The First Frost

Awsome, healing story - Bai Jing Ting and Zhang Ruo Nan did a fantastic job

I've read the novel and i liked it.
It's a difficult story and I have had mixed emotion about the adaptation and some reservation on the leads too.
I was very excited and i had reserved the show, but later with some fearcaused by other novel with bad adaptation i started watching it only the second day, but i really really loved it.

I think it's wonderful, a work of poetry, a true masterpiece.
I loved the story, the adaptation, the soundtrack, the actors... everythings are absolutely perfect.

The actors gave such depth to the characters...
I really don't understand the haters, the novel reader's haters.
It's true that there are little differences, but which adaptation doesn't have it and here the overall story remain the same.

My characters image of the protagonists were slightly different from the adaptation but i admit that i really loved this interpretation.
The leads actor did a very good job, from the expression to the clothes style.

The pace was very slow, because the story is so, therefore i hope who doesn't know the story to give a little more time before giving up because it's worth. The episodes became better and better and i think it's difficult to watch such a satisfactory last episode.

I loved the attention the production gave to every single detail in the story.
I loved how they showed what wasn't written in the original story, but It makes sense as of an other pov, on the personality and actions described in both the novels.
It really gave you new insight of the story.

The soundtrack really fit the story.

It's a very healing story.

The script and the dialog are very well written and contain many quotes from the novel.
Rewatch the story is very recommanded because the story, the dialog and also because every time you can spot new details.

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Masterpiece

Best love story ever!
The script and dialog so beautifully and poetically written - so many phrases and lines and movie clips I want to remember forever. The plot draws you in from the get go and never lets go of you with anticipation of what is next for the characters surprising you with the playfulness of real people, drawing upon such real depictions of real families and their relationships good and bad and how people journey through life and love. Never too exaggerating nor understating the pain or sorrow or joys and happy times. The acting - omg kudos to them all! With the actors I smiled, I laughed, got embarrassed, blushed like a schoolgirl, cried like a baby, felt their sorrows and hurts, disappointments, got really mad, remembered the feelings of longing and regret, and loneliness, healing from trauma to finding courage and acceptance and joy on the road to peace and happiness and lasting trust and love. The director and all the crew I’m giving up you my very enthusiastic thumbs up for such a masterpiece production! Thank you!

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Let me be willful. I will wait for you to come to me.

A story of healing and love that never asks anything in return.

A perfect portrayal of handling trauma and a pure intention of providing safety and comfort to one another.

Wen Yifan is a broken person who experienced many traumas and never had a warm home after her father died. This drama shows how a bad experience can lead to her distancing herself even from the man she loves. They handle it perfectly, and we see her slow progress of healing.

Sang Yan... ahhhh. This guy... Every time we see his effort for Yi Fan, it is just wonderful. He respects her boundaries. He listens. He sees her. struggle. He silently helps her. He's the perfect portrayal of how we deal with hurt people. We respect their boundaries and wait for them to open up.

What a lovely journey. This is a story that will stay in my heart but cannot be rewatched fully. I just want to watch those beautiful moments and the way Sang Yan punches that uncle. :)

Great OST. I kept playing them for weeks.
I'm glad I gave this a chance because I do not watch much when it comes to contemporary drama.

overall: 9.5/10

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Will make you pray to have their kind of love.

This is probably my new fav cdrama. i felt and experience different kinds emotions watching every episodes. i legit cried in the last ep, the whole proposal scene. i am single my whole life, but i guess, relationship and marriage is not scary after all if i have a "Sang Yan"
both lead actor/actress gives justice to the role, their chemistry is soo 🤌🔥 couldnt think of anyone who can pull off the role of Sangyan and Yifan better than the two of them.
i never post reviews here in MDL despite being a k/cdrama fan for more than a decade, but i am this time, that is how good this drama is 💯🥹 in fact
i am actually rewatching it again hahaha i am just too attached to this drama, i still can let it go lol

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It had its positives and negatives

I was never more surprised to see so many 10s, so I wanted to add a counteropinion. There were good parts to this show; however, I wouldn’t have kept going if it wasn’t for my love of Hidden Love. It just didn’t start out well. The acting was stiff and San Yang (my favoritest of brothers) was an a**hole.

I was disappointed in their characterization of San Yang. They made him an emotionally immature, manipulative, lying man at the beginning. And I'm sure they made the excuse that “he was that way because of her.” But that is victim-blaming. It doesn't make him an appealing male lead or a green flag male lead when he acted that way towards her, no matter how devoted and sweet he was in the flashbacks. Yes, he was a beautiful, understanding, supportive boyfriend - a green-flag male lead throughout their relationship, but that doesn't excuse his behavior beforehand. He even had to make false excuses just to be nice to her. Prideful. That’s a good word. He hid when he helped her and he lied about what she did when she slept walked – and made her feel really bad about it too. I was hoping we were transitioning away from the mean, low EQ male leads, so I was really disappointed by this.

Also, their acting was bad in the beginning (or they were just playing wooden characters). I honestly only kept up with it because I loved Hidden Love so much. I did feel like their acting improved, their chemistry improved, and their characterizations overall improved. But I still can't get over his original toxic character and my original impression of their bad acting.

HOWEVER, I will say that they handled the abuse and harassment storyline very well, never victimizing her, with San Yang

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Romantic & Aesthetic but ML lacks depth

I’m sad cause I really wanted to like this. I’m a big of the writer’s previous projects and I loved the casting for main and second couple.

But what kept me from loving this show was how little the show let us get to know the ML. The FL dealing with trauma she experienced and breaking societal norms about family ties was beautifully well written. She seemed docile and gentle during a majority of the show but really showed her back bone during scenes that mattered. Highlighting that she was not going be your typical “victim”

However because this was a romance, I found it off putting that we knew next to nothing about the ML. What was his family situation like that made him seem so distant and cold? what was his dynamics with his parents and his sister before and after they went to college? what about the FL healed him enough for him to wait all thos years and become so dedicated to her? what was the internal dialogue of his feeling towards her?

We never really see what type of person the ML is besides being a lover and protector of the FL. Because of that the sweet scenes seemed bland and the heavier scenes left you wanting more of what the ML was thinking.

Still worth the watch if you have the time for 32 episodes but definately a bit dissapointing.

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Not Bad, But Could Have Been Better

I’d rate this drama a 5/10 because, despite some strong moments, the flaws stood out more than the positives.

The second couple’s storyline, especially the grandparent plot, felt dull and unnecessary. The emotional payoff for Su Hao An’s character didn’t land, making those scenes feel empty. Sang Yan’s character lacked depth beyond his love for Wen Yi Fan, which came across as obsessive rather than romantic. The Hong Kong arc was another major issue it erased previous character growth and made Sang Yan look weak.

I also wish Duan Jiaxu and Sang Zhi had a bigger presence, as their interactions could have helped develop Sang Yan’s character further.

But this drama isn’t completely bad there were some scenes I genuinely liked. Maybe if I rewatch it in the future, I’ll end up appreciating it more.

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First love, separation, trauma and undying devotion

Let me just start by saying that this drama absolutely bingeworthy but It doesn'thave much rewatch value for me. I liked A LOT better than hidden love which seemed like it was made for teens. This one is more mature than that. Is it funny and light? Yes! Its mostly light depsite heavy themes.

Plot - The plot is about two individuals and their journey from school to being working professionals. Its also about class differences, social deprivation, orphaned children and frienship but most importantly, its about the OLD SCHOOL ROMANCE and EVERLASTING LOVE

My only complaint is, the ML is a fantasy. His objectives aren't convincing enough realistically. However, he is perfectly enjoyable if you see it as a fairytale.

Romantic chemistry- I can see BJT doing heavylifting for the first 14 episodes at least. So, its Slowburn but still very watchable because of the angst. The ML is like the sun 🌞 in a dark and cold forest for her...

Direction and editing - the Style of direction is the highlight of this drama. The colors used gives you a feeling of a cozy blanket on a cold night. The darkness in dingy rooms is used well to describe the horrors and darkness in the character's life. Still, the overall vibe is deliberately kept warm and light. There are certain scenes where violence is not explicitly shown but the director has cleverly used blood and aftermath for impact.
The placement of the past SCHOOL memories is also excellent.

Acting- BJT is good as usual. However, I have seen him performing better in other dramas. The ML is slightly one dimensional for him to fully shine. Will you fall in love with him all over again? Absolutely! He made his character VERY DIFFERENT FROM SANG YAN FROM HIDDEN LOVE but still close to the novel lead. After 16 eps, I can't imagine any other actor doing it. The Female lead is pretty but needs improvement in the acting department. She is perfectly watchable but her character had IMMENSE scope for a good actor. There's so much she could have done. The co actors are all decent but the ones that particularly shine in the acting department are the mom of the FL and the little sister of ML. The LITTLE GIRL has done a fantastic job.

The second lead couple is also cute and enough time has been given for their story to grow properly. I liked that.

Interestingly, i end up dropping many dramas that are slow paced or have 32 episodes, but I KEEP COMING BACK TO THIS ONE. It has that x factor

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Imagination is indeed better than reality- Third time is not always the charm.

I remember eagerly awaiting this drama, checking and rechecking when it will be released week after week. Back then, this drama was perfect in my mind. Back then, I was better off.

The drama can eb easily divided in 2 parts-:
Part 1. Before The HK arc
-> A few flaws but I will ignore/forgive them, close to perfection

Part 2. HK arc and after
-> Absolute shitshow, all those bearable flaws are now glaring issues I can't look past

While I have a *lot* to say about all that happened, all that went wrong and all that should've been shown all I will say here is this- I am happy this came out last so I watched HL and WIFTY with all the love in my heart and I will go back to that perfect world where this didn't exist yet <3

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Borderline Stalker Ml

Honestly not to be that guy but I have a different perspective on this drama . Sang yan got away with a lot of behavior because he’s good looking .

Now I understand that the drama is mainly focused on the fl and how the ml is/has always been there for her but it gets to a point …
The fact that even after she rejected him , he still flew to her school city every month to catch glimpses of her and buy newspapers that she contributed to was weird in my opinion.

I feel him attending her graduation should’ve been enough . I let it go when he constantly followed her around during their high school days but in college too and after college ? That’s too much .

It would’ve been way better if the story was written that after the graduation he continued with his life then they met again and his feelings rekindled . Something along those lines would’ve been way better .

People are only letting it go because he’s good looking and she liked him . But if it was real life , that would be very scary and almost look like obsession . So good thing it’s a fictional story .

I hated how much the second leads story was so deeply intertwined with the grandparents. I honestly ended up skipping through all their scenes and didn’t even care about whatever they were discussing.

Asides these points I’ve listed out , I think it’s a lovely story and it’s nice to see a story that focuses on the fl and her life struggles .
The main couple had great chemistry .

Overall I think 24 episodes would’ve been enough if they had cut out all the unnecessary scenes from other characters.

It’s a memorable drama but I don’t think it’s something I’d like to rewatch but maybe if a cut version that shows only the main couple is released, I’d rewatch it .

Bye guys and thank you for reading to the end .
I’m glad I watched it while it aired as I got to connect with others online and see new edits with new episodes ❤️

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