Marvel’s newest movie, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings came out in theaters Sept. 3 and it is by far the best stand alone movie in the universe yet.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, the 25th movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, follows the lead character Shaun (Simu Liu), a martial arts expert, as he is forced to deal with some issues from his past. His father is the leader of the Ten Rings organization, and he calls upon Shaun and his sister to help him bring their mother back. So now Shaun and his sister, who he has not seen in years, have the choice of helping their dad or their moms group of people that they have never met before. 

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, like many other recent movies, focuses on a different culture. This is a trend I’m totally on board with, and Shang-Chi does this trend justice. Hollywood is past the point of casting Caucasian actors to play the role of Asians. Thankfully, we now see Asian actors bringing their own culture to life. 

The diversity displayed is obviously one of the movie’s best features, but the characters are amazing as well. Shaun is fun and enjoyable in ways that I cannot explain while sounding sane. And just as every superhero has their sidekick, Shaun has Katy, played by the legendary Awkwafina. Her character in any of her movies always seems to be my favorite, and this is no exception. In Shang-Chi, Katy is more or less stumbling through all the challenges thrown at her in a more realistic way opposed to her being perfect in every way possible. She was humorous and her life didn’t revolve around a significant other which I respected. 

Another great trait of this film is the lack of racial stereotypes as well as stereotypes in general. As touched on earlier, Katy doesn’t really know what she is doing as she pushes her way through the events in this movie instead of being the all-knowing genius that Asians are typically depicted to be. Katy and Shaun both work as valets at what appears to be a fancy hotel. They manage to make it a fun job and enjoy driving the fancy cars, leading to an interesting scene. 

The most noticeable trait of any Marvel movie is the action scenes. Let me just say these are top notch. I have yet to watch all the movies, but I’ve seen enough and know the stereotypes well enough to know good always prevails in one way or another in movies. Knowing that, I still found myself actively engaged in the major and minor fight scenes and action scenes in this movie. And this is coming from a girl who commonly has difficulty focusing and sitting still throughout an entire movie of any genre. 

It’s hard to explain all the other amazing traits of this movie without spoiling too much of it, meaning you’ll just have to watch it for yourself. In my mind, the Captain America movies are the best series in the universe, and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is the best stand alone movie to come out yet. I am very excited to see when Shaun returns and the events that will follow.