During the Snowstorm (2024)

Most natural and genuine romance with diabetes chemistry.

“They give me butterflies just by them being in the same airspace.” - me

Wu Lei & Zhao Jinmai, my all-time favorite couple from now on. I absolutely adore the organic evolution of their relationship, from the initial awkward, blind-date-like tension to becoming utterly smitten with one another. It’s rare to maintain such palpable chemistry throughout the entire series, especially considering that they got together relatively early on. Most shows struggle to keep the romantic tension once the couple has formed, but this series deftly keeps the spark alive in every interaction. What’s even better is that their connection feels incredibly natural and genuine, with unbeatable on-screen chemistry that is both sizzling and enthralling, a testament to their exceptional acting prowess and talent. I'm particularly fond of their meticulous attention to detail, evident in the subtle nuances of facial expressions and deliberate gestures executed by the characters. I can genuinely sense the level of hard work and dedication they pour into their acting behind the scenes, as they excellently presented the delicate interplay of ambiguity and tension inherent in the process of falling in love, and how their interactions still shine after coming together.

Quoting roughly from Wu Lei’s acting teacher, Teacher Cui, on them: “Wu Lei is a very serious person. Every time he takes on a role, he always fully immerses himself in the life of that character in advance. Every frown, every smile, every movement is executed with professionalism and in deep immersion of that character. No wonder so many people like him, because the quality he brings to his performances is exceptional. The manner in which they both handle intricacies and communicate when they're together makes their couple pairing very good.”

Lovely, therapeutic, mesmerizing, heartwarming, soothing, wholesome, tender, and comforting.
An absolute treat that cures depression, yet causes diabetes.

I found the casting to be perfect. Alongside the Lin Yiyang-Yin Guo (Yi-Guo) couple, I thoroughly enjoyed the supporting characters like Wu Wei & lil bro Meng Xiaotian. Their presence injected a playful energy into the story, often through subtle teasing or reactions to the leads, while consistently remaining strongly supportive of them. The bromance and rivalry were superb too—the trio Lin Yiyang, Jiang Yang & Meng Xiaodong all harbored mutual respect and admiration for one another, adding to the wholesome feel of the show. Furthermore, all of them played the role of wingmen well, putting in a decent amount of good words for Lin Yiyang along the way. So how can one not like the cast? Heck, even Yin Guo’s friends are good wingwomen.
I also loved the scenic filming locations that contribute to the gorgeous & cozy vibe of the show—filmed in Finland, France, and China; 3 countries & 11 cities. The BGM adeptly complemented the mood of the show, seamlessly blending with the atmosphere and drawing me in, with the OSTs being catchily good as well.

Some people don’t understand that the plot IS the interactions and the growing relationship/romance. The reason some perceive it as dull, draggy, or devoid of any plot is simply because they don't vibe with the chemistry between the couple as much. And for a series that heavily depends on the dynamics of the couple, this can make-or-break the show for you, so just give few eps a try and feel the chemistry urself to see if you’ll like it or not. And if you are skipping/ff-ing their scenes it’s totally pointless/invalid.
Just know that I love the tension and the tender relationship between the two throughout its entire run.

As someone who enjoys playing 8-ball/9-ball pool & snooker, I appreciate the cast’s efforts to learn the sport from scratch, training hard for a few months, immaculately capturing the aura of a professional player and successfully showcasing some impressive plays.

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Here’s a brief overview of the gameplay for those who have never played before (feel free to skip):

In snooker, players must pot a red ball (1 pt) first before they can attempt to pot a colored ball, which carries varying point values (yellow-2, green-3, brown-4, blue-5, pink-6, black-7 pts).
This alternation between potting reds and colored balls (red, colored, red, colored) continues until all the red balls are cleared from the table, after which players must pot the colored balls in sequence from yellow to black. To maximize their points, players need to strategically position the cue ball (white ball), ideally near the black ball (which yields the most points), after potting a red. They must also position for the next red ball after potting the black. The colored balls are spotted—placed back onto its designated spot once they’re potted, as long as there are still red balls on the table.
Players will also need to deal with being "snookered," where their opponent skillfully blocks the path to the required ball, typically as fewer red balls remain on the table. Failing to hit the required ball results in a foul, with the opponent gaining a minimum of 4 pts (misses all the balls, or hits any colored ball lower than 5 pts). Contacting let’s say a blue ball when you are supposed to hit a red ball will be a foul that gives the opponent the blue-ball points (5 pts), while illegally contacting pink or black ball will give the opponent 6 or 7 pts respectively. The one with the most points at the end of the game wins, obviously, with the maximum break score of 147 attainable (potting red and only black in alternation) which is insanely challenging even for professional players.

For 9-ball pool, it’s simpler, players just have to pot the balls numbered 1 through 9 in sequential order, starting from the lowest numbered ball. The player who pots the 9-ball (yellow stripe ball) at any point wins the game (so a legal shot—hitting a required lowest numbered ball first, but successfully potting the 9-ball in the process results in an instant win). In the show, you will also see the players determining the order of play or break through “lagging”. This involves each player simultaneously hitting their assigned ball from the head string (horizontal line running across the table) towards the opposite cushion of the table, aiming to return the ball closer to the head cushion (the cushion nearest to where they initially hit the ball) than the opponent. The player whose ball stops closest to the head cushion wins the lag and earns the right to break the rack of balls to start the game.
Breaking first is usually more advantageous since the likelihood of pocketing any balls at the break is quite high. This is even more so for skilled players as they have an even higher chance of performing a run-out or clearance, where they pot all the remaining balls on the table in a single turn, thereby winning the game.

Most people (myself included), at least for recreational/non-competitive players, find snooker to be a much more challenging game than pool. This is primarily due to its larger table size, tighter pockets, and smaller balls, making potting more difficult as there is less margin for error, demanding more precise shot-making. Moreover, snooker’s greater number of balls and its scoring system, which includes more extensive rules and fouls, further adds to its complexity (possibly more strategic depth), and a game of snooker is typically longer than a game of 9-ball pool so it can be more mentally taxing as well.
That said, both snooker and pool demands precise ball control (power, spin, accuracy) for positioning and strategic thinking, since players cannot simply pot whichever ball they want and must always plan for the next or several shots ahead.
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I’m now a huge fan of both Wu Lei and Zhao Jinmai. Their chemistry is electrifying and off-the-charts. If they don’t win the best couple award, I’ll riot, because I don’t know who else could.

Please, for the sake of humanity, give them a few more dramas as lovers, because their chemistry is too good to be wasted on just one project.

I’ll miss this show greatly.
And yes, their chemistry outweighs any negatives for me.

10/10.

Weibo Content (BTS, Interviews, etc):
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-tVcTH8XLtaimpDae1dtmGkXAfbvTcLCERXHEwrl61Y/edit?usp=sharing

Episodes: 30
Runtime: 23 Hours

Please refer to my review’s comments section for further details and discussions regarding some of the criticism or complaints towards the show.

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The Perfect Winter Watch!

“In the past, no matter how hard I worked, how hard I fought, I would always feel empty. Since life is unfair, why do I fight like this? There is no place I have to go, nothing I want with all my heart, no one I need to be with. Until…we met one another in a snowstorm.”
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Where should I start? Perhaps with the statement that if you are looking for a fluffy Cdrama rom-com to watch in the middle of winter, Amidst a Snowstorm of Love is a strong candidate for you to consider. It is a drama full of cute romantic scenes, strong friendships, and endless support from so many different characters. I started this drama in the middle of a pretty bad Cdrama slump, and this was the perfect comfort drama for me to watch while it was coincidentally snowing outside. The leads meet in Finland during a snowstorm, and their story of love and persistence unravels from there. Additionally, much of the plot revolves around the pool table, as the leads are nine-ball and snooker players. Coming into this drama, I knew almost nothing about the sports, but I found myself watching each player anxiously as they competed, silently cheering them on. Amidst a Snowstorm of Love was adapted from the novel of the same name by Mo Bao Fei Bao (墨宝非宝). The novelist’s name may sound familiar; she also wrote the original novels for Go Go Squid!, The Flame’s Daughter, and One and Only.

The first ten or so episodes of the drama are essentially the build-up of Lin Yiyang (ML) and Yin Guo (FL)’s relationship. Lin Yiyang and Yin Guo meet in an evening snowstorm in Finland. The first third of the drama was a bit slow for me, but it quickly picked up speed. Lin Yiyang is an international student in communications, and Yin Guo has come to compete in a major nine-ball competition. Much of the drama is centered around their cute moments in Finland, or as I commented earlier, are basically snapshots of the two walking around in the snow. And of course, food, food, and food! The Chinese characters speak English for a good portion of the drama in Finland. Lin Yiyang and Yin Guo’s relationship is literally the biggest green flag you’ll see in CdramaLand. They are extremely considerate of each other, are amazing communicators (after countless dramas with stupid misunderstandings, thank you!!), and are supportive of each other’s goals. Their little WeChat conservation moments are adorable! Additionally, despite Lin Yiyang being away from the pro-snooker life for over a decade, Yin Guo didn’t hesitate at all when she told him she would support him if he wanted to compete again. Lin Yiyang was the Chinese snooker champion by 13, but soon ‘retired’ due to conflicts with the judges. Yin Guo also started nine-ball at a young age and is currently one of the top internationally-ranked players.

You could say that Lin Yiyang took the initiative for their romantic relationship, but both of the leads were drawn to each other from the get-go. It was so sweet to see Lin Yiyang and his friend Wu Wei taking time out of their day to show Yin Guo and her cousin Meng Xiaotian around Hull, Finland. Lin Yiyang would go on such long train rides just to see Yin Guo again! They’re both more introverted, so as they got to know each other, it was more common to see them eating and chatting over the phone than actually speaking to each other. And after Yin Guo went back to China, they continued to talk to each other over the phone nonstop. The communication between the two is mature and impeccable. There are no stupid misunderstandings at all, and although both leads have attracted a lot of admirers (especially Lin Yiyang), there is just an amazing level of trust that leads to absolutely no jealously at all. I also appreciate the fact that the ML and FL’s admirers backed off after seeing the two together. Thank you, thank you!

Another essential aspect of the drama is the undying support the characters pour on each other. Not only does Lin Yiyang help Yin Guo get ready for her first competition in Finland, but the support is mutual. As Yin Guo slowly learns about Lin Yiyang’s past, she and his old friends are thrilled to learned that he wants to go back to professional snooker. And the bromances are so funny and heartwarming! Even before I knew that the novelist for this drama was the same for Go Go Squid!, I could see similarities between the close-knit friendships tied together by a shared love for the sport. In the beginning, I thought that Yin Guo’s other cousin, Meng Xiaodong (Xiaotian’s older brother) would be a problem in their relationship due to his seemingly hostile past with Lin Yiyang, but I was so wrong. Meng Xiaodong turned out to be one of the most supportive people towards both their relationship and Lin Yiyang’s return to pro-snooker. (There’s plenty of eye candy as well, but that’s just a plus!) We also witness the rekindling of friendships between Lin Yiyang and his former peers whom he left years ago.

I would say that the only major roadblock in Lin Yiyang and Yin Guo’s relationship is Yin Guo’s mom, but she wasn’t much of a problem either. I won’t say why she wasn’t initially supportive of them being together, because it’s explained in the drama. However, her initial dislike towards Yiyang is pretty reasonable. I also think that this progression from dislike to a loving embrace really shows Lin Yiyang’s character changing for the better since he was that stubborn and haughty snooker champion as a teenager. Some people were unhappy with the lack of "subtance" in the drama, but then were upset about the mom. (Just an example of how we can't cater to everyone.) I’m also going to take a minute here to appreciate his amazing teacher, Mr. He Wenfeng. Lin Yiyang was his last student, whom he treated like a grandson. Mr. He is the teacher all of us want, and Lin Yiyang wouldn’t be where he was at 13 or today without his guidance.

In my opinion, Wu Lei and Zhao Jinmai had amazing chemistry. It didn’t help when their characters were so loving and supportive towards each other either! Even as opponents, every clap and congratulations were extremely genuine and everyone was happy for one another, no matter who won or lost. All the actors and actresses made the rom-com enjoyable, with plenty of smiles and laughs. The OST is cute and perfect for the leads' happy moments together. Amidst a Snowstorm of Love was the first drama I’ve watched that shines the spotlight on the pool table. Since I know basically nothing about snooker and nine-ball, I can’t testify to whether the drama showed gameplay correctly, but it sparked my interest in the sports. And given that China is currently very high-ranked internationally in terms of snooker and nine-ball, the drama also was able to raise awareness for the sports in China, and of course, outside of China.

All in all, Amidst a Snowstorm of Love is the perfect cuddly winter watch! It is a perfect combination of romance, friendship, and healthy relationships across the board. You are not only transported to the world of pool, but also get to experience a Finnish winter and amazing love story. It’s definitely a plus if you start this drama when it’s snowing outside. (That’s what happened for me!)

Thanks for reading!

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