Disney Announces Surprise Episode of Marvel Studios Legends Ahead of Shang-Chi Release

Marvel Studios is finally back in action with its theatrical releases after bringing major successes with its Disney+ exclusives early in 2021. The next outing in line for the team behind the MCU is Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which will take a deep look back at the MCU's earliest days while expanding on its future as well.

Simu Liu is set to bring Marvel's Master of Martial Arts to life for the first time in what's been confirmed as the first present-day story to come in Phase 4, which started with a prequel in Black Widow.

Reviews from the first round of screenings are already praising the heart and soul Marvel is delivering while revealing that its leading man is coming in with superstar potential for the future.

Part of this film's adventure is set to feature the mysterious Ten Rings organization that's held a presence in Marvel Studios' expansive story ever since it started 13 years ago.

Now, the latest round of news surrounding this movie teases a new short for fans to enjoy before the film debuts worldwide.

THE LEGEND(S) OF THE TEN RINGS

The What's On Disney+ Website revealed news on everything coming to Disney+ in September 2021.

Along with the month's episodes of What If...? for the MCU, a new episode of Marvel Studios: Legends was confirmed to arrive before the theatrical debut of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. The episode will focus on the Ten Rings organization.

A TEASE OF THE MCU'S PAST

This episode of Legends comes as somewhat of a surprise considering the next MCU movie is set to introduce a hero that's never been seen in past outings. However, looking at the title of Simu Liu's debut outing, it only makes sense that Marvel would want to take a look back at the organization that's been causing problems for so long.

The Ten Rings first came into play as the group that kidnapped Tony Stark in Afghanistan during the opening of 2008's Iron Man before wreaking havoc with his weapons all over the world. While it was revealed that Obadiah Stane enlisted their services to help take Tony down, the group proved themselves to be a formidable adversary on their own.

The group was teased for a moment in Iron Man 2 before making another appearance alongside Trevor Slattery's fake Mandarin in Iron Man 3 with their logo popping up through the villain's fear videos. The logo also made a quick appearance in 2015's Ant-Man to remind fans that the Ten Rings were still a threat no matter how little they've shown up in other MCU movies.

It will be interesting to find out what specific footage Marvel and Disney use for this episode of Legends, especially since Shang-Chi will look to showcase the group at full power behind Tony Leung's real Mandarin. With Shang-Chi having done his best to get out of his father's world, it seems clear that the villainous organization will have the chance to show its full power 13 years after first being introduced.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will debut in theaters on September 3, 2021.