Can Xialing's End Credit Scene be BETTER? (VIDEO SCRIPT)

Readers, I feel like there’s a significant amount of you who KNOW why I haven’t made a video on Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings until now

But for those of you who may not, I promise you its not because I didn’t enjoy the movie

And believe me, there are PLENTY of videos I want to make on the movie. Like, which timeline in the Multiverse did the people of Ta Lo come from? Is The Great Protector a politically correct version of Fin Fang Foom? Do the Ten Rings have a connection to the cosmic side of the MCU? The list goes on.

But now that the movie is available on Disney Plus, it’s available to a larger audience. Specifically those who aren’t quite ready to go see movies in theaters yet.

And honestly, if I wasn’t talked into seeing the movie with friends who both practiced social distancing and wore masks despite also being fully vaccinated, I probably wouldn’t have seen the movie until it arrived on Disney Plus on November 12, 2021

Yes, I am EXTREMELY cautious when it comes to this health and safety crisis

Because not only do I not have proper health care, but I also have asthma; I don’t trust ANYONE.

But out of all the Shang Chi topics I wanna cover now that it’s available to stream, this one spoke to me the most, because it was one of the first things I thought about when I initially left the theater

And that’s basically the end credit scene featuring Xialing, and how while it was dope in its own right, the presence and proper use of another Phase 4 character would’ve made the scene, in my opinion, absolutely AMAZING.

Now before I continue, I feel inclined to let everyone know that this video will contain spoilers for Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. So if you haven’t seen it yet and you either have Disney Plus or are willing to head to theaters to do so, I advise you stop the video here and take care of that if you care about spoilers. Cool? Cool.

As you know, Xialing is Shang-Chi’s estranged younger sister.

/Not only was she abandoned by Shang Chi for 10 years when he was assigned to find the one who murdered his mom and never came back for her like he said he would, but she was also she denied Wenmu’s empire and martial arts training because of his traditionalist-slash-imperialist mindset regarding women and family -- literally being a product of his time/ (Father wouldn’t pass his empire down to me, so I made one of my own)

Over the course of the movie, these are aspects about Xialing’s character that she has to overcome; the repair of her relationship with Shang-Chi more specifically.

Because the movie’s focus is on Shang Chi and his relationship with Wenmu, we don’t really get to see Xialing address that grievance outside of learning the Ta Lo don’t follow the doctrine Wenmu does.

/It’s mostly made in the form of showing her becoming self-made in the face of her father’s patriarchal traditionalism, while only given reassurance from her mother’s side of the family that she’s capable of not only being an excellent fighter, but also worthy of running an organization as large as the Ten Rings./(This is not your father’s house. In Ta Lo, we train as equals)

So when we get to the second end credit scene, and we see that not only is she the new leader of the Ten Rings now that Wenmu is dead but that she’s preparing the organization to properly enter the 21st century...

/We’re all given the satisfaction that Xialing and the Ten Rings are gonna wreck house the next time they’re featured in the Marvel Cinematic Universe./

Now Shang Chi was the first film I’ve seen in theaters since restrictions were laxed thanks to COVID, and it took me seeing it with friends to feel comfortable enough to do so.

By the time we went to see it, I was up to date on a lot of Disney Plus exclusives from Marvel Studios, including Black Widow.

And it’s BECAUSE I was completely caught up on all the Disney Plus shows and Black Widow, I admittedly had a fear that a certain someone would show up in one of aforementioned end credit scenes:

/Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. Known in Marvel Comics as Madame Hydra/

Now if you’ve seen Black Widow or The Falcon and the Winter Soldier on Disney Plus, then you’re already a bit familiar with the character.

Her role in Phase 4 for the most part has been pretty similar to Nick Fury and Agent Coulson’s in Phase 1, and that’s mostly recruitment.

/In Falcon and the Winter Soldier, she recruits John Walker after he was discharged from the title of Captain America when he... well, y’know. And also supervised his transition to US Agent soon after Sam and Bucky handled the Flag Smasher threat./

/Then in the end credit scene of Black Widow, we see her join Yelena while she’s grieving Natasha at her grave marker, instigating her into hunting down Clint by saying that Hawkeye is responsible for her death after revealing that Yelena is currently on her payroll/

Now while there’s no concrete evidence yet, word on the street is that the reason Contessa is recruiting these antagonistic and misguided individuals is because either herself or her employer is ALSO putting together a team.

The two teams that immediately came to the minds of comic fans were either the Dark Avengers -- an organization ran by Norman Osborne -- or, most likely considering his recent appearances in the MCU, the Thunderbolts, named after General Ross, who may also play a factor into the upcoming She-Hulk series for Disney Plus.

Not Betty Ross, though; that, uh... that sounds too much like the RIGHT thing for them to do.

With that being said, my gut reaction to seeing Xialing’s end credit scene and it being free of Contessa when I saw Shang Chi for the first time was “Thank GOD”

/Because after Shang Chi stated what she was up to after they returned to the states, I was IMMEDIATELY worried that in either the post credit or END credit scenes we’d see Contessa recruit try and recruit Xialing while she was closing up shop with the Ten Rings/

Because considering that Marvel Studios is committing to doing smaller arcs with heroes that fit a certain criteria, it would make sense for the likes of Shang Chi and his associated characters to be more affiliated with the likes of Clint, Sam, Bucky, Natasha and Yelena, as opposed to the Multiverse Saga or on the cosmic side of things.

So when I told my friends this after leaving the theater and how relieved I was considering Contessa’s track record, one of them rebutted with not only a better way of using Contessa in Xialing’s scene, but one that establishes Xialing as force to be reckoned with that I can’t help but agree with.

Because, yes. While past La’Ron initially was glad Contessa didn’t show up to recruit Xialing, present La’Ron now thinks that Contessa SHOULD’VE been there to TRY and recruit Xialing, but FAILS.

One thing about Xialing that’s been established from jump is that despite adversity, she’s capable.

/Her father won’t teach her martial arts because it’s not a woman’s place? She’ll teach herself and be even better than those who received said training. Her father won’t leave the Ten Rings to her or listen to her ideas because it’s not a woman’s place? She’ll make her own syndicate and forge her own success without him./

/None of that disappeared by the time we have the Xialing that we do at the end of the movie. The only thing that changed is that her relationship with her brother is in the process of being repaired, and she now has a proper support network through her aunt Ying Nan and the rest of the people of Ta Lo./

If anything, her taking over the Ten Rings instead of dismantling it is Xialing’s reward. And now that she’s properly modernizing it in order for it to better thrive, people like Contessa and whoever it is she’s working for would naturally be attracted to it and try and claim it by any means necessary.

I can see Contessa using her fighting ring and her business savvy to try and butter her up; saying something like “Imagine what you’d be able to accomplish with OUR resources at your disposal.

Now imagine Xialing telling her “no” right in front of her face. Imagine her revealing that she was able to keep tabs on Contessa and whoever it is she was working for even BEFORE she inherited the Ten Rings and had info about what it was they’re planning from JUMP.

Maybe she takes the time to critique the fact that she was able to track Contessa’s movements before having the resources of the Ten Rings at her disposal. Calling her messy. Saying that the paper trails she leaves behind from her recruitments are obvious.

Implying that she’s only where she is because of her privilege and not because she’s actually GOOD at her job, versus what SHE had to endure in order to be where SHE is by the time the scene happens; there are PLENTY of ways Xialing can read Contessa for filth and still be the version of the character we see by the end of the movie

/And by doing so, not only would it give Contessa and whoever it is she works for more of a driving force to try and either own or take down the Ten Rings, but it will both accurately and rightfully so establish Xialing as one of the baddest motherfuckers to ever exist in the MCU/

I mean, she’s that ALREADY, but this would be the cherry on top of the sundae for me.

But I digress, Readers. Your homework assignment for the day:

Write in the comment section below what YOU thought of Xialing’s character development in Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Or, if you feel like sharing with the rest of the class, an end credit scene from the MCU you feel could be made better with a simple adjustment.

Whichever question you decide to answer, I’d LOVE to know your thoughts