Some of the more interesting questions from the Post included:

New York: "I suppose it's hard to separate your own personal career from broader demographic trends, but do you think there are more roles for Asian actors these days, specifically for men?

Michael Paul Chan: Off-hand I can count at least 4 AA male series regulars. In the past 20 years I would normally count 1 per season. Now, how many are portraying American born? Half that. I count that. Because, half my career was portraying foreigners.

Atlanta: In your career, what has been your most challenging role?

Michael Paul Chan: It's usually the role that's on the table. There's always something to explore to make it more than what's on the page. That's an actor's job. Tao presents a lot of interesting things to play with. I do things to make him more than just a "computer nerd" and hopefully this season you will see that!

Los Angeles: What were some of the more valuable lessons you learned at the Conservatory Theater School? Do you think you could have acted successfully without such training?

Michael Paul Chan: I remember my acting teacher would tell us, that a lot of what we were trying to learn would not sink in for another 15 years! A scary thought, but quite true. I still grab onto the same principles I learned years ago when I approach my work. I've been doing this quite sometime and I am quite sure it would not have been this way had I not studied my craft properly. I wasn't particularly good looking, I didn't know martial arts, I am a person of color, etc.

Naples, FL: Hi Michael! Are we going to learn anything new about Lt. Tao this season?

Michael Paul Chan: Yes, he's human!!!!

Arlington, VA: I loved the episode set in Chinatown where Lt. Tao was asked to tell the Chinese-speaking crowd to move back and he started yelling in English to "Move Back!" And it's interesting that he's married to a Japanese-American and the different perspective it gives him. It's great to see a TV show that doesn't regard "Asian" culture as a monolith. It'd be wonderful if the series could explore his background more (although given the variety of interesting characters in the show, it must be hard for the writers to choose!)

Michael Paul Chan: I'm glad we got that episode out of the way, and cleared the path for a deeper exploration of Tao, which we will see this season. Our show is the most diverse on TV, and we've never made a big deal out of it, which is quite cool! So, when we begin to dig deeper into the other characters, it won't just be about surface stuff, like color.

Boston: Follow-up to the question about Asians with recurring TV roles: Are you noticing more casting directors are willing to pick Asians (and others) for roles that aren't written race-specific but would traditionally have "defaulted" to a white actor?

Michael Paul Chan: I think the individual actor has more to do with it than a casting director. It's difficult for all actors to land roles. You get picked cuz you're good. If you're a person of color, it will get noticed. that's how it works here, so far...

I noticed that as the Q&A continued, Chan was asked a different variation of the same question: What are the challenges of Asian American actors in the entertainment industry? An important question, but I can imagine it gets a bit tiresome.