Agent James E. "Jimmy" Woo is a former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who was recruited into the FBI. In 2018, Woo was assigned to the FBI's Californian division, and assigned as Scott Lang's parole officer, making sure he stayed under house arrest after he escaped from the Raft. Woo was also tasked to track down and arrest Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne for violating the Sokovia Accords. Lang was able to elude Woo long enough to complete his house arrest sentence while still operating as Ant-Man.
Jimmy Woo was born on April 12, 1976, and grew up in Bakersfield, California. He had idolized prohibition agent Eliot Ness as a child.[1] He grew up to become a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, and worked together with Melinda May. His work was enough for him to get recognized by May, who proceeded to include Woo as one of her contacts in case she needed any special help.[3]
Working for the FBI[]
Scott Lang's House Arrest[]
"Come on, Woo. I've got three days left. Why would I try to escape?" "Sorry, Scott. Rules are rules. You trip a perimeter alarm and we search the place. Keel, stern, suits, and nuts."
Woo was eventually recruited into the CalifornianFBI division. FBI stationed Woo in the Bureau headquarters in San Francisco and assigned him as a leader of his own unit, together with Stoltz, Burleigh and Pearson. Woo, however, was feeling less competent in working for the FBI because of the short list of successful missions. He would also become a youth pastor.[2] Woo would also join a softball team, being a key member of the team during the season.[1]
Woo was tasked to supervise the house arrest of Scott Lang who had recently taken part in the battle in Germany which broke the Sokovia Accords and forced him to make a deal with the Homeland Security and German government. Alongside with monitoring Lang, FBI ordered Woo to lead the search for Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne who were wanted for complicity to Lang's crimes.
Three days before Lang's release, Woo received a signal from Lang's Ankle Monitor while he played with his daughter Cassie. FBI agents arrived at Lang's house to search the perimeter and check his monitor. Lang reminded Woo that he had three days before release and because of that, Lang would not escape. Woo just told him about the rules of his house arrest under which the FBI had to search the place if Lang triggered a perimeter alarm in any case.
Lang and his daughter tried to assure Woo that the alarm was caused by an accident during their game. Lang then stated that entertaining the ten-year-old without leaving the house is no easy task before demonstrating him several card tricks that he learned from the Up Close and Magical. Cassie then asked Woo why he can not leave her father alone and Woo tried to explain Lang's crimes in simple language. However, due to his poor skills dealing with children, Woo's speech became too formalized and Cassie did not understand him.
On an unrelated matter, Woo asked whether Lang had any contact with Pym and van Dyne. Lang denied and Cassie confirmed her father's statement, saying that they hate him. Woo then reminded him that their arrest is a matter of time and according to rules, Lang was not allowed to contact them. He added that any violation of his agreement means twenty years in prison. Woo quietly asked Lang about his card tricks before he was interrupted by Maggie Lang who was mad for another breaking in Lang's house. However, Jim Paxton made it clear that the FBI were in fact following the rules.[2]
"But Doctor, campus police says they ID'd both Pym and van Dyne." "I don't know what to tell you, agent. I haven't talked to Hank in thirty years. I can assure you I'm the last person he would wanna visit."
FBI was informed that Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne were identified by the campus police of University of California, Berkeley. Woo and his unit, with several other agents, arrived at Berkeley to speak with Dr. Bill Foster. Foster answered that he did not meet Pym for thirty years and he is the last person he would want to visit. Stoltz did not believe him but was stopped by Woo, who wanted to know the reason for malice between Foster and Pym. Foster then calmly replied to his question that they hated each other.[2]
Unexpected Lead[]
Woo trying to learn close-up magic
"We got them, sir. Pym and van Dyne are in custody." "Seriously? Yes! Oh. Sorry, Scott. They were your friends. That's insensitive. I just really needed a win, you know? Anyway, I'll be back later for the official end of your sentence. Sorry for misjudging you."
At the San Francisco FBI Office, Woo tried to learn the same Up Close and Magical card tricks that Scott Lang previously demonstrated to him before he was interrupted by Stoltz. He informed Woo that he received a lead from anonymous contact about the current location of Lang who escaped from his house arrest.
While Stoltz led the FBI task force to the Muir Woods in order to apprehend Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne, Woo and his unit headed to Scott Lang's House. Breaking into the house, Woo ordered agents to spread out and search the perimeter, much to Maggie Lang's annoyance. Woo was informed by Pearson that according to Lang's Ankle Monitor he is in the bathroom. Woo did not believe it and rushed to the bathroom before he was halted by Cassie Lang who blocked him.
Maggie told Cassie to let Woo get to the bathroom but Cassie claimed that Lang is sick and barfs a lot. Woo then stated that he is a federal agent and saw things worse than vomit. However, he then hesitated, asking Cassie how much Lang barfed. Woo bypassed her and headed to the bathroom but much to his shock he saw Lang leaving the bathroom, who greeted the Federal agent, before returning to the sink to continue barfing.
Burleigh then was ordered to check Lang's monitor while Maggie was still mad at the FBI's actions. Burleigh then confirmed that Lang's monitor did not reveal any violations and Woo was convicted that he was misinformed. Pearson then received a call from Stoltz who successfully arrested Pym and van Dyne and informed Woo. He was very happy for his first "win" for a long time but then apologized to Lang for his reaction. Woo and agents then headed to the exit while he told Lang that he will be back later for the official end of his sentence.[2]
"You got away with it this time, Scott, but I'll be seeing you again." "Where? Where will you be seeing me again?" "Like... in general, I'll see you. Like, the next time you do something bad. I'll be there. To catch you."
Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne were brought to the San Francisco FBI Office and Woo was going to interrogate them. However, they managed to escape and Pearson informed Woo that their van and Wasp Suit disappeared. Later, FBI agents watched the news report that showed them giant Ant-Man causing chaos at Pier 39. Realizing that Lang violated the rules of his house arrest by leaving his house before the end of the sentence, Woo ordered agents to move out.
Driving to the pier, FBI spotted the Ant-Man Suit toward the wall of the building. Woo ordered Lang to surrender, telling them that he got Lang and he had no way to escape. However, Lang did not respond and then the suit shrank back down and turned out to be empty. After witnessing the Mobile Laboratory also shrink, Woo realized this was a distraction and ordered everyone to head back to Scott Lang's House.
Breaking into the house again, Woo, however, found Lang in his house playing the drum kit. Admitting that Lang did not violate his deal, Woo ordered Burleigh to remove Lang's Ankle Monitor and set him free. Woo then told Lang that he managed to get away with it this time but he will watch him and arrest him at the earliest opportunity. Lang then said that he thought that Woo wanted to invite him somewhere like a party or a dinner and Woo then asked why he would do that. Before leaving, Woo asked if Lang wanted to go out but then changed his mind and left Lang's house.[2]
"Captain Rambeau, it's a missing town. Population 3,892." "Why haven't you gone inside to investigate?" "'Cause it doesn't want me to. You can feel it too, can't you? Nobody's supposed to go in."
In 2023, a few weeks after the Blip, Woo was notified that a person in witness protection had gone missing, and that people connected to the witness had somehow never heard of him, making him suspicious, so he flew to Westview, New Jersey to investigate. However, when Woo arrived at the town, he was told by the police that Westview didn't exist, nor could he contact anyone residing there. Additionally, Woo was being prevented from going inside the town, determining that it didn't want him to enter, so he decided to contact S.W.O.R.D. for backup.
Woo was eventually joined by Monica Rambeau, who he introduced himself to by showing off the card trick he learned from Scott Lang, having finally mastered it. He informed them of the entire situation, so she set up a drone to fly into the town. Rambeau inquired Woo about why neither of them had the selective amnesia about Westview that those residing there did, only to be interrupted when the drone vanished, so Rambeau approached the town to investigate. She identified an energy field surrounding the town, which Woo cautioned Rambeau to be careful around, but she was suddenly pulled into it, causing her to also vanish.[1]
Aiding S.W.O.R.D.[]
Woo voices concerns about the energy field
"Originally, this case was a missing person, so we're going to start there. We've successfully identified twoindividuals inside the WestviewAnomaly. Let's keep going."
As a response to Monica Rambeau's disappearance, Woo contacted S.W.O.R.D. again to inform them, resulting in the entire agency arriving and setting up a base outside of Westview, and Woo stayed to assist S.W.O.R.D. with the investigation. After Director Tyler Hayward sent in another agent to enter the town, Woo expressed his uncertainty in the decision, as they didn't know enough about the threat, and that Rambeau hadn't returned, but Hayward ignored Woo's concerns.
Suddenly, they overheard laughter, which came from a television broadcast, originating from inside the energy field, and was being watched by Darcy Lewis. They noticed that the broadcast featured Wanda Maximoff and Vision in a 50's sitcom, much to their confusion, especially as Vision was dead. Lewis explained that she found the program having detected a high level of CMBR entwined with a broadcast frequency coming off the energy field, which Woo understood as the universe creating a sitcom starring two Avengers. Hayward ordered his agents to analyze the broadcast immediately, and Woo praised Lewis for her discovery.
Woo resumes his missing persons case
With this new information uncovered about Westview, Woo summoned Lewis and a few S.W.O.R.D. agents to assist him with the initial missing person case, to hopefully better understand the situation, in addition to finding Rambeau. Having successfully identified Maximoff and Vision, the team proceeded to identify the other people cast in the sitcom, while Woo also noted all they knew and didn't know on a whiteboard. Lewis soon discovered Rambeau appearing in the sitcom, so she called Woo over, and the two discussed what was going on, of which neither knew for sure.[1]
Darcy Lewis had an idea to make contact with Maximoff by broadcasting a signal through a radio, so they went outside to try. Before they started, they were also shown an image of the S.W.O.R.D. Drone appearing in the sitcom, but it had been altered in appearance, as well as still being in color. Lewis left Woo outside to get ready to send the broadcast, as she watched the sitcom to find a radio on screen. Once she did, Lewis told Woo to start talking, but the sitcom skipped ahead, cutting out Woo trying to speak to Maximoff.[1]
With the plan failed, Woo and Darcy Lewis decided to continue watching the sitcom, where Wanda Maximoff was now pregnant, leading to Woo expressing a desire to have a child of his own. When Monica Rambeau mentioned Ultron in the sitcom, it once again skipped ahead, so Woo and Lewis tried to figure out what happened, deducing that someone was censoring the broadcast. At that moment, an alert went off, which was Rambeau being ejected from Westview, so Woo and Lewis went outside to check on her, and she revealed that Maximoff was responsible for what was happening.[1]
"If all the sets and props and wardrobe were solid matter, that would mean she's wielding an insane amount of power." "Far exceeding anything she's displayed in the past."
Later, Woo and Darcy Lewis went to visit Monica Rambeau, who was undergoing tests, to check on her and let her know a briefing was about to commence. When everyone gathered for the briefing, Woo detailed Maximoff's history, now knowing she was the main victimizer. Tyler Hayward would interject Woo to tarnish Maximoff's character, much to Woo's disliking. When Woo finished, he and Lewis talked about Hayward's brusqueness, and found out that Maximoff allegedly stole Vision's body from S.W.O.R.D.[4]
After the briefing, Woo, Lewis and Rambeau discussed Maximoff resurrecting Vision, which was a violation of the Sokovia Accords, and they decided to further investigate together. Woo retrieved coffee for the trio, and they discussed Rambeau entering the Hex, as Lewis called it, the twins, and Maximoff's increased power level. Rambeau mentioned that during the Battle of Earth Maximoff nearly killed Thanos on her own, in which Woo suggested that he thought Captain Marvel came close as well. Lewis then remarked that her powers came from the Space Stone, similarly like Maximoff with the Mind Stone, but Rambeau told them to focus on Maximoff. When Rambeau had an idea, Woo and Lewis followed her to the lab, where they discovered that Rambeau's clothes were altered by Maximoff when she entered the Hex, meaning she was rewriting reality.
Determining that only things that fit the era of the sitcom could enter unaltered, Rambeau sent in a drone from the 80s, and Woo and Lewis monitored the broadcast, where they realized that Maximoff was making the cuts. Woo watched Hayward order a strike on Maximoff, after she refused to speak with them and cut their feed. However, this proved to have failed when a breach was detected from the Hex, so they all went outside and saw Wanda Maximoff walk out of the Hex and warn S.W.O.R.D. to leave her alone. He watched as she gave Hayward a fierce warning, using her telepathic powers to make his men position their guns on him, and further strengthened the barrier.[4]
Returning to the base after Maximoff's confrontation, Woo, Monica Rambeau, and Darcy Lewis called Tyler Hayward out for his actions that could start a losing war. However, Hayward refused to back down, insisting they bring an end to Maximoff and the Hex, so he ordered Woo, Rambeau, and Lewis to be removed from the base.
While being escorted out, Woo and Rambeau discussed Hayward's suspicious behavior, figuring that he was up to something and he didn't want the three of them around to stop him. Woo and Rambeau proceeded to knock out the S.W.O.R.D. agents escorting them, and disguised themselves, deciding not to be sidelined by Hayward, and to figure out what he was up to. Sneaking back into the base, the trio commented on Pietro Maximoff seemingly appearing in the sitcom, although looking different, and discovered that Hayward has been tracking Vision the whole time.
Rambeau was notified that her contact would be arriving outside of their location in an hour, so they went to leave, but Lewis decided to stay behind to break through all of Hayward's firewall. Woo and Rambeau hot-wired a Humvee, and drove out of the base, so they could use the newly built vehicle to enter the Hex. As they were driving, Woo noticed the Hex was expanding, so he told Rambeau to accelerate, allowing them to not get engulfed inside it.[5]
Woo soon received an email from Darcy Lewis, revealing that Tyler Hayward was trying to bring Vision back online. He told Monica Rambeau as they arrived at the meeting point, where Rambeau's contacts supplied them with a S.W.O.R.D. Space Rover, to safely enter the Hex. As Rambeau suited up to go inside, she and Woo talked about Lewis being inside the Hex, and it being their last chance to help Maximoff. Woo witnessed as Rambeau drove towards the Hex, but was unable to penetrate it, so she decided to go in by herself, despite Woo calling out to her to stop.[6]
Eventually discovered by S.W.O.R.D., Woo was arrested by them and brought to Tyler Hayward at the retreat base. Noticing a phone, Woo grabbed it while no one was watching, telling Hayward that he would not be able to cover up his actions, but Hayward believed he could once Maximoff was eliminated. Woo then revealed that the FBI would be arriving, and they would bring an end to Hayward's plans.
Woo witnesses the Hex opening up
Woo was then locked away, but managed to get out of his handcuffs using a safety pin that he had in his pocket. Having stolen a phone, Woo then used it to call Cliff, asking him to bring backup to his location within the hour to help deal with the situation and to stop Hayward. When the Hex began to open up, Hayward led all of S.W.O.R.D. inside, leaving Woo alone at the base, just as the FBI arrived. The Hex then shortly closed up again, so the FBI set themselves up outside, as they witnessed a battle occur inside the Hex.
Once the Hex was removed, Woo led the FBI and the police in the aftermath cleanup, allocating different areas for medical treatment, evidence collection in Westview, and restarted the search for the missing person he originally come to Westview for.[7] Woo was then happily reunited with Monica Rambeau, who stated that being in a role of authority suited him, and they discussed Darcy Lewis disappearing for debrief. Noting that Lewis was also responsible for stopping Hayward, the two watching him being arrested, until an FBI agent joined them, telling Rambeau she was needed, so the two departed.[8]
Due to his efforts in defeating Thanos and bringing half of all life back from the dead, Scott Lang had become a globally-recognized hero. Woo, who now had a beard, still retained his friendship with his former prisoner, and spent time hanging out with Lang and grabbed lunch together at a restaurant. When it was time to pay the bill, Lang demonstrated a card trick where he had Woo's card. However, Lang was recognized by passers-by as Ant-Man who greeted them, and paid for Lang and Woo's bill.[9]
Working as a member of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the FBI, Woo proved himself as a man who follows rules by the book in any case. Knowing that Lang had three days before the end of his sentence and no reasons to escape, Woo still arrived at his house to examine the perimeter because it was one of the rules of his deal. While Woo always wants to catch Lang in illegal activities, he seemed to somewhat respect Lang's sociable demeanor, such as when he showed him a card trick. It's also implied that Woo would like to be casual friends with Lang by saying that he would like to have lunch sometime shortly after releasing him from house arrest.
Woo seems gullible seemingly not knowing that Stoltz was working under black market dealer Sonny Burch. He also showed poor skills while dealing with children, as seen when he tried to compare Lang's situation to Cassie Lang with her school's rules, only to end up getting too detailed with Lang's crimes, the laws it violated, and his deal with the government, for her to understand it.
Five years later, as a federal agent, he displayed considerably better social and leadership skills, such as when he greeted Monica Rambeau learning Lang's card tricks. He is shown to be courageous, moral, and adaptable, as he was quickly able to operate without S.W.O.R.D.'s help when Tyler Hayward expressed his extreme plans against Scarlet Witch. His capabilities as a leader enabled him to flexibly work his way out of disadvantageous situations, such as escaping being arrested from S.W.O.R.D., being able to call for backup without Hayward noticing.
Abilities[]
"All right, everybody, gather around. The pharmacy is the best spot for medical. And evidence collection can begin in the hardware store, Miguel. Let's move. Monica!" "Authority looks good on you, Jimmy."
Woo was the leader of the FBI group that pursued Scott Lang during his house arrest. Concurrently, he also pursued fugitives, Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne. This required him to make many decisions to get a better lead. Admittedly, he let many hints slip past him. After the Westview Anomaly, Woo stayed behind to direct the commotion and make way for clean up.
Expert Investigator: Woo is a federal agent and a former S.H.I.E.L.D. operative, hence, he is familiar with search procedures. He investigated the Westview anomaly, partnering with S.W.O.R.D. and several scientists to uncover the reality of what was transpiring.
Expert Combatant: Due to his experiences as a S.H.I.E.L.D. and a federal agent, Woo is highly skilled in hand-to-hand combat and could incapacitate several S.W.O.R.D. agents with minimal effort.
Equipment[]
Weapons[]
Glock 17: Woo's sidearm as a federal agent is a Glock 17. It is holstered for the majority of the time, except for when Monica Rambeau borrowed it to test the durability of her 1970s-style outfit.
Scott Lang's House: Woo and his team entered Lang's house several times while he was under house arrest, usually by force, breaking open the front door and running up the stairs. This irritated Maggie Lang each time she was there when they came.
In the comics, Jimmy Woo was an agent of the FBI who joined S.H.I.E.L.D. during his senior years, only to be rejuvenated in a mission and establish the Agents of Atlas with his former super-powered teammates.
