#iron triangle

[feyres-divorce-lawyer]

shimin being arguably the least unhinged of the triangle yet the only one that’s been to prison is so important to me.

[incorrect-ironwidow]

Yizhi: I was voted "politest classmate" in high school

Shimin: I was voted "most likely to be homeless" in my high school...

Zetian: You think that's bad? I was voted "most likely to get rabies"

[heavenly-memerant]

Shimin in the Iron Triangle

[ninjadeathblade]

I cannot explain how well executed the piloting Chrysalises is done and how brilliantly the reveal as to why girls die is done. Iron Widow has a lovely writing style anyway and the yin-yang void space? The working in sync? The reveal as to it being built into the system that the seat for the girls is more likely to kill them? It's a wonderful read throughout. Seeing how the characters develop and work with one another will never not be a delight. @xiranjayzhao, your book is a masterpiece and I am ecstatic for Heavenly Tyrant.

[skygemspeaks]

the iron widow has opened my eyes...the possibilities for mutual pining with three clueless bisexuals is absolutely unparalleled

each of these three idiots thinks they're the odd one out, and it's amazing. more of this, please

[xiranjayzhao]

‼️Heavenly Tyrant ending spoilers ‼️

Explaining for audiobook listeners who may be confused about the last line cause it's not in English

Get ready for Optimus Prime in book 3. Yes, he'll be able to shift into anything, including a truck or a bike

[untitled-kiwi]

they’re all safe and happy and healthy I SWEAR all of them are alive

[shirilily]

Shimin coming back to himself only to find out Zetian has acquired a toxic-masculinity husband and Yizhi an opressor nonbinary partner that they both betrayed... and that they are not talking to each other: I LEAVE YOU TO GO BE A ROBOT FOR ONE YEAR-

[poorsallystitches]

A newbie's guide to The Lost Tomb franchise/Dao Mu Bi Ji/The Graverobber's Chronicles

I have seen people all over the internet asking questions on posts about DMBJ such as, where to start, what it is, and who are those cutie pies? You may have seen images similar to this

I, as someone who has watched a lot of the franchise and read at least half of the books (which if you knew how many there were, that would be impressive), I want to take a moment, or many, to explain to anyone who wants the answer to these questions. This will take a while, I cannot shut up, especially about them.

Spoiler free!

Now, first things first, what is Lost Tomb/DMBJ/Graverobber's Chronicles?

Lost Tomb is a Chinese Franchise comprised of a multitude of dramas and movies over the course of a decade that were all made by different people and actors to tell the story written in the novel series, The Graverobber's Chronicles, or its original Chinese title Dao Mu Bi Ji, written by Nan Pai San Shu.

This means that popular characters people will refer to will have many different faces. Such as all of these being Wu Xie

You may recognize any of those actors if you watch popular Cdramas, 1st Zhu Yilong who plays Shen Wei in Guardian, 2nd Zeng Shunxi who plays Xiao Bao in Mysterious Lotus Casebook, and 3rd Hou Minghao who was recently in Fangs of Fortune as Zhu Yan.

But, what is it about?

Lost Tomb as a franchise is loosely about a man named Wu Xie who is the last in a family line of graverobbers, but he himself has been kept out of the loop by the family. He has had his grandfather's journal since he passed away, which makes him take an interest in the family business. This leads him to force his uncle to let him tag along with him on tomb raiding adventures.

I feel it is important to tell people what they may encounter just in case they have sensitivities, so this franchise as a whole contains supernatural themes of ghosts, zombies, gods, etc. There will be blood, BUGS, and some body horror in a lighter portion, if you have any questions about specifics feel free to ask.

Now, let's skip to who those cutie pies are before telling you about the options for where to start.

The characters you may have seen around that got you interested may be

Wu Xie, the main character who is played a little differently in every iteration of the story but mainly think of a man with a high level of intelligence, but the worst luck in the world and some bitchy attitude (said with love) and you'll have him. You saw some of the most popular actors to play him up top.

Zhang Qiling/Xiao Ge (young master)/Menyouping (Poker-face), one of the main characters who is the strong, emo, silent, tatted sweety of the story. He is mysterious on purpose; you're not meant to know much about him at any given time. Him and Wu Xie are very close and with the next character, they form what is widely known in book, show, and fandom as the Iron Triangle. Just meaning the three are a package deal and won't be separated.

Wang Pangzi, the chubby, stylish, tough, bitchier than Wu Xie, lovable bastard. His name actually translates to Fatty, so that is what you will see everyone call him. It's not mean, just accurate. Pretty much everyone has real names and nicknames they go by. Remember, they are doing something illegal.

It's less likely, but you may have seen my personal favorite boys Hei Xiazi or Hei Yanjing (black glasses or black blind, you'll see why) and Xie Yuchen or Xiao Hua (little flower). They are the black/pink dynamic of the century for me. Hei Xiazi is a merc for hire and Xiao Hua is Wu Xie's cousin who has become the patriarch of his family at a young age.

Now, last question that people ask the most, where do I start?

There is no right or wrong answer, you can start chronologically with Mystic Nine, release order with Lost Tomb 2015, a mixture of both, leave out the ones you aren't interested in (*cough* Time Raiders movie), or just jump in in the middle. Each adaptation is aware of the fact that people will not have seen the others, and they will try to speed run the story to you, which can confuse people, but if you just want to experience the story with familiar faces, it won't be too bad.

To share my experience. I started with the Lost Tomb 2015, continued with Lost Tomb 2 2019, skipped Explore with the Note 2021 because I didn't vibe with it, Ultimate Note, started the prequels with Mystic Nine, which is a prequel with our character's ancestors, watched The Hei Xiazi and Xie Yuchen movie, started Reunion, watched a prequel movie and just started reading the books. I was never super confused because I had the set-up of the first 2 to build upon.

If you are a completionist like me and want to read the novels go to Merebear's blog. She is phenomenal and she has translated pretty much everything for your reading pleasure and laid it all out in an easy-to-follow way. I cannot give her enough gratitude. I absolutely adore her and all of her efforts as well as all her helpers along the way.

Now just a little gay propaganda about Lost Tomb franchise. The novels and shows are not canonically gay, but I mean... they are giving something.

[xiaobaosnoona]

dorks <3

[feyres-divorce-lawyer]

peak romance

[incorrect-ironwidow]

Yizhi, over the phone: Tell me when you and Shimin are home safely

Zetian: We're home dangerously

Yizhi: Stop it

Zetian: We're home lethally

Shimin: Zetian just hit someone with the car

Zetian: We're home alarmingly

[heavenly-memerant]

[kradnie]

iron triangle iron triangle iron triangle iron triangle

modern au bc they deserve it

[queer-book-character-tournament]

Character, book, and author names under the cut

Catalina “Cat” Alvarez/Laila Dermott- The Sunshine Court by Nora Sakavic 

Kodiak Celius/Ambrose Cusk- The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer

Jean/Muirin- A Sweet Sting of Salt by Rose Sutherland

Wu Zetian/Li Shimin/Gao Yizhi- Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao

[fixaidea]

Wu Xie is Unimpressed by the Paris Catacombs

(My contribution to Wu Xie’s Birthday Week, to the prompt ‘Travel’ - and also Post Canon and Retirement 😅)