While the biggest talking points of Shang-Chi's ending are undoubtedly the mid-credits and post-credits stingers, there's a sneaky hidden tribute to a strangely familiar name. So do the credits really feature a shout-out to the Karate Kid and Cobra Kai star Ralph Macchio? The answer is a little more than no and a little less than yes.

The Shang-Chi credits also include a touching tribute to stunt artist Brad Allan after the Australian industry-leader, who coordinated the film's fight sequences, died before its release. The tribute to his life and work, which is writ large on the incredible martial arts sequences throughout the movie is fitting, particularly as the inclusion of post-credits content means more people are likely to see it and revisit his work all over again. And the same goes for the cast who may not have been as simple to spot or who are new to the industry and demand the audience learn their name to track their trajectory: like the excellent Arnold Sun as the teenage Shang-Chi.

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The other most notable name comes courtesy of the special thanks section beneath the Marvel Studios banner: among the comic book artists and other names called out is Ralph Macchio. Nostalgia being what it is, the audience will no doubt be inclined to believe that Shang-Chi's martial arts background means someone at Marvel sneaked in a nod to the original Karate Kid, but the reality is a little more straightforward. Ralph Macchio is also the name of a Marvel Comics editor, who worked on the Master of Kung Fu comic run, which starred Shang-Chi.

The Master of Kung Fu 118

Somewhat unsurprisingly, Macchio's nickname is indeed "The Karate Kid". He worked on Master of Kung Fu in his first editing gig from 1982 to 1983, the period in which Shang-Chi finally killed his father - the notorious Fu Manchu rather than Tony Leung's Wenwu. Perhaps it's that resolution to the long-running paternal conflict that earns him a special thanks, or the fact that the death of Fu Manchu represented a spiritual landmark for Shang-Chi. After all, killing Fu Manchu off in Master of Kung Fu #188 mirrors what happens in Shang-Chi in the MCU: in both cases, Shang-Chi transcends his bloodline. He casts off the ties to his father, and indeed the need to worry about that association.

Marvel has always offered thanks to comics creators in the MCU's credits, even when faced with allegations of mistreating comics creators. Compensation issues aside, it's a difficult one to balance in purely creative terms, because the MCU changes so much about even the comics storylines that give their names to Marvel Cinematic Universe movies. That doesn't mean there isn't a debt to those creators, however, both financially and in terms of acknowledgments, and it's only right that Macchio's name should be up there as the helmer of a hugely significant part of the comics past behind Shang-Chi.

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