Ling Woo was a fictional character on the popular US sitcom Ally McBeal, from Season 2 until Season 4 and recurring in Season 5. The character was played by Asian-American actress Lucy Liu, and is widely considered to be her breakthrough role. Woo was viewed as one of the strongest comedic characters on the show. Ally McBeal was a television series which ran on the FOX network from 1997 to 2002, and was one of the best-known comedy-drama television series of the 1990s. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Lucy Alexis Liu (Chinese: 劉玉玲 Liú Yùlíng, born December 2, 1968) is an Emmy Award-nominated Chinese American actress, best known for starring in the television series Ally McBeal (1996-2000) and the 2000 film Charlies Angels. ...

Character History

Season One

Ling Woo was initially a character written by David E. Kelley for the actress Lucy Liu after she failed to secure the role of Nelle Porter (which went to Portia de Rossi) in "Ally McBeal". Appearing in Season 2 for the first time as a client sueing a cosmetic surgery firm, Woo became a firm favourite of fans, noted for her outrageously politically incorrect comments, acerbic put-downs and bitchy nature. Kelley was quick to invite Liu to perform another guest slot and within a few episodes she was added as a permanent cast member, revealing that she had a Law Degree in the process. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Portia de Rossi on The Advocate Portia de Rossi (born Amanda Lee Rogers on January 31, 1973) is an Australian actress. ... Plastic surgery is a general term for operative manual and instrumental treatment which is performed for functional or aesthetic reasons. ...

Woo quickly made enemies with the workers in the law firm, particularly Elaine Vassal(Jane Krakowski) and Georgia Thomas (Courtney Thorne-Smith). She did, however, form a romantic relationship with Richard Fish(Greg Germann) which lasted until Season Four. Jane Krakowski Jane Krakowski (née Krajkowski, born October 11, 1968 in Parsippany, New Jersey) is an American actress of Polish descent. ... Courtney Thorne-Smith Courtney Thorne-Smith (born November 8, 1967) is an American actress. ... Greg Germann is an actor born February 26, 1962 in Houston, Texas, USA. Best known for his role as Richard Fish in Ally McBeal he has also had roles in numerous movies. ...

Season Two and Three

As with other cast members of "Ally McBeal" in Seasons Two and Three of the show, Ling Woo did not play a major supporting role, storylines focusing on the Ally-Billy-Georgia love triangle. Unlike John Cage (Peter MacNicol) she took few trial cases, and was used mainly for comic relief purposes along with Elaine, Renee Radick (Lisa Nicole Carson) and Nelle. This was one of the criticisms as the show as a whole, as it moved from being a series with a strong ensemble cast to one with primary and secondary characters. Peter MacNicol as John Cage on Ally McBeal Peter MacNicol (born April 10, 1954 in Dallas, Texas) is probably best known among younger TV viewers for his role as the eccentric attorney John Cage, for which he won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in... Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character or scene or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. ... Lisa Nicole Carson (born July 12, 1969) is an American actress. ...

Season Four

Season Four saw a general change in the show, with higher ratings, which involved more usage of the "secondary" characters. Ling's old love interest Jackson was employed in the firm for a time, providing some character conflict, although he later left. In this series, she also taught Ally how to kiss, pretended to be blind, helped at an old folks home and danced with Elaine in a competition.

Season Five

Lucy Liu expressed wishes to leave "Ally McBeal" in Series Five; and so Ling was written out, becoming a judge, an event which had high comic value and which Elaine declared to be "a joke on mankind." After a few first episodes as a star, Liu was dropped from the main cast and the opening credits. She did return to Cage & Fish to help her friend Nelle and to see Richard (who she no longer dated). The popularity of the show declined afterwards. Some contributed this to the loss of such a hugely popular character. It's more likely, however, that the show had simply run out of steam, with a burden of several new characters, most of whom were dropped halfway through the season, and slightly ridiculous storylines.

The character of Ling Woo did not return after that guest star spot. The last show was twelve episodes afterwards, and although Liu said afterwards that she wished to appear along with other written out characters like Georgia, Renee and Billy, she was not allowed. Producers said her appearance was likely to jeopardise Richard's happy ending with Liza.

Character Quotes

• "I like being the defendant. It gives me a martyr glow."

• "Would you be quiet? Some of us have eardrums." - to a sufferer of Tourette's Syndrome.

• "Oh, I so prefer the deaf to the blind."

• To Richard, on pretending to be a blind woman: "What? It's not like they can see me."

• "Back when you were attractive you didn't mind being judged on beauty alone. It's amazing how principle pops up with wrinkles."

• "I'm rich. I only go into work to wear my outfits."

• "Randy, there's nothing I enjoy more than seeing a happy couple and coming between them but Lisa's a friend of mine."

• " I don't want this firm representing that woman. ... I don't know why not yet I just know there's a reason."