The Conclave

Three Asian men sit around a table in a smoky gambling den. It’s around 2 AM. Mahjong pieces are littered on the table. There are two empty bottles of red wine on the table. The men don’t speak a word of English. They’re three Chinese ex-pats from Macau. Since last year, the three of them have been working on setting up a meth lab in the United States.

They aren’t inexperienced when it comes to synthetic drug production. One of the men, Winnie To, has a Ph.D. in chemical engineering. He’s a Mandarin man from the University of Beijing. Why he got involved in the plot? Because he could make a shitload of money doing it, and he knows that Americans love party drugs.

Later that night, the three of them arrive at a warehouse in Arizona. Entering the warehouse, there are dozens of industrial shelves with pallets littered with items. Desk lights, teddy bear slippers, baby shoes, room lamps, electronic chillers. You name it. The common denominator. It’s produced in China, intended for the American market.

Henry, one of Winnie’s old roommates and the mastermind behind the plan, “We get the stuff and put it in here. Nobody will find out. Think it’s from China.”

The three guys shake hands, glasses clatter and they toast with cheap sparkling wines. It’s like a new tech startup was born. One that would go on to make them millions.

Super Wok Explosion is a unique animated web-series about Chinese organized crime. The project is funded entirely by its audience. On this website, animator Tony Cheuk likes to share information about Asian organized crime—and world-building of the universe of the series, Chinese tongs and triads. If you're interested in learning more about the project, you can click here.