Five Weapons Society

The Five Weapons Society are an organization that features in Marvel Comics.

History

The Five Weapons Society was created by brothers Zheng Zu and Zheng Yi, at first to protect China during the Qing Dynasty, after Yi's death, Zheng Zu changed the Society to a criminal organization, (Shang-Chi v1 #1) using various names like Celestial Order of the Si-Fan, Order of the Golden Dawn and Celestial Order of the Hai-Dai. (Shang-Chi v1 #2) Zu also used other names like Fu Manchu, (Special Marvel Edition v1 #15) Han (Black Panther v4 #11) and Comte de Saint Germain. (Shang-Chi: Master of Kung Fu #1) After discovering that his father's organization existed for evil purposes, Shang-Chi rebelled against his father. (Special Marvel Edition v1 #15)

After the death of the Five Deadly Warriors, Zu established houses in honour for each of them where they became the new Five Weapons Society. (Shang-Chi v1 #3) In 1900, he and the Five Weapons Society aided rebel forces in Chain against the Eight Nations Invasion during the Boxer Rebellion. During this time, Western invaders came to break into the House of the Deadly Sabre and desecrated the shrine to Zheng Yi. This angered Zheng Zu who decided to kill the leader of the House of the Deadly Sabre for their failure. After the invasion, Zheng Zu moved four of the Five Weapon Society to foreign nations as a means of keeping a watch against those that would threaten him. The House of the Deadly Hand remained in China whilst the House of the Deadly Staff was established in England, the House of the Deadly Hammer was formed in Russia, the House of the Deadly Sabre made in Japan and the House of the Deadly Dagger built in France. (Shang-Chi v1 #3)

Members

• Zheng Zu :
• Shang-Chi :
• Zheng Shi-Hua :
• Takeshi :
• Zheng Esme :
• Zheng Zhilan :

Notes

• The Five Weapons Society was created by Gene Luen Yang, Dike Ruan and Philip Tan where they made their first appearance in Shang-Chi v1 #1 (September, 2020).
• Zheng Zu based the Deadly Warrior's names and the Society's structure off the Five Sets of Heavenly Weapons of Ta-Lo: One Hammer (Hammer), Two Swords (Sabre), Nine Daggers (Dagger), Three Staffs (Staff) and Ten Rings (Hand). (Shang-Chi (v2 #11);
• Gele Luen Yang based the Five Houses of the Society off the five elements of Eastern culture, with: Fire (Deadly Hand), Water (Deadly Dagger), Wood (Deadly Staff), Metal (Deadly Sabre) and Earth (Deadly Hammer). Shang-Chi being the Champion of the House of the Deadly Hand is a reference to the comic books The Hands of Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu, and The Deadly Hands of Kung Fu.
• They were based on the Celestial Order of the Si-Fan which was created by Sax Rohmer and made their first appearance in "The Zayat Kiss" (1912)
• At first, the Si-Fan were portrayed as in Sax Rohmer's novels, however, they would be portrayed as ninjas in later stories (ninjas are originally from Japan and not from China). (Master of Kung Fu v1 #83)
• It was later brought into Marvel Comics by Steve Englehart and Jim Starlin where the Si-Fan appeared in Special Marvel Edition v1 #15 (September, 1973)
• The group was then referred to as the Order of the Golden Dawn that was created by Doug Moench and Mike Zeck where they made their first appearance in Master of Kung Fu v1 #83 (September, 1979).
• The Order of the Golden Dawn brought together members of the Si-Fan, Phansigars, Dacoits, Thugees, Knights Templar and Hashashins. (Master of Kung Fu v1 #83) (Master of Kung Fu v1 #118)
• They then were re-invented as the Celestial Order of the Hai-Dai which was created by Ed Brubaker and Mike Deodato Jr. which made their first appearance in Secret Avengers v1 #6 (October, 2010).

Alternate Versions

• In What If? v1 #16 (1979), an alternate version of the organization appeared in the What If? reality that was designated as Earth-79816 in the Multiverse. On this world, Shang-Chi succeeded in the assassination of Dr. James Petrie. When Shang-Chi succeeded on murdering Petrie, he would escape into the night before Sir Nayland Smith would awaken and find his friend dead. Because of this difference in events, Shang-Chi would never learn from Smith of his father's evil and remain loyal to Fu Manchu. Returning to his fathers headquarters, Shang-Chi would be further convinced by his father that Smith was evil and must be destroyed as part of his goals to convert Earth culture to that of ancient China. Taken back to Fu Manchu's hideout, the evil terrorist would use his Elixer Vitae to resurrect them as his Dacoits of Death. When Shang-Chi would learn of his fathers goals to resurrect these men as his soldiers as a means of taking over London, he would begin to have wavering doubts about his fathers "noble" goals. Meanwhile, Blackjack Tarr and the others would question a captured member of the Si-Fan to learn the location of Fu Manchu's headquarters. When Fu Manchu would unleash his Dacoits of Death on Buckingham Palace in the hopes of eliminating the royal family, Smith and his friends would be there with the police to try and fight them back. Shang-Chi, not wishing to let innocent people be murdered by his father would break out of his home and go to Buckingham Palace to stop the Dacoits of Death from completing their mission. Shang-Chi would help M.I. 6 fight off the invaders, however he would be horrified by Clive Reston's use of a flame thrower to incinerate the Dacoits. Confronting his father, Shang-Chi would renounce him and his mission to take over the world and Fu Manchu would escape. When the remaining Si-Fan minions would be rounded up by the police, Nayland Smith would offer Shang-Chi to join them. However, having come to consider M.I. 6 to be no different than his father, willing to kill to suit their own ends, Shang-Chi would refuse and try to stop his father on his own

In other media

Films

• In Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, a variation of the Five Weapons Society appeared in the setting of the 2021 live-action film set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This version was named the Ten Rings organization, led by Wenwu is the closest to it, Wenwu is Shang-Chi's father and is a composite character of Zheng Zu and Mandarin, the The organization's name was inspired by the Mandarin's Rings.

Appearances

• Shang-Chi v1: (2020)

External Links

• Marvel Database Entry
• Comicvine Entry
• The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Celestial Order of the Si-Fan
• Wikipedia Entry

This article is a stub. You can help Multiversal Omnipedia by expanding it.