about the stereotypes. This included the "tiger mother", the expectation for Korean women to be proper and demure, the overachieving nerdy Asian, and the obedient Asian child. This lack of character development allowed no chance for the characters to have depth beyond their original identities, aside from Margaret. In addition, the casting was also criticized; Cho was the only Korean American cast, while all other actors portraying the Kim family were of Chinese or Japanese ancestry. Critics said this perpetuated the idea that all Asians are the same, and they did not appreciate the assumption that they "should identify with the Kims simply because they were Asian". Similarly, non-Asian audiences were equally unable to identify with "yet another example of Hollywood's ignorance and indifference when it comes to depicting an ethnic group about which it knows so little". As Cho stated later, "When you're the first person to cross over this racial barrier, you're scrutinized for all these other things that have nothing to do with race, but they have everything to do with race — it's a very strange thing". Furthermore, the show's use of "butchered Korean language" was also criticized; with the majority of the cast not being Korean American, their ability to speak Korean was limited, and none of All-American Girl's directors, writers, or producers were Korean American. Korean American viewers found the briefly spoken Korean phrases were so flawed they were essentially unintelligible. Before production began, ABC executives began criticizing Cho about her weight, although Cho claims there had been no issue about her weight before filming began. ABC executives and producers encouraged her to go on a crash diet; in two weeks, she lost 30 lbs (14 kg). This resulted in her having to be hospitalized for kidney failure, and leading to major health issues that continued for years after the show. In a later interview, Cho said she believes that because she was not White, executives and the producers felt they had to "make up for it in other ways", which was the reasoning behind this. As a result of the negative reviews and controversy, the series struggled in the ratings from the beginning. ABC and producers constantly tried to change the format in an attempt to gain better viewership ratings. This resulted in the series — in its short run — looking like it lacked direction and grounding. After the thirteenth episode, Ashley