The First Frost: Spoiler-Free Mini Review
- Jul 29
- 5 min read
Title: | The First Frost (2025) |
Platform: | Netflix, Youku |
MDL Rating: | |
Genre: | Contemporary Idol Romance/ Melodrama |
Episode Count: | 32 |
Parental Guidance Rating: | TV-14: This is between TV-16 and MA in my mind. More geared towards adults for sure. MULTIPLE rape attempts, inferred intimate scenes (nothing more than making out is shown), discussion of intimacy, minor violence, Language (including F words) |
Staring: | Bai Jing Ting (Reset) Zhang Ruo Nan (Zhan Zhao Adventures) Edward Chen (In Between) Zhang Miao Yi (When I Fly Towards You) |
RBTS Rating: | 3.1/5 Stars (The First Frost (the standalone sister drama to Hidden Love) is what I think a Wattpad story is probably like. We have an irresistible FL, stalkerish ML, and so much contrived trauma it felt like the spiritual successor of the novel, A Little Life. The vibes were off, but it is super popular.)  |
Synopsis:
Wen Yi Fan, a reporter, went to a bar called Overtime to meet with her best friend, Zhong Si Qiao. While she was at the bar, she met Sang Yan, a department manager and one of the owners of Overtime. He was Yi Fan's high school deskmate and the guy she once fell in love with. The two bump into each other, and as Yi Fan pretends that she does not know who Sang Yan is, Sang Yan does the same. After some problems occur, the two accidentally become housemates and get a second chance. Through living together and spending time, the past unfolds again. Will the misunderstandings be cleared, and will love blossom again between them? @MDL
Stay Tuned: Full Review Still to Come!
Spoiler-Free Mini Review:
The First Frost is the “spin-off” of the hit 2023 drama Hidden Love, which places Sang Yan's (ML) sister, Sang Zhi, as the main protagonist, along with a completely different cast. Victor Ma was originator of the role, but he, Zhao Lu Si, and the rest of the gang were recast for FF. Both First Frost and Hidden Love can be watched as separate standalone dramas, and I watched FF without ever seeing HL, and I didn't feel like I was missing anything.
Left: Hidden Love, Right: Original Sang Yang (played by Victor Ma)
The First Frost follows a woman who cannot step out of her house without being harassed because she is just that beautiful. Is this what a Wattpad story is like? I literally lost track of the number of times men tried to SA or stalk her. I'm not being facetious, it legitimately happened so many times.
And then we have Sang Yan, the man who has nothing better to do than chase her around for YEARS. I can appreciate a devoted ML, but someone come and get this man a hobby. And less boxy jackets—you’re not making this skinny fellow look bulkier. Also, his speech in ep 30 gave me the heebie jeebies. Girl, run. I include him in the batch of stalkers, as so much of his behavior was unknown to the FL. He just happened to be cute and thankfully, the FL liked him. The drama had an ends justified the means perspective. Granted, he was very sweet and supportive, but I couldn't get behind it.
The stalking/harassment storyline in The First Frost felt nefarious for quite a few reasons. In my opinion, one of the biggest red flags is that all the stalking and unwanted male attention was used as a device to show the value and "not like other girls-ness" of the Female Lead. It was intended for the male gaze, not to portray the experience of being a woman. Because Wen Yi Fan isn't just any woman, she is constantly described as "so pretty" and the attraction of unwanted suitors only serves to further that point. We Yi Fan is a vulnerable young woman, who is not like her short-lived roommate who seeks male attention anywhere she can find it. She's not like other girls. The harassment overpowered her actual capabilities and qualities, and the justification that this drama is an exploration of life after assault feels like a cheap cover story for what the drama is trying to do.
It would have been more worthwhile to have shifted the focus to Wen Yi Fan doing her thing as a Journalist, seeing her find healing and empowerment through her own competence. Not through a man. I didn't mind that we were wading through her trauma or that her experience as a victim was a focal point of the show, it's just that the show kept victimizing her for the sake of the male gaze. It drove me nuts! And yes, both harassment and stalking is romanticized by women as well, for a lot of really sad psychological reasons, but even the actress thought the way it was portrayed didn't make sense. And now this storyline has crossed over from fiction to reality, as some fans of Zhang Ruo Nan see her as her character who needs protecting, so they feel the need to follow her to "protect her". Sound familiar? This is a circle from hell. For more on that debacle, check out this instagram video:
The First Frost had a lot of issues. It tried to be a romantic melodrama but lacked the grounding and the acting chops. The Female Lead is truly the saddest sack in the shed. Seriously. People are outlandishly cruel to her to such an extent it made the whole story feel cheap, because it was just so unrealistic. And to top it off, the Female Lead gave Kristen Stewart circa Bella Swan vibes with her hand gestures and awkwardness, but I did love her hair, so I can let that go. And now I want bangs. This show has such a high rating that I do not understand. Trying to understand is one of the forces that drove me to the finish line of the drama.
The narrative felt straight out of what I imagine a Wattpad is like, and I couldn't get behind it. It wasn't all terrible, as there were aspects of the romance that were cute and the drama looked expensive. And the sets were awesome. Plus, I did watch the whole thing, so there is something in there I liked. Granted, I was trapped on a plane and it was the only drama I had downloaded, but still. I can see why other people who really love romance dramas would enjoy The First Frost, but the intentions with the Female Lead character didn't pass the vibe check and for that reason alone, I'm out.
Story=2.5 (Not for me. Also, the punk intern was unnecessary. None of these characters acted like real people) , Acting= 3 (Fine), Production Quality=5 (I loved the sets), Ending=3.5 (Cute, no complaints. I guess?) , Enjoyability= 2.75 (I was confused, but kept going)
Trailer:
Director: Chu Yu Ning (To My Dear Granny)
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