[Review] HIStory 3 - Trapped - ~ Cries in Fangirl ~

For any of you not familiar with the HIStory series, it is a series created by Choco TV from Taiwan. They are all LGBTQ stories with the focus being BL. They are currently on the third season. Each season contains two to three different shows. The first season has three different series of four episodes each. The second season contains two different series of eight episodes each. And this third season will have three different series with twenty episodes each.

There are actually rumors that the third series will be a movie and not a twenty episode series. This movie will be a continuation of one of the series that was in season 2 that received a lot of love from viewers (me included, it’s actually one of my faves lol).

Anyway, when it comes to new series that I am greatly anticipating, I try to wait until most or all of the episodes are released so that I can binge watch them. And when it comes to Trapped, my oh my, am I glad I waited!

This series was so good!!

Trapped follows two main characters: Shao Fei and Tang Yi. Tang Yi is the leader of a gang/mob, inherited to him through his foster father. Tang Yi had a troubled life in his early youth and he was given up by his birth mother. He was then adopted by a couple but the wife died after only a few years and afterward, the husband became abusive to Tang Yi so he ran away at the age of 12. Later on he was taken in by Tang Guogong (please forgive my spelling if it’s incorrect) and he proceeded to raise him as his own child.

Shao Fei is a police officer in Taipei who is hellbent on trying to solve an old case from four years ago. This case leads him to Tang Yi. Since Shao Fei pretty much forces himself into Tang Yi’s life by trying to solve this case, their relationship eventually evolves into something more.

I like this series. Straight up, it was so freakin good. Many people talk about the BL aspect of it because that’s how this show is advertized, but honestly, this show is so much more than simply being a BL. The writers did an amazing job at writing an intricate story with an exceptionally crafted plot. I am all for great storytelling so this was a plus for me.

This series is categorized and advertized as BL but to me it should definitely be categorized as a mystery/action series. Dealing with gangs, mob leaders, police officers, fight scenes, shootings. It’s so much! But sooooo gooooddd. I never thought I would ever be interested in a story with gangs and police lol. I was actually more interested in the plot than I was the two main characters and their relationship. Their romance was just an added bonus for me.

Writing

The writing was A1. I have zero complaints. None of the dialogue was corny in any sense. Everything made sense as the plot progressed and there were a few twists that even I was not expecting. If you are like me and are drawn to the story moreso than the relationship between the two main leads, then the ending revelation will have you shook. Totally unexpected.

As for the romance, I think that it was written nicely as well. It developed at a pace that I enjoyed; not too fast and not too slow. I also liked that we could see the progression of the main lead’s feelings for each other without one or the other being too pushy. I hate pushy romances and I hate instant romances. This one was simply perfect. There were intense moments, there were funny moments, and there were cute moments. I loved it all.

Acting

The acting was better than I was expecting. Although HIStory does a good job at finding great actors for their series, I am still always apprehensive about how the acting will turn out. Although I enjoy watching Asian dramas, I’m only giving my honest opinion when I say that the acting can be very stiff, dry, and stale sometimes. And if it’s not any of those things, then it’s just a cringe fest. This could very well be just because I’m not used to the way other countries and cultures portray their acting.

But anyway, I enjoyed the acting. My favorite, by far, was the actor portraying Tang Yi. He was really good and when it came time for the emotional scenes, he was exceptional. I found myself feeling emotional during certain parts and at one particular scene at the end of the series, I actually had to hold back tears. So, bravo. Bravo.

Characters

For the most part, the characters were very well developed. The only person that I did not like was the girl playing Tang Yi’s sister. She was annoying. She was a whiny brat who always wanted to get her way and at times was even seriously manipulative and straight up lied. And I hate how her lies and manipulation were never addressed. This is one aspect of the writing that I did not enjoy. She even went so far as to plot to get someone hurt and still IT WAS NEVER ADDRESSED smh.

Also, in the beginning, I did not know whether she was Tang Yi’s girlfriend or his sister. The way she was portrayed made her look like she was Tang Yi’s lover. Then when I realized that she was supposed to be his sister, I couldn’t help but feel grossed out. I don’t think this was an issue with the writing as the dialogue was fine. It’s moreso how they were told to act. I don’t know any brothers or sisters (blood related or not) that act like Tang Yi and his sister did in the beginning of this series. It was strange and very off-putting.

The sister also had a minor relationship focus of her own and while I was glad she got her happy ending with the one she wanted, she was still a brat and I went right back to not liking her. Her relationship focus felt like filler to me as it did absolutely nothing to propell the story along. You could cut out her character completely and absolutely nothing from the main story would be missed. She was not needed and I am tired of annoying female characters.

This is also something very prominent in Asian dramas and I am sick of it. Annoying, vicious, lying, bratty, petty, females. Like, why?? Not all girls are this way and it’s honestly old for me. Females can be supportive and kind and not manipulative beasts so let’s drop this played out stereotype shall we??

But other than that, all the other characters had a good role and I think that everyone did a good job at portraying their characters and letting the audience feel what they are feeling. The only one that left more to be desired was the character Jack. His character was actually supposed to be super mysterious so we weren’t supposed to know too much about him. But jeez I really wanted to lol! He is the only character that I wished had more development even though he wasn’t supposed to have any.

Plot/Story

As I mentioned before, the storyline of this series is amazing. It leaves nothing to be desired and by the end I was so satisfied that I wanted to watch it again. There are zero plot holes and I didn’t have any questions when it was all over. I don’t have much else to say besides that!

Overall Thoughts

Overall, I am very happy with this series and I recommend it 100%. If you are tired of BL with weak stories then give this one a try. I was so engrossed that many times throughout, I forgot that this was supposed to be a BL. And that’s what I like!

I am still not ready to call this one a favorite just yet; I have to let it simmer for a few more days. But I finished this series last night and I have yet to stop thinking about it so I have a feeling this will make my favorites list lol.

Give this show a try for sure! I give it a 4.5 out of five stars. I took off half a star due to the weirdness between Tang Yi and his sister in the beginning and for her useless character. Seriously, she should have been cut completely.