Starring: Bai Jingting, Zhang Ruonan, Edward Chen, Zhang Miaoyi
One of the most popular modern-day Chinese dramas is The First Frost, which tells the story of Yi Fan, a reporter, and Sang Yan, one of the owners of a bar called Overtime.
When Yi Fan, a reporter, first encounters Sang Yan, one of the owners of a bar called Overtime, they both pretend not to know each other. But before they were strangers, they were friends—sweethearts, even, during their high school days. Now, they are both awkward and avoidant of each other. But as fate would have it, they find themselves accidentally becoming housemates and getting a second chance with each other.
The First Frost starts by narrating present-day events. Beautifully interwoven into the story are flashbacks that give us glimpses of Sang Yan and Wen Yi Fan—how they met, how they became good friends, and how they eventually parted before meeting again several years down the road.
Note: For lovers of Hidden Love, this is a spin-off of Sang Zhi’s brother, Sang-Yan, although none of the actors are the same. When Victor Ma was invited to take on the role, he turned it down, saying that he wasn’t suited to play sweet, romantic roles.
Haven’t seen Hidden Love yet? Here’s why you should watch it:
1. You’re looking for a beautiful slow-burn romance.
The First Frost doesn’t rush you into Sang Yan and Yi Fan’s love story, with them getting together after the first few episodes. Their love story is slow to develop as Yi Fan is slow to trust—especially coming from a childhood trauma. What makes it so endearing, however, is how Sang Yan goes out of his way to assure Yi Fan that he has good intentions—and that he wants to look out for her.
For fans and avid readers of Persuasion, there’s a scene that feels so similar to the one when Anne and Captain Harville are talking about loving and forgetting, and Captain Wentworth can’t help but overhear. During one of those impromptu dinners, Su Hao An randomly talks about loving and forgetting, and Sang Yan declares it isn’t easy to forget—especially not when you have loved so deeply.
Every moment builds up slowly until Yi Fan realizes the depth of her feelings for Sang Yan, as well as the intensity of his feelings for her, which never faded even after their years of separation.
2. You want a drama that shows the depth and beauty of friendships.
Amidst the more somber moments surrounding Yi Fan’s life, there is a ray of sunshine in the form of her friend, Si Qiao. Yi Fan and Si Qiao have been friends through thick and thin—and Si Qiao is the only one Yi Fan has remained in contact with through the years. Si Qiao is also the only one who has seen some of Yi Fan’s most vulnerable sides—with the incident that happened to her years ago, and with Sang Yan coming back into her life again.
The First Frost also highlights what starts as a cautious friendship between Si Qiao and Sang Yan’s best buddy and business partner, Su Hao An, but later blossoms into something more. Hao An is your typical playboy from a well-off family, living a comfortable, somewhat posh life, but not without its own pains from childhood. Si Qiao is the eldest daughter, working hard, often doing odd jobs so that her parents, younger siblings, and grandparents can live comfortably enough. Theirs is a unique, yet endearing story of learning to look out for one another and then eventually care for each other.
3. You want something that will make you laugh and cry.
The First Frost is not without laughs. Despite the more serious parts of the story, some scenes will have you chuckling or kicking your feet with glee. Bai Jing Ting and Zhang Ruo Nan have insane chemistry and bring their characters to life in such a wonderful way—with the side glances, the small smiles, the little nuances that they add to their characters.
Once they start becoming more comfortable with each other and their dynamic as housemates, they slowly start falling into the habit of looking out for one another and trusting each other. Sang Yan insists on taking the smaller room, but splitting the bills evenly. He also slowly starts teasing Yi Fan again, making her blush, and Yi Fan starts giving Sang Yan the hint that maybe, maybe, just maybe, they can start something new.
Of course, the series isn’t without the tearjerker moments, especially when Sang Yan looks out for Yi Fan. He buys her groceries, cooks for her, pretends that there were too many people in their household so she didn’t have to spend Chinese New Year alone. In one of the most touching moments, he buys her chicken soup, telling her that he bought it for her especially—a scene that’s made more meaningful when we see how her aunt treated her in the past.
4. You’re looking for a healing Chinese drama.
The First Frost doesn’t just narrate the events surrounding Yi Fan’s trauma and Sang Yan’s response to them. There is healing, too. Mostly by Yi Fan, who finds the courage to step into the light, bit by bit. And a large chunk of it is due to Sang Yan, who takes it upon himself to care for her in every possible way, to make sure she knows she is loved, she is considered—if not by the people around her, at least, by him.
Sang Yan goes out of his way to make sure Yi Fan is safe—he wants her to know it and feel it. When her mother starts bothering her and her aunt’s brother reappears, Yi Fan starts sleepwalking again. To keep Yi Fan from bumping into things in their apartment, Sang Yan covers up the corners and hard edges and puts lights in various places. And every time Yi Fan disappears, he looks for her, just to make sure she’s safe.
Special Note: How The First Frost Tackles Sensitive Issues
Trigger Warning/Bit of a Spoiler: The First Frost tackles sexual abuse.
Perhaps one of the most heartbreaking parts of the story is how Yi Fan was neglected by her mother, who had remarried almost immediately after Yi Fan’s father died. Yi Fan was forced to live with her aunt (mother’s sister-in-law), where she lived in a tiny stock room and had to endure insults from her aunt and even the sexual advances of her aunt’s brother.
Every time, Yi Fan would plead with her mother to come and take her away, and every time, her mother turned a blind eye, choosing to prioritize her new family instead. The scenes that depict these moments in the series can be triggering for those who have undergone the same experiences.
The First Frost—A Good Introduction to C-Dramas
If this is your first time watching C-dramas, and you don’t know what to watch, The First Frost is one of the good C-dramas to start with. It mixes beautiful cinematography, an excellent cast, and superb storytelling that will have you squealing with delight or reaching for tissues.
