The First Frost

Guarenteed Bittersweet, Slowburn, & Gentle Smirks

Overall, delicate production and visually pleasing. Lovely acting and chemistry between Bai and Ruonan, raising up my curiosity every upcoming episode. The back and forth flow of the story makes a bitter, rather sweet feeling. Those who are looking for a drama that offers portrayal of everyday life and it's tough, but real challenges of the world, and just contents that makes you lowkey smirk, this slow-burning pace will surely entice you! Reminds you of how imperfect human are, and how one action after another will change a person as a whole, whether it's an awful deed, or a positive one.

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Story is good, but i feel no chemistry ?

The story is actually good, the conflict is kinda heavy and complicated yet it is wrapped in a very unique and interesting story. The plot & scene is somewhat unique, flashbacking & fast forwarding as well as surprise scene at the end of each episode

however why i dont feel any chemistry between the main lead ( sang yan & wen yi fam) 😖 idk if its a bad act or smth but the feel is not theree ( compared to both zhuyi’s drama; hidden love and wifty) the couple doesnt really seem to ‘deeply fall in love’. Early episode is kinda boring ( fell asleep while watching 😭), gloomy mood, whispering convo, had to dropped but forcing myself to watchh.

in conclu : story’s good but sorry to say i dont like the act of both main leads :(

[EDIT] : It keeps getting better!! early episode is too boring for me, it is a very SLOW BURN drama, i started to enjoy more of the episode from ep 17/18 i guess. the chemistry is getting better towards the end. well afterall, the storyline is what’s keeping me watching till the end.

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Heartwarming love story that got shadowed with poor story telling~~

So basically I am in a kind of slump where I want to enjoy the dramas but have lost patience for it. When I started this drama I got invested in it so it means this was good stuff. But (as always there is a but) everything stopped making sense after 16-17 episodes. My issues were pretty similar to the pea size audience who had mixed feelings amongst the seas that rated it 10.

1. The number of episodes- They were too long as the story had limited content. This was entirely one woman's story and didn't require 32 episodes. The storytelling through a book is different from that through television. You can write lengthy words and be repetitive which you can't do on TV. The attention span of the audience is much lower with the TV. To cover that all sorts of plots got screentime which added 0 to the theme of production/story like the intern actor or best friend couple and the grandpa story. The mixing of all the plots didn't go well and i ff a lot (ngl pretty much entire section).

2. Sang Yan's character- Pretty bland. The actor is hot and made it look good but there's so much he can do. SY didn't have any solid writing apart from being a romantic interest. I would have taken it had the drama been for superficial masala consumption. Giving so much depth to FL with a flat ML was disappointing. Funny I had this complaint for years about naive FLs, i guess times have changed now. >_<

3. The good part- FL was written brilliantly and the actress did a good job. I was invested in her story. I loved how she worked hard to overcome her circumstances and glad didn't give second chances to people who betrayed her. The romance was so good.

Conclusion- I feel they didn't speak enough of her trauma instead used it to move the romance forward for which i was not satisfied. I lost interest after the second time she left him. It didn't make much sense. That was the breaking point for me and i pretty much skipped scenes thereon. The union was literally the most disappointing with no real explanation.

All in all I won't be so hard on recommending this but if someone wants to watch casual one time dramas then sure go for it. Skipping scenes is always a way out.

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Too less and Too much

Too less of angst, and too much slow-paced. Starting of the story actually made me feel so much confusion especially that it didn't explain much about how they actually knew each other from the start, it felt complicated. And so, it made me feel pause-stop-rewatch situation during the first few episodes of the show. However, ending it also made me feel like it lacked something - more moments of them together.

Story-wise, it is quite boring at the first few episodes, and it only got me hooked by around the 5th one. Ever since then, I slowly kept up with the story - until the separation arc. To be honest, it felt quite good that there's a part of the show that they inserted it, but then, it also didn't move me much. As for Sang Yan, I can see how his character yearned so much. Yi Fan, however, it made me felt too cold since there is not much really showing how she yearned for him during their separation, or how much she tried to check him out or something - unlike Sang Yan who would literally scavenge the whole world for her. I believe that it's one of the downsides of the story, and it made me feel that the scriptwriter only added that for the sake of the viewers to miss them being together. Yi Fan clearly has an avoidant attachment issue, but they also missed out of her actually reassuring Sang Yan that she won't do it again. She did tell Sang Yan to never disappear again when they dated, but it happened for the second time, what's the possibility of actually her not doing it for the third time? I hope they would've added a scene where another issue arise and she did not leave again, that at least would be a very good reassurance. I felt kind of bad for Sang Yan at that point, 'cause it honestly felt that he is only there whenever it's convenient for Yi Fan, and I don't think anyone is as patient as Sang Yan regarding that. Yi Fan may have been some traumas regarding her past, but her realization during the separation, did not once even come to her mind how she can show a strong reassurance towards Sang Yan to never ever leave again, especially that he is her only family other than her best friend? Which is why, it felt off for me on this part. Another lacking part of the story is the less justice towards women like Yi Fan, I think they deserve more limelight, like at least a little revenge for what generally happen, so it gives the viewers a little satisfaction too. For instance, how that uncle suffered after, and such.

Character-wise, Sang Yan is not a very complicated one, he loves Yi Fan - that is very straightforward right at the beginning. He has some moment where he felt confused and a bit impatient of his feelings towards her, but it somehow is understandable knowing he has always felt that way ever since before. However, I see Sang Yan as somewhat of a static character, other than knowing Yi Fan's past, I don't really see no major changes about him. He has always been caring towards her, soft, gentle, and a lover boy - which what everybody wants as a male lead, but it would have been nice to see him being vulnerable too (except for the separation arc ofc). But then, it is also understandable if there's not really showing off much story about him as a person since the show is basically not his to tell, but Yi Fan's - as the show's title is the meaning of her name. It would have been much better if we can see a different side of Sang Yan though, other than his good ones. On the other hand, Yi Fan as a character is actually very well rounded and dynamic, she slowly changed from being a silent one who loves to keep her feelings to herself, into someone who is brave enough to make changes for her future. And I think, this is part of the reason why both Sang Yan and Yi Fan worked good together, since one person is changing the other one for goodness.

As per the acting, both actors do actually have the chemistry, and are pretty good at showing empathetic emotion, especially Zhang Rou Nan. This is the first drama of her that I've ever watched, and this is convincing me to try her other dramas in the future as well. As per the OSTs, it did not really give much impression towards me, so I can't really say that it's good or bad, it just depends on the preference of who listens to it.

Overall, this drama is pretty good if you are into light dark romances. It too less angst, since I think the villains could've gotten more karma for what they did, but also too much of a slow-paced that there's some plot holes that could've added more to the story. Both the actor's chemistry is undeniable, and the supporting characters story are pretty much interesting as well and didn't bore me out unlike the other dramas. This drama is not generally one of my top modern ones, but it could work out for some.

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greatest love that heals wounds and puts the happiness of the loved one first

Sang yan's love is a love defined by quiet devotion- a love that persists despite rejection, distance and time without expecting anything in return. A love that help him to grow brightly. It's that kind of love where he silently cherishes and supports her,even from afar, never forcing his feelings but always be present. He respects her boundaries, and waits, believing one day, when she is ready, she will find her way to him, open her heart to him. This is a love that stands the test of time- SILENT YET UNWAVERING, DISTANT YET EVER-PRESENT. It's a love that doesn't fade but instead waits in silent hope. She didn't confess before but her untold words, were enough for him to heard and wait. Maybe there are Sang yans out there but all cannot hear those untold words for they leave.
Sang yan is too much fictional even for fictional world.

I’m not obsessed with Bai Jing Ting, but I can’t imagine anyone else playing this role better than him. He made me fall in love with Sang Yan—his arrogance and deep love were just perfect.

Ruonan was really incredible in portraying Yi Fan’s suffering till i'm crying along with her.

Also for Qiao and Hao’an really brought the story to life. Their journey, especially alongside An’s grandparents, was so touching. Their playful, cheerful, yet sharp personalities were such a joy to watch. i guess we should also thank Wang Lin Lin for the rental house and Xiang Lang for mentioned Hong Kong, right?
And of course, Zhi and Sang Yan’s parents, who were full of love. Mu Cheng Yun and A Sen also deserve a mention—some of their words really helped Yi Fan realize her next steps.

Yi Fan is incredibly strong, going through life with a calm exterior. And Sang Yan’s overwhelming love had the biggest impact on her—it gave her strength and made him willing to change so much just to be with her. Even though Sang Yan feels almost too good to be true in this world, I still hope… may this kind of love find me.

The First Frost was my first cdrama in 2025, waited bcs Hidden Love and it was really worth to wait💞

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Good Drama

Very good drama. I liked the ending especially since this drama was 32 episodes, viewers may of forgotten key events and the flashback of it in the end was very nice. Haven't really seen a drama do this in a while.

Romance and execution of it was nice as the plot wasn't smooth sailing the whole time. There were ups and downs along the way, especially FL suffering trauma from family issues. Personally it was a very slow start to the ep so I don't think 32 eps is needed and it would be better if it was shortened. The grandpa plot was quite boring and they shouldn't be focused as much. I didn't mind Si Qiao and Hao An being together and having their own part. Just the grandparents mainly.

I think that episode 24 was when it started to get interesting. Very good as there was some sort of action in the drama when it's 24 episodes in, otherwise it would get very boring if it was constantly just romance. I think that was the moment where I wanted to find out more of what happens in the next ep. Very good acting from Xing De.

What I don't like is the FL fleeing for the second times to Hong Kong. 6 months too. That is a very long time and it doesn't make sense to me why she fled the second time. Did she not learn from the first time? Where was the personal development in this - can't be realistic I know since it is a drama after all so I will let it slide. Also wished they added a scene when FL found out that the ML was the one he was talking to in the game they were playing (his username was cool also as it was 败将 with the second character being Wen ShuangJiang and the overall word meaning to lose/being defeated so the metaphor is 'lost to Wen Shuang Jiang').

At the start was childhood times and then at the end was a more detailed version of a scene that had occured not long ago
Beginning of the episode had a few words with elipsis. Then end of the episode it completes the sentence. This was unique


For the below, don't think you will understand if you aren't Chinese.

What was the odds of FL teaching dance speaking Mandarin in Hong Kong. Majority speak Cantonese but can speak Mandarin but the clubs are usually Cantonese. I have never really seen clubs that speak Mandarin mainly. When FL was working in HKG and the owner of the restaurant scolded her in Cantonese, that was funny because in reality it is the same 'harshness'. Atleast they had an actual Hong Kong person be in charge of the dance (could tell from his accent that he wasn't a native speaker - making it more HK authentic).
In Episode 31, on the blackboard there was a love heart with a bunch of text in it. This was very interesting as it was like a poem with the use of lots of metaphors foreshadowing things that will happen to a human being.
The last line of Episode 32 using the word '哄' is quite nice as the title is translated 'hard to comfort. Don't really know how to explain this to be honest.
Good reference to the Chinese Calendar 'Shuang Jiang' along with the snowflakes - I kinda forgot what date this was when I first got introduced to it in the drama (haven't seen this term in a while).

Overall, in my opinion on the drama, I think that this had funny moments as there were some inside joke that was played that did make me laugh on some of them. Some people didn't like this drama as they said 'the 2 of them don't have chemistry'. In my opinion they do as I rate it based off how playful they are and their personality.

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Fluffy yet angsty

March 19, 2025

WAW. This is probably the first drama that I finished and did not drop for this year.

First Frost is a heavy drama I must say, given the FL background and how she deals with her mental health. This drama for sure is not like Hidden Love although they are part of the same universe.

I understand why this show has gained a traction in popularity with the viewers and I think it is pretty well deserved. The plot was pretty decent, I did think that some subplots for the second leads or other characters could have been slimmed down. There are instances where I feel like they took over a whole episodes and that could have been given to the leads.

I think that the chemistry we have here is through the roof. Sang Yan's is the greenest, a whole forest type of man. FOR SURE HE ONLY EXISTS IN FAIRYTALE FICTIONAL LAND BUT I HOPE HE EXISTS. A MAN CAN DREAM AM I RIGHT

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SUCH A GREAT EXPERIENCE TO BE ABLE TO WATCH THIS SHOW

When I wanted to watch it for the first time, I had no idea that this was a hidden love spin-off. So let's say I neither was prejudiced against it nor hyped for it. I just saw the poster(not the main one on MyDramaList), thought it looked super nice and gave it a try. And Girl was this show soooo my cup of tea;)))
it think the most important aspect of romantic shows is the acting of the main characters and first frost NAILED it. Everything about the acting was on point. I absolutely deeply felt the longing and angst of the ML and the pain of the FL. The way they hugged each other , their chemistry and everything about them touched my heart. let's say these two live on my mind rent free even after almost a year.( and I mean Sang Yan is really handsome so that indeed plays a huge role:))) )
About the story, I can say it's not a brand new one but the way it is executed, makes it worthy and unforgettable. it tackles with dark subjects like SA and worse but the overall vibe of the show is light. However, It is more mature than most dramas of this genre. Some storylines weren't the best but it can be overlooked; at least it didn't bother me that much.
If you look for a romance show with generally mature plotlines and great acting, then you must give it a try. you will most probably enjoy the heck out of it.

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This drama was the perfect balance between emotional depth, humor, and constant support from both partners. Trust me, there were definitely hard traumatic parts to watch, like Wen Yifan's back-story. But, I loved seeing their journey from childhood at school all the way to adulthood. Sang Yan is the ideal partner in a relationship. Throughout everything they went through together, he never stopped loving her and always protected her through everything. I genuinely have no criticisms for this drama. Also, I have like this whole drama's OST soundtrack on my playlist so...another plus!

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