History Main / DragonLady

** But her uncle definitely beats her out on the "Dragon" part.

Female variant of the YellowPeril villain. The Dragon Lady is characterized by her overt sexual and [[DarkActionGirl physical aggression]], [[DevilInPlainSight untrustworthiness]], and [[MysteriousWoman mysteriousness]]. Probably wears a {{qipao}} or kimono (even if she's not Chinese or Japanese), and knows [[EverybodyWasKungFuFighting martial arts]]. If she carries a weapon, it's usually a bladed [[KnifeNut stabbing]] or [[CoolSword slashing]] weapon (folding metal fans are a perennial favorite). Is contractually obligated to have [[ShesGotLegs legs that would make Tina Turner jealous]], to better [[ShowSomeLeg pull off the dress]].

** The villainess Roulette isn't Asian, but is the sort of person who wishes she were. She does wear a qipao, has Chinese tattoos (including one of a dragon), wears chopsticks in her hair etc. When it came time for her to appear in an episode of Smallville, she was indeed played by an actress of Asian heritage.

The Dragon Lady overlaps heavily with TheVamp, the FemmeFatale, and TheBaroness, but is set apart by her level of stereotypical Asianness. However, please note that just because a villainess is Asian (especially in non-Asian works) doesn't mean she's automatically a Dragon Lady. This trope has a very specific look and feel.

* "Dragon Lady" is one of the nicknames for Inspector [[MeaningfulName Meg Thatcher]] of ''DueSouth'', because of her [[TheBaroness hard-edged personality]] rather than her ethnicity (as she's a white Canadian.)

* Also the nickname of one of Theo's teachers in''{{The Cosby Show}}''-again, not a Chinese character.
* Though not Asian, Julie Cooper of ''TheOC'' is referred as "The Dragon Lady" by Sandy Cooper.

The Dragon Lady overlaps heavily with TheVamp, the FemmeFatale, and TheBaroness, but is set apart by her level of stereotypical Asianness.

** Lady Deathstrike, another foe of the ''ComicBook/{{X-Men}}''.

* The ArchieSonicTheHedgehog comics have the Iron Queen, though writer Ian Flynn made her a Technomage and less a traditional spellcaster.

Female variant of the YellowPeril villain. The Dragon Lady is characterized by her overt sexual and [[DarkActionGirl physical aggression]], [[DevilInPlainSight untrustworthiness]], and [[MysteriousWoman mysteriousness]]. Probably wears a {{Qipao}} (whether she's Chinese or not) and knows [[EverybodyWasKungFuFighting martial arts]]. If she carries a weapon, it's usually a bladed [[KnifeNut stabbing]] or [[CoolSword slashing]] weapon (folding metal fans are a perennial favorite). Is contractually obligated to have [[ShesGotLegs legs that would make Tina Turner jealous]], to better [[ShowSomeLeg pull off the dress]].

* [[{{Tropers/Katsuhagi}} This troper]] once met the mayor of [[{{Gayborhood}} Northampton Massachusetts]] as a kid and saw a statue in her office of a dragon with boobs. [[LateToThePunchline It took the better part of 10 years for the joke to sink in]].

** Lady Lotus from ''The Invaders''.

* General Fang, from the JackieChan version of ''Around the World in 80 Days''.

* Myca in 'The Crow' played by Bai Ling. The boss villain's Asian half-sister, tattooed, sexually depraved, has a thing about young girls' eyes.

* Madame Rose, the villainess/villain of the Thai film ''Tom Yum Goong'', retitled ''The Protector'' in the US.

* This trope is arguably developed and perhaps averted in ''Lost''. Sun, a Korean female, was initially portrayed as an innocent victim of her culture's patriarchy, despite (or because of) their wealth. Over time, it was revealed that she knew all about her father's criminal industrial complex, and eventually came to take it over. On the other hand, Sun does not fit the "dark outfit" stereotype, for the most part. [[spoiler: In the end, she used her father's resources and contacts to get in touch with Charles Widmore to find a way back to the Island.]]

** The villainess Roulette isn't Asian, but is the sort of person who wishes she were. She does wear a qipao, has Chinese tattoos (including one of a dragon), wears chopsticks in her hair etc. When it came time for her to appear in an episode of [[Smallville]], she was indeed played by an actress of Asian heritage.

** The villainess Roulette isn't Asian, but is the sort of person who wishes she were. She does wear a qipao, has Chinese tattoos (including one of a dragon), wears chopsticks in her hair etc.

* O-Ren Ishii in ''KillBill'', as mentioned above.

* LucyLiu for example frequently plays aggressive and domineering characters, but ''KillBill'' is the only one that features her running around in a kimono while wielding a katana.

* Many of the characters played by Anna May Wong, for example the title character in ''[[FuManchu Daughter of the Dragon]]''. This was a source of considerable annoyance to her, especially since she was lucky to even get ''those'' roles, because most went to white actresses in "yellowface" makeup.

* In Christopher Moore's book ''Lamb: The Gospel According To Jesus' Childhood Friend Biff'', a character named Joy (short for Tiny Feet of the Divine Dance of Joyous Orgasm) fits this trope to a tee. She's actually a prostitute who just happens to be a total badass at the same time.

* While she's not as combative as many examples on this page, ''AceAttorney'''s Morgan Fey carries several traits, including a subtle iron fist on her daughter and a quite disturbing DeathGlare. Oh, and the qipao. Can't forget the qipao.

Female variant of the YellowPeril villain. The Dragon Lady is characterized by her overt sexual and [[DarkActionGirl physical aggression]], [[DevilInPlainSight untrustworthiness]], and [[MysteriousWoman mysteriousness]]. Probably wears a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheongsam qipao]] (whether she's Chinese or not) and knows [[EverybodyWasKungFuFighting martial arts]]. If she carries a weapon, it's usually a bladed [[KnifeNut stabbing]] or [[CoolSword slashing]] weapon (folding metal fans are a perennial favorite). Is contractually obligated to have [[ShesGotLegs legs that would make Tina Turner jealous]], to better [[ShowSomeLeg pull off the dress]].

* This trope is arguably developed and perhaps averted in [[Lost]]. Sun, a Korean female, was initially portrayed as an innocent victim of her culture's patriarchy, despite (or because of) their wealth. Over time, it was revealed that she knew all about her father's criminal industrial complex, and eventually came to take it over. On the other hand, Sun does not fit the "dark outfit" stereotype, for the most part.

The Dragon Lady overlaps heavily with TheVamp, the FemmeFatale, and TheBaroness, but is set apart by her level of stereotypical Asianness. LucyLiu for example frequently plays aggressive and domineering characters, but ''KillBill'' is the only one that features her running around in a kimono while wielding a katana.

[[caption-width-right:227:We're pretty much screwed now (not '''''that''''' [[FreudWasRight kind of screwed]]).]]

** Shiv, the teenage granddaughter of a Japanese GoldenAge supervillain. Her Asian heritage isn't particularly pronounced though, and some artists don't seem to realize she's Asian at all.

* Lady Serpent, foe of the GoldenAge hero the Black Terror.

[[quoteright:227:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dragonladies.jpg]]

-> ''Out of the flames of a man's desire/A hair-raising voice from an evil choir/Raining down like a freezing fire/Dragon Lady.../Out of the cage in the center ring/Out of the crowd and straight to the king/Who's out of his mind with her mystical thing/Dragon Lady.../She appears outrageously/You take her courageously/Until you're under her spell.../Terrible lightning flashes across the sky/When the Dragon Lady shows you how to fly/Terrible lightning flashes across the sky/And the Dragon Lady's laughing as you die''