come a long way from earthbound heroes and single Infinity Stones as MacGuffins. Even though it seems like the Phase 4 end-credits scenes, like in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, are all over the place, they are simply setting up the broader, wilder, more complex MCU multiverse that’s soon to come.