My Drama Desk Rating: ⭐ 7/10
Quick Info
- Title: The Early Spring
- Chinese Title: 早春晴朗 (Zǎo Chūn Qíng Lǎng)
- Episodes: 24
- Genre: Modern Romance, Workplace Drama
- Based on: The novel Zao Chun Qing Lang by Gu Niang Bie Ku
- Starring: Jing Boran as Luan Nian / Luke, Sun Qian as Shang Zhitao / Flora
- Where to Watch: Youku, Netflix
I Didn't Plan on Watching This One Yet
One thing about me as a C-drama watcher: I prefer dramas that are already finished.
I hate waiting for the next episode.
I have tried watching ongoing dramas before, and most of the time, I end up losing interest somewhere along the way and dropping them. The only exception is when there are already just a handful of episodes left and I know the drama will finish before I even catch up.
That was exactly what happened with The Early Spring.
I already had this drama on my watchlist because I had seen Jing Boran before in Road Home and Sun Qian in Love Song in Winter. Then suddenly, clips and spoilers from The Early Spring started appearing all over my feed and FYP.
And the more I saw, the more curious I became.
Especially because one comparison kept popping up: the Chinese version of Fifty Shades of Grey.
Okay... you have my attention.
So when I finally started Episode 1, the drama wasted absolutely no time showing me exactly what everyone had been talking about.
It opens with a montage of Luan Nian and Shang Zhitao's intimate moments before taking us back to the beginning and introducing the characters.
And that's when I thought: Okay. Let's see what happened here.
Because underneath all those intimate scenes was a story about a rookie employee, a difficult boss, a secret relationship, six years of love, misunderstandings, separation, and eventually finding each other again.
On paper? Exactly the kind of drama I usually enjoy.
In reality? This one tested me.
The Problem Wasn't the Story. It Was the Relationship.
I went into The Early Spring expecting a lot. The drama had been getting plenty of attention online, and with Jing Boran and Sun Qian leading it, I expected something that would completely pull me in.
But after a few episodes, something felt different. This wasn't one of those dramas where I immediately thought, "Okay, just one more episode," and then suddenly it was 5 AM and I had finished half the drama. Instead, I found myself getting frustrated. Then more frustrated. Then occasionally talking to my screen.
Because the biggest obstacle in this drama wasn't another woman. It wasn't another man. It wasn't some evil family member. It wasn't a villain plotting against the couple.
It was the couple.
And honestly? They created enough problems for themselves that they didn't need anyone else.
Flora: Capable at Work, Frustrating in Love
I actually liked Flora — Shang Zhitao — when it came to her career. She's hardworking, capable, resourceful, and determined to prove herself. When she starts working, she's basically a rookie who has to survive an incredibly demanding workplace. She gets criticized, makes mistakes, learns from them, takes responsibility, and slowly grows into someone who knows exactly what she's capable of. I really liked that part of her story.
Her professional growth feels earned. She doesn't simply become successful because Luke likes her — she proves herself. Even when she makes mistakes, she takes responsibility and tries to fix them. She wants the recognition to come from her own work, and I respected that about her.
That's actually one of the things I always look for in a female lead. I love a woman who knows what she wants, who can build her own career, and I especially love a couple where both people can stand on their own.
So Flora should have been exactly my type of female lead.
But then we got to her relationship with Luke. And... girl.
Flora, Please Just TALK.
I understood why Flora was secretive. She was young when their relationship started. She was insecure about their boss-employee dynamic. She didn't want people thinking she received opportunities because she was sleeping with her boss. She wanted to prove that she deserved her position because of her ability. All of that made sense.
But there were moments when I genuinely wanted to shake her and say: "Why didn't you just tell him?!"
She wanted Luke to be honest and open with her, but she wasn't always giving him the same thing. Take her meeting with her ex — why are you meeting your ex alone when you're already in a relationship, especially when you've already said things ended on good terms and there was already closure? The scene itself was awkward enough that I was sitting there thinking, "Flora... what exactly are we doing here?"
Then there was the Dony incident — something happened to her, and instead of telling Luke, she kept it to herself until he eventually found out later.
Then there was the dating app. She downloaded a dating app to help her friend, but didn't tell her boyfriend. Again: why? If you're in a relationship and you know something could easily be misunderstood, why not just explain it beforehand?
This is where I struggled with Flora. She wanted Luke to trust her, but she repeatedly did things that made trust harder. And yes, I understand the argument that Luke should trust her regardless. But trust isn't just something you demand from someone — you also build it through transparency.
And Then There's Luke.
Luan Nian is basically the workplace-romance male lead starter pack: sharp tongue, bad temper, extremely capable, intimidating boss, emotionally guarded, and somehow very gentle with the woman he loves.
Luke is not exactly easy to love at first. He's harsh with Flora from the beginning, and there are moments when his words are unnecessarily cruel. But I did like how much he admired her professionally. He recognized that she was capable, he challenged her, he expected her to improve, and when she proved herself, he respected what she could do. Their professional relationship was actually one of my favorite parts of their story.
The problem came when his personal feelings entered the equation. Because Luke desperately wanted reassurance. He constantly wanted to know: "Who am I to you?" And honestly, after watching the entire drama, I think that's the heart of his character. He wanted to feel chosen. He wanted reassurance that Flora wasn't going to leave him. And because he didn't know how to communicate that vulnerability properly, it often came out as jealousy, anger, control, or hurtful words.
And whenever he got angry? Oh, Luke. You can be hurt without being cruel. That was one of my biggest problems with him — he would say something incredibly mean to Flora, then regret it afterward. Understanding someone's behavior doesn't automatically make the behavior okay.
The Scene That Actually Broke Me
For all the kisses, skinship, romantic moments, rescues, and dramatic confrontations in this drama, the scene that actually made me cry was surprisingly simple. Luke tried calling Flora, but she had already blocked his number. When he finally got the chance to express what he was feeling, you could hear how much pain he was carrying.
That scene got me. Because beneath all the anger, jealousy, pride, and terrible communication was someone who genuinely loved her and realized he might have lost her. That was probably the first time during the drama when I stopped being frustrated with Luke and simply felt his pain.
Six Years of Love... and Six Years of Miscommunication
This is probably the biggest thing I took away from The Early Spring. These two weren't together for a few months — they had six years. Six years of memories, intimacy, knowing each other's habits, loving each other. And somehow, they were still so bad at communicating. That became exhausting for me. I kept thinking: "You've been together for SIX YEARS. Please just sit down and talk."
And because there wasn't really a major external villain driving their relationship apart, the conflicts felt even more frustrating. No third party constantly scheming against them, no evil family member destroying their relationship, no dramatic villain pulling strings. Most of the time, they were doing it themselves.
Flora and the Specialist Role
One of the moments that really frustrated me was when Flora lost the Specialist role. I understood why she was hurt — her career was incredibly important to her, and she had spent years working toward professional recognition. But I didn't like how she took that frustration out on Luke and ultimately broke up with him again.
This is where I found myself thinking: is the relationship actually the priority here? Because there were moments when it felt like Flora wanted the relationship to fit perfectly into the life she had planned rather than allowing the relationship itself to become part of what she was building.
Even the earlier conversation about getting married before thirty gave me that feeling. When she first proposed the idea and Luke rejected it, I didn't necessarily think Luke was right. But I also didn't feel like that was the moment marriage should have happened. It almost felt like because getting married before thirty was on her bucket list, she wanted to check it off. And for me, that's different from saying, "I want to marry you because I want to build a life with you." That distinction mattered.
The Chemistry? Absolutely.
Now, let me give credit where credit is due. Jing Boran and Sun Qian have chemistry. A LOT of it. And this is probably why I kept going even when I was frustrated.
The drama is definitely more generous with skinship and intimate scenes than many C-dramas I've watched. If you're coming from dramas where the leads spend 30 episodes looking at each other like they're about to kiss but never actually do it, The Early Spring is basically: "Oh, you want skinship? Here. Have some more."
The intimacy between Luke and Flora feels natural, and their attraction is never really in question. The problem was never "do these two love each other?" The problem was: "Can these two actually communicate well enough to have a healthy relationship?" And for most of the drama, the answer seemed to be: not really.
I Loved Flora's Growth More Than Their Romance
One of the things I appreciated about the drama is how much Flora grows professionally. When she first enters the company, she's inexperienced. By the time she has built her own business, she's much more confident and capable. And when she eventually returns to her hometown and starts building something of her own, I actually became more interested in Flora's life than in whether she and Luke would get back together.
Because she finally had something that belonged completely to her. She wasn't Luke's employee. She wasn't Luke's girlfriend. She wasn't the rookie trying to prove herself. She was Flora — a woman who had built her own company and her own life. And I really liked that.
The Reunion Was... Alright.
The later part of the drama is where I really wish we had gotten more episodes. After everything these two went through, I wanted more time — more conversations, more rebuilding, more of them actually learning how to be together differently. Instead, the final stretch felt a little rushed.
Luke does make an effort to meet Flora where she is rather than simply expecting her to return to their old relationship, and I liked that. He offers to join her company, willing to start from the bottom in her world rather than simply using his position or money to solve everything for her, and eventually settles into the role of her driver as he tries to become part of her new life. That matters, because Flora's biggest issue has always been wanting to prove that she can stand on her own — and this time, Luke seems to understand that.
And Then Came the Museum.
I will admit it. The Museum of Time & Eternity was a beautiful idea. Luke essentially created a physical collection of Flora's life and their shared history — her childhood memories, her old belongings, their memories together, her bucket list.
The finale also gives Luan Nian a chance to directly acknowledge his past mistakes and explain some of the choices and misunderstandings that had accumulated over their relationship. He proposes after taking Zhitao through the museum and revisiting the history they shared.
And then Luke — the dog, not the man — showed up wearing the "Marry Dad" sign.
Okay. That was cute.
And yes, they got their happy ending. But I have to be honest — by that point, I was already tired. So instead of screaming, crying, throwing my phone across the room, and celebrating the proposal, I was basically: "Okay. Finally."
I was happy that they finally got there. I just wasn't as emotionally overwhelmed by it as I thought I would be.
The Supporting Characters I Actually Enjoyed
Lumi was one of my favorites — funny, sharp, protective of Flora, and actually felt like a real friend rather than a character who existed only to move the romance along. She also gave Flora someone outside of Luke's world, which I appreciated.
Luke the Dog — yes, the other Luke, obviously — deserves his own mention because he was adorable and somehow managed to become part of the emotional story. And that "Marry Dad" sign? Absolutely adorable.
Tan Mian I also enjoyed, because someone needed to tell Luke when he was being ridiculous. Every emotionally unavailable male lead needs that one friend who is basically their unpaid therapist.
One Thing I Absolutely Loved: The OST
As a Silence Wang fan, I was very happy to hear "Passing Sunshine" — the show's main theme song — throughout the drama. This was one of those dramas where the OST became part of my experience of watching it. Even when I was frustrated with Luke and Flora, the music would come on and I would be like: okay... fine, this song is beautiful. So at least the drama gave me another song to add to my playlist.
Should You Watch The Early Spring?
If you're looking for a C-drama with:
- Plenty of skinship and kissing
- Strong chemistry between the leads
- A capable female lead with her own career
- A flawed, emotionally complicated male lead
- Workplace romance, secret dating, and second chances
- A relationship that develops over many years
- A happy ending
Then The Early Spring may be your kind of drama.
But if you're like me and prefer strong, confident couples who communicate openly, trust each other, and don't create unnecessary problems for themselves — prepare yourself. These two will test your patience. A LOT.
Final Thoughts
The Early Spring was a drama I wanted to love more than I actually did. I had it on my watchlist, I was excited to finally watch Jing Boran and Sun Qian together, and the whole "Chinese Fifty Shades of Grey" comparison definitely made me curious. But once I actually watched it, I realized the romance wasn't what kept me watching — it was the characters. I wanted to see whether Flora would finally become the professional she wanted to be, whether Luke would finally learn how to love someone without hurting them whenever he felt insecure, and whether these two people who clearly loved each other could finally figure out how to actually be together.
For me, the biggest problem was that their relationship became exhausting. There were simply too many misunderstandings, too many things left unsaid, and too many moments where one of them could have solved everything by simply communicating. And because there wasn't a major antagonist causing most of these problems, I couldn't even blame anyone else. They were their own biggest obstacle.
Still, I can't deny that the drama did some things really well. Jing Boran and Sun Qian had undeniable chemistry. The skinship and intimate scenes were definitely more than what I'm used to seeing in many C-dramas. Flora's professional growth was satisfying to watch. Luke's emotional journey had some genuinely touching moments. And that one phone call where Luke finally broke down? Yeah. That got me.
Would I rewatch it? Honestly, probably not anytime soon. I don't regret watching it, especially because I had been curious about it for so long. But knowing how frustrated I felt through much of the middle of the drama, I'm not sure I have the emotional energy to go through six years of misunderstandings all over again.
Maybe that's the best way I can describe The Early Spring for me: it wasn't a bad love story. It was just a love story that required way more patience from me than I was willing to give. And after 24 episodes, I'm glad Luke and Flora finally found their bright early spring. I just wish I had enjoyed the journey there a little more.
⭐ My Drama Desk Rating: 7/10
Worth watching for the chemistry, character growth, skinship, and Jing Boran & Sun Qian — but maybe keep your patience nearby. You're going to need it.
— My Drama Desk
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