| Main Cast | 李沁，曾舜晞 |
| Released | 2024 |
| Link | MyDramaList |
| Length | 32 episodes (45mins each) |
| Genre | Historical, Fantasy, Romance |
| Difficulty | Experienced |
Snowy Night Timeless Love 《七夜雪》 is a slow-burn romance-focused historical drama with a snowy mountain backdrop and light martial arts elements.
Being a romance-focused drama, the main plot is extremely slow, and honestly, there’s not much of it. However, surprisingly, I enjoyed Snowy Night Timeless Love 《七夜雪》!
It’s not a show I’ll recommend to everyone, but it could be a great choice when you’re in the mood for something slow but with many beautiful aesthetic scenes.
Synopsis
Swordsman Huo Zhan Bai searches for medicine for a friend’s child and meets pharmacist Xue Zi Yue. Over eight years, their daily interactions led to a deep bond and a mutual promise to reunite under a plum tree the next year. However, their unspoken love and heavy responsibilities prevent them from being together, leaving a lasting regret. Amid snowy toasts and a thousand-mile farewell, their poignant love story becomes one of redemption and bittersweet letting go, marked by an unforgettable missed opportunity.
From MyDramaList.com
Trailer
The Watching Experience
Snowy Night Timeless Love is a historical romance drama with a touch of martial arts. The story heavily centres around the character development of the main couple and their romantic advancements.
I went into this drama expecting a balance of romance and plot, similar to many historical costume Chinese TV shows. However, it’s very heavy on romance and character development with little plot. It’s much more romance-focused than I usually would like, but surprisingly, I really enjoyed the show.
There are two unique elements of Snowy Night Timeless Love that influence the show’s feel and vibe.
Firstly, a considerable portion of the show is set in the snowy valley of the female lead’s home, and we don’t get to see much of the world outside that valley. The colour palette used in this show is light and cosy, such as whites, browns, light pinks and light purples. It perfectly captures the feel of life in the snowy mountains.
Secondly, the narration of Snowy Night Timeless Love closely mimics a book that contains only one perspective; in this case, it’s the female lead’s perspective. The female lead is unable to leave her valley, and we, as viewers, are also stuck there with her. Along with the female lead, we learn about events in the rest of the world, mainly through the information bought by visitors to the valley. The male lead is one of the regular visitors to the valley.
The main lead has his own story and life goals. He would visit the valley occasionally, bringing his story and development along with him. We, as viewers, get to see a little of his adventures outside of the female lead’s home, but it isn’t much.
The format is different and took some getting used to. Once I figured out the style of storytelling the show was aiming for; I started to enjoy experiencing the world in the same way as the female lead.
This resulted in a show that is heavy on slice-of-life scenes as we watch the female lead go about her life in the valley. Along the way, we also watch her grow, deal with problems and overcome a traumatic past experience.
Overall, the show is calming and relaxing, with beautiful visuals, aesthetics, and great music to accompany the scenes.
Difficulty for a Chinese Learner
Due to the heavy focus on character development rather than the conflicts of the martial arts world, Snowy Night Timeless Love is a good step into the genre. Although light on martial arts elements, it still contains some common concepts, including clans, special weapons, martial arts moves and hidden artefacts.
Experience with historical setting drama is recommended, as there’s a considerable amount of talking with little action in Snowy Night Timeless Love. It’s not easy to decipher what’s happening from the scene, so understanding the dialogue is critical.
Conclusion
Snowy Night Timeless Love isn’t for everyone and requires the right mindset. If you’re looking for something calming, this could be the right show, but with a major caveat. I don’t like to write reviews with spoilers, but I must warn you that the ending is not a happy singing, dancing one. Have some tissue prepared!
Sad endings aren’t my cup of tea and I use to avoid them, however, given the amount of shows with sad endings in 2024, I’ve learn to accept them and overlook the ending. To fill the holes, I create my own ending in my head.