The stars of Marvel Studios’ Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings seem to be having a lot of fun while promoting their upcoming film. This is obvious in Marvel's latest featurette, wherein Simu Liu, Awkwafina, and Meng'er Zhang are seen testing (or rather playing with) some of the film’s popular merchandise.
In the one-minute video that the studio refers to as “product testing,” fans get to see some of the Funko Pops and pieces from the LEGO sets for the much-awaited Shang-Chi. Two LEGO sets, titled “Escape from The Ten Rings” and “Battle at the Ancient Village,” went on sale on the company’s official website in July. But, Marvel unveiled the entire merchandise collection for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings in April, including toys created by Hasbro and Funko.
The fun new video released by Marvel starts with Liu and Awkwafina providing a voiceover for a comic strip from Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings wherein the heroes are boasting about how they have a lot more firepower than Wenwu, even though he has the most powerful weapon, the Ten Rings. While they’re deep in their dialogue delivery, Zhang arrives and apologizes for being late. Noticing their awkwardness, she asks if they were “playing fighting.”
Liu and Awkwafina, while denying Zhang’s claims, state that they wouldn’t do that because they’re “adults.” The irony of the situation is that most of the pop culture merchandise created for Marvel films is targeted towards all age groups, including adults. The Funko Pops and LEGO sets that the stars are seen playing within the video are made for audiences three years of age and eight years of age and above, respectively. However, many adults around the world take pride in their Marvel collections, like the recent Loki merchandise, and often share pictures of the merchandise that they own on social media.
The conversation in the Shang-Chi product testing video then takes a turn when Zhang joins the playtime. She insists that “Xialing would beat everyone,” and adds her Shang-Chi characters' Funko Pop to the table. Liu, however, disagrees and makes a valid point by reminding viewers who the film’s “the real hero is.” But, is it really Shang-Chi though? This is when the furry sidekick Morris appears, and all the Shang-Chi stars agree that it truly “steals the show.” Although, Liu does want to know where its eyes are.
The video works perfectly as a way to increase the hype for the already highly-anticipated film, as it offers some new clips of the fight between Xialing and Shang-Chi, Katy’s transformation from best friend to a team member, and Morris’ hilarious appearance. Fans will soon get to see these characters on the big screen when Marvel Studios' first Asian-led superhero film premieres.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings premieres in theaters on September 3, 2021.
Source: Marvel Entertainment/YouTube