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The First Shot - companion piece

Frost_edelweiss
under construction - moved from Mini profile Chapter 4

Table of Contents

(Clickable titles below link to the relevant section)


  1. Synopsis and Production details
  2. Airing and Promo
  3. Characters  (*)
  4. Setting  and other details
  5. Popularity
  6. Mazes
  7. OST Music

(*) scroll down if the title does not appear immediately on clicking

Sources :  MDL, Sohu, Baidu, Weibo, Wikipedia and other articles. (highlighted names or wordss link to sources ; all pictures and Gif link to their sources.

Note: This companion piece started as a chapter from the Mini Profile of Johnny Huang  and was moved to stand-alone here on 24-09-25     

To view the list of my other drama companion pieces (with links to them), check : HERE.

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1. The First Shot  : Synopsis and Production details

(32 episodes, 3-20  September 2024)  

(*) Note : "shot" can mean a bullet into a target, like the ones featured in the drama and main leads' Weibo pages, to refer to a police themed drama,  or to a "shot" of drugs, injected or drunk unawares or not with "shots" of alcohol.  Or to the first shot, picture of the team in their then new office, which was reminded of in the last episode, in Zheng Bei's memory, when the team finally moved on to new offices, and hung the picture on the wall. 

Synopsis from Youku :

 "The TV series "The First Shot," with Zhang Yimou as a first-time producer and Lü Xing as director, tells the story of Halan in Northeast in 1997, before the establishment of the Narcotics Control Bureau. Faced with a sudden drug crisis, a makeshift elite team is assembled, each with their own strengths but clueless about the new drug... As they confront the ruthless drug trafficking syndicate and unravel their devious and bizarre drug trafficking schemes, they must also navigate the moral dilemmas of love and law, and the tests of justice and humanity. They stand by each other and overcome all obstacles and challenges, forging a heroic legend of fighting evil and upholding justice."

Production details :

The drama was planned for several years before filming : "a producer of TFS posted a post on xiaohongshu thanking all in crew and Johnny Huang in particular : "Thanks Lao Huang, waited you for 4 years, worth it". [info provided by ADWG]

Dates and locations of filming : July-October 2023, Changchun (Jilin province), Guangdong, Hunan.

Pictures from shooting in right column : the "Manchukuo-era" (*) building near the People's Square in Changchun (长春), which was renamed "Halan City Public Security Bureau" (哈岚市公安局   Hālán shì gōng'ān jú) on  the low wall  --Wrap picture of October 25.

On August 12, 2024 Youku video reservations exceeded 2 million.
(*) Manchukuo was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China that existed from 1932 until its dissolution in 1945. Its capital was Changchun, with an imperial palace in which "emperor Puyi" resided with his wives, under the control of Japanese "advisors". 

Link back to Table of Contents                                                                                          Last updated 25-09-23

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2. Airing and promo :

The play was broadcast on  CCTV 8 from September 3, 2024, + simultaneously on Youku and Migu videos platforms.  It is part of the "White Night Theater" (白夜 Báiyè) thriller series.

The drama has its own social media Weibo and Douban pages, and has an entry on the Chinese web encyclopedia Baidu.

Trailer excerpt (from Douban, turned into a GIF by me; click on for full trailer) - introduction to the 5 officers strong drugs-ring busting team  : 
  • Zhāng Xuěyáo (张雪瑶) nicknamed "Mad Dog Yao" :  Chloe Xie /Xiè Kěyín 谢可寅
  • captain Zhèng Běi (郑北) :  Johnny Huang / Huáng Jǐngyú 黃景瑜
  • forensics expert Dīng Guózhù (丁国柱), played by  Zhào Yù Tóng   赵昱童
  • "muscle man  detective" Zhào Xiǎoguāng (赵晓光), played by  Liú Rùn Nán  刘润南
  •  chemicals expert Gù Yīrán (顾一燃) played by Wáng Zǐqí 王子奇
 direct link to watch it  on Youku's YouTube channel playlist : click on the picture above.
My GIF from the promo event of 2024-09-24, posted to YouTube, linked for full view; far left, Zhèng Nán :  Zhèng Běi's sister (Lín Bóyáng 林博洋), the five in the squad: Zhèng Běi (Huuáng Jǐngyú, waving) and Gù Yīrán (Wáng Zǐqí in tan jacket)...; far right: Xiǎohǎi (Zhāng Yǔ  章宇).		My GIF excerpt of the BTS "vlog" posted to YouTube, Sept.12, 2024  about sets, director (Lü Xing, offering a snack to HJY), etc.
  
My GIF version of Hoang Canh Du's short video on Youtube : "Johnny Huang comes back in Snow Maze" (give it a click to watch in full with music!)  It shows Johnny Huang /Huang Jingyu ("Zhèng Běi) with sunglasses ; Wáng Zǐqí ("Gù Yīrán") with eye glasses; Chloe Xie /Xiè Kěyín  (fight-happy "Zhāng Xuěyáo") investigating a club in Halan. 
My GIF from Zhèng Nán's funny attempt at flirting with Gù Yīrán the newcomer, professing her love of Yue language and Cantopop, and brushing off jealous Zhào Xiǎoguāng : a sweet interlude in the thrilling and convoluted, layered drugs-busting drama. (From a YouTube short, linked to view and listen to the dialogue in full)

Next:  Characters and Setting

Link back to Table of Contents                                                                                              Last updated 25-09-23

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3. Characters  and  setting :

From Elea Kayne on FB French fan site ; click on to enlarge.
20 Black and White cast and crew posters from the production.  (My GIF and annotations)

Notice in particular the inclusion of Qín Jùn Jié 秦俊杰   (playing Liáng Jiājū  粱嘉驹) in later episodes: his name was concealed from the initial cast list, but he is the second big name actor here (12.315 million fans on his Weibo) , after Johnny Huang (23.319 million fans) ; Wáng Zǐqí   is also very well-known (7.72 million fans)


Drama posters including the Mǎ Gē reveal one of Sept.20 : that poster has been added with details of cast mentioned, in the photo section on the drama page.

gangster Jiāng Xiǎohǎi 姜小海 (Zhāng Yǔ) and captain Zhèng Běi  郑北
drugstore manager Jiāng Yíngzǐ 姜迎紫 (Liàn Liàn 练练), adoptive sister of Xiǎohǎi (小海)
Zhào Xiǎoguāng (赵晓光), Zhāng Xuěyáo (张雪瑶), Dīng Guózhù (丁国柱), Zhèng Běi (郑北), Xīn Tiěgāng (辛铁钢), Director Gao (高局长 Gāo júzhǎng), Gù Yīrán (顾一燃)
My GIF from ep32, : the First/last shot  心中为人民 Xīnzhōng wéi rénmín （With people in hearts/”We serve the people”), of the setting up of the SIT (special investigation team) before it became the anti-drugs detachment of the Narcotics Control Commission, from the wistful memories of Zheng Bei, thinking of the one that had to part - leaving a small hope of his return, perhaps.

Dubbing and language:  Baidu doesn't mention any professional dubbers name, so presumably, all the cast was self dubbed, which is increasingly common in post-production. Some Cantonese (Yuè language 粤) was used on purpose, although the one who spoke it best was Lín Bóyáng (Zhèng Nán) according to dialect speaking audience. Most of the dialogues were in putonghua (Mandarin common language). But the drama official Weibo posted these snippets with the mention : "东北话十级考试，开始！" (Spoken Dongbei language exam, starting!") to introduce some North-eastern dialect accent and phrases: click on picture below to open the short video (24 seconds) and listen to the snippets!    (turned into GIF by me for illustration purpose):

 Link back to Table of Contents                                                                                              Last updated 25-09-23

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4. Other Details :



Realism :  The cinematography used very realistic lighting, such as in this Gif (from an article) which shows the dim lighting of the table lamp, and the car's headlamps briefly flashing through the window :

Looking for the real names inspiring those of the cities in this drama ? Here is a map of the Dongbei (North-East) region and "Halan" (哈岚) + "Shengcheng" (生成) cities between which the Special Investigation Team(s) (SIT) was(were) moving to hunt down drug dealers in 1997.  The actual filming took place in Changchun (长春) which has a long tradition of movie making. 


1997 : the main event of that year was the  handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China  on July 1st. This event ended 156 years of British rule in the former colony, which began in 1841.

Drugs : "Red Dragon" 红龙 [hóng lóng] and "ecstasy " 摇头丸 [yáotóuwán] pills ;  Methamphetamine 冰毒 [bīngdú] (nicknamed "Snow Angel" 雪天使 [xuě tiānshǐ] in Chinese, and "Lucifer"  in the translation for subtitles). 

Red Dragon.  'Chasing the dragon' was a form of heroin （海洛因 [hǎi luò yīn]） smoking, originating in or near Hong Kong in the 1950s, and refers to the ingestion of heroin by inhaling the vapours which result when the drug is heated-typically on tin-foil above a flame. 

Ectasy ("E", "X", or "XTC"), aka MDMA (3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine) was used to enhance psychotherapy beginning in the 1970s and became popular as a street drug in the 1980s. MDMA is commonly associated with dance parties, raves, and electronic dance music. Tablets sold as ecstasy may be mixed with other substances such as ephedrine, amphetamine, and methamphetamine.

 Link back to Table of Contents                                                                                              Last updated 25-09-23

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5. Popularity and Reception of the drama

The First Shot Popularity :  Youku Heat index monitored by Dreams: 
Highest peak: 10 000+
  • 09/19 -> 10 000
  • 09/09 -> 9 500
  • 09/07 -> 9 000
  • 09/06 -> 8 500
  • 09/05 -> 8 000
  • 09/05 -> 7 500
  • 09/04 -> 7 000
  • 09/04 -> 6 500
  • 09/04 -> 6 000

The drama had a popularity of over 7,000 on the site within 24 hours of its debut.

Weekly popularity in China as monitored by Marcus Sim : 

  • #4   (week ending September 8)
  • #1 (week->Sept.15) ; 595 points 
  • #1(week -> Sept.22)  ; 583 points


On the international side, it is more difficult to evaluate, since it depends on platforms with subtitled versions in foreign languages, and this drama is not available on the most popular Viki one; Youku can be difficult to access for foreign audiences. But it is uploaded (more slowly than on original platform) on the Youku English channel of YouTube (See above for direct link and presentation). Number of audience clicks were recorded at 22k for Episode 2, and an average of 10-15k  for other episodes until 15 ; upload has now reached Episode 19 (Sept 20).

Douban opening rating : not yet

Review excerpts from Beijing Daily, 2024-09-13  of the beginning episodes, quoted on Baidu (My translation)  : "In terms of narrative strategy, "Snow Maze" strives to combine the daily life of criminal police officers with the sense of urgency of criminal investigation and drug investigation. In the opening stage, the story first shapes the protagonist group of the task force according to the drama group portrait method. "Snow Maze" is a suspense-themed drama. This type of story usually advances linearly, using the suspense of the case and the detection process to achieve its effect. "Snow Maze" reflects the overlapping of genres.  [... But] The group portraits spread out in "Snow Maze" will not be aimless, and the character lines will converge as the story develops. "

Testimonials about Huang Jingyu's acting in The First Shot, from the comment by ADWG :
"Johnny is well receiving the praises that he deserves. He was praised by national TV channel CCTV : https://weibo.com/7735105675/5081707068260999   [Note: the link provides an option for automatic translation into English]
Datawin update about Johnny's strength and praise of him : https://weibo.com/1104220301/5081055940580762 [also has option for translation]
Link to : Mini Profile of Johnny Huang            

My final review of 23 Sept.2024

Link back to Table of Contents                                                                                              Last updated 25-09-23

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6. Mazes

Shooting first, here is my GIF version of the interesting 9 linked "movie micro bits"  posted to the Chinese social media Weibo account of Johnny Huang / Huang Jingyu, related to his latest aired work in 2024 :  The First Shot (Snow Maze) the drugs-ring busting team thriller drama.

In the original post, the three last frames feature sentences that were said aloud, but I can't get sound in here. Click on links to find the spoken bits ! 

See below in "More Actors / Actress mazes from Oct.3, 2024 " under Characters and Settings, the similar design "targets/mazes/round Chinese style design" or "blind boxes" from the Weibo pages of actors Wang Ziqi,  Zhao Yutong, Liu Runnan, and Xie Keyin for September 3.

More Actors / Actress mazes from Oct.3, 2024  :




From: Zhào Yù Tóng Weibo    ["Dīng Guózhù"]            From : Xiè Kěyín Weibo ["Zhāng Xuěyáo"]




From: Liú Rùn Nán Weibo   ["Zhào Xiǎoguāng"]               From : Wáng Zǐqí  Weibo  ["Gù Yīrán"]
My GIFversions from the actors and actress Weibo pages

 Link back to Table of Contents                                                                                              Last updated 25-09-23

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7. OST Music 

(click on highlights to listen or for more information)
[*] 李香蘭  Lǐ Xiānglán (or Li Hsiang-Lan) was the name of a singer of Japanese descent born in 1920 in the Dongbei region, presented as Chinese by the Japanese occupiers in Manchukuo. She went by the name Li Xianglan or Ri Koran, and was later known as Yoshiko Yamaguchi,  She gained sulfurous fame for singing songs become "Shanghai classics" like  "Yè Lái Xiāng 夜來香" (Evening Tuberose/Fragrance of the Night) but even more for being used by Japanese army propaganda to broadcast messages.Picture from The Guardian, 22 Sept 2014 ; read the interesting feature by Roger Macy, linked, which has links to YouTube collections of her songs.

Some were meant to taunt the Americans after Pearl Harbor.  After the Second World War, despite being considered as a spy and a traitor in China, she still managed to stay on stage, became an actress working with famous director Akira Kurosawa, next as a  journalist in Japan. She even  worked as an actress the USA and Canada, as Shirley Yamaguchi on Broadway and in Hollywood (appearing in  movies: 1952 "Japanese War Bride", 1955 "House of Bamboo", 1956 "Navy Wife". She was denied reentry in the US because she had befriended Charlie Chaplin. Next, she  returned to film movies in Hong Kong. She lived for a while in Burma (now Myanmar) and returned again for good to Japan in 1969, until her death at age 94 in Tokyo on September 7, 2014. She was elected as a member of the Japanese parliament in 1974, and served for 18 years.  She had used more than 10 names, Ri Koran being the one she herself wrote an autobiography for. 

 Link back to Table of Contents                                                                                              Last updated 25-09-23 

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