Joyce Kim

Joyce Kim (Ally Maki) was one of Leonard's former girlfriends and a n spy. The two dated for 27 days, after which Joyce defected back to North Korea, as Howard and Raj recalled in "The White Asparagus Triangulation" (S02E09). She has been mentioned several times and seen once.

Overview


Joyce Kim was mentioned in the pilot (S01E01), "The Codpiece Topology" (S02E02) and "The White Asparagus Triangulation" (S02E09). She appears in flashbacks shown during "The Staircase Implementation" (S03E22).

In 2003, Leonard was working on at the time under a  contract and Joyce Kim was a spy attempting to obtain information on his work by  him and report it back to her government. Luckily, Sheldon unknowingly stopped her, after he intruded on their, claiming Leonard had violated the roommate agreement. Leonard agreed to give Sheldon a 12 hour notice before having guests over, but he hadn't known Joyce Kim for 12 hours before he had her over. It is unknown when she will appear again, if ever.

Later in The Apology Insufficiency (S04E07) she is mentioned by Sheldon during Howard's job interview.

Triva

 * In the  "The Staircase Implementation", Leonard says that he had known Joyce Kim for only 12 hours, though previously it was stated that they were together for 27 days in "The White Asparagus Triangulation" (S02E09).
 * In "The Staircase Implementation", Leonard says Joyce Kim was a North Korean spy, though in "The White Asparagus Triangulation" it was stated that she defected to North Korea while dating Leonard. The word defect implies a change of (military) allegiance, whereas a spy's allegiance never changes, only is kept secret while on a mission. This may be an inappropriate use of the term defect, as "Joyce" (probably not her real name if a spy) is otherwise always spoken of as if she were a spy.
 * It can also be thought that she prostituted herself, as she used her beauty and seduction to gain more information. However, such methods are common and considered quite "normal" in espionage.