HIStory3: Trapped (2019)

HIStory 3 Made Me Stare At Tang AND Jack For Hours

I binged this entire series in 1 day with my best friend and I have no regrets. I liked the actors chemistry for both couples and the overall story was super interesting as well. I wish we would've gotten more "relationship" time shown on screen but what we did get was wholesome. It was a tie between Tang Yi and Jack was as my favorite character. Both actors are so fineeee. Holy crap I couldn't stop staring at them. Also (more importantly) their character portrayals were quite different from each other but both very well done! Andy's portrayal of Jack was really sweet, even if he was wearing leather gloves the entire time realistically he is such a soft boi. He also had this air of mystery to him that makes me want to see a spinoff of his past. Chris as Tang I think actually had some of the best acted scenes in the entire show. The character has to go from emotionally unavailable, cold and calculated to likable in a fairly short amount of time. The more you learn about Tang, the more you fall in love with him. He's actually just a very damaged, hurt person from his past and he needs love danggit! Which makes his relationship with Meng so much more believable and stronger because it's literally what he needs to be better. They're so different and it's hilarious seeing them interact off of eachother, like I was cracking up!

I should also mention that the writing in this show is actually really REALLY good. It could pass as a non-BL mystery cop drama easily. Everything flowed together story-wise, the entire mystery side of it was actually gripping and surprising where it went. I was devastated for Tang having to learn about his birth parents, to then lose Chen in the last episode. The man's been through enough already geez! So well done though. I can see why some viewers might dislike the ending but I thought it was pretty realistic. It probably would've been better if we saw a flash forward of him and Meng reuniting after release, but the implication is there so oh well! Definitely one to watch if you haven't, be ready for a well done story with some romance sprinkled in there for good measure.

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can good chemistry excuse bad plot?

for a drama under the action, thriller and crime genres, the way they handled this whole mafia/corruption business seemed not that well thought out; the characters are inconsistent, and the amount of plot wholes made it look like there were entire episodes missing between scenes.

as for the actors, i have no complains about their lovey dovey scenes, i can see why this drama is popular with fujoshis, hot men with convincing chemistry and a good amount of kissing and shirtless scenes. but when it comes to emotional scenes is where I kind of felt let down. specially with tang yi's character that is filled with emotional trauma, the performance looked forced and made me cringe at times.

another major issue with tang yi's character is that, for a mob boss, he has little to no conviction and most of his actions are based on what people tell him to do, if he's not fulfilling his master's last wishes, he's getting manipulated by his incestuous little sister, and by the end,
[SPOILER ALLERT]
all of his emotional baggage gets resolved in a quick chat with his boyfriend who basically tells him to just get over it -even though it's them refusing to "get over it" exactly what moves the story forward-

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The best story of the History series

Among all the BL out there this series is indubitaby one of the best, both for the writing, the acting and the directing. The chemistry among the cast members is top notch and the story very interesting even outside the romance part of it.
As for the 2 couples they are equally lovable, the main one is wonderful and the evolution of their relationship is so good to watch. Shaofei with is perseverance and kindness manages to melt Tang Yi walls and defences and it's wonderfull to watch.
The second couple is just plain adorable Zhao Li An is so endearing and sweet that Jack is ensnared by him almost without realizing,
watch it it:
you love angsty stories with perfect ending
if you are looking for a enemys to lover romance
if you are simply looking for a good story with good acting and a bunch of very interesting characters

don't watch it:
well if you do not like mm relationship (but why should you be here then?) or if you really do not like crime stories or if you are looking for cruel vicious gangster and hero police forces.

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Start watching if you still haven't

Guys this is a must watch. I found this series in November and honestly I've watched it more than 6 times and I still love it. The storyline, characters, OST, acting everything is just perfect. Chemistry of both the CPs was so interesting. I'm pretty sure you all will love it. If you guys have time, watch the behind the scenes of the show in YouTube by Line TV. You'll see how familiar and friendly the cast is with each other and that's the reason the couples had an awesome chemistry. I won't post spoilers but the ending is totally relatable and justified. You won't feel sad seeing the ending. Do watch the show!!

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I Married a Mobster

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started this one, the premise is totally unrealistic... but I'm so happy I did and would love to see a sequel. What a fun series. I'm THRILLED to see a new storyline in the BL universe. Cop falling for Mobster and all of the intrigue, mystery, danger etc that goes along with it. They actually created a good detective story first and then allowed the two main characters to fall in love. It did get a bit convoluted and confusing, especially since we only hear the mystery details after the fact from third parties, but even if you come for the mystery, you will stay for the love story.

The growth of this relationship (while ridiculous in its premise), made absolute sense to me. You could see each of the main characters come to learn more and more about each other that would allow them to trust each other and even fall in love with each other. That gradual evolution is what made this story work best for me.

There is so much humor that works really well. Several characters are preposterously over the top, but the actors play them with such sweet, gentle, natural manners that they work perfectly. Jake Hsu was awkward and ungainly in all the right ways. But I also believed he was smart, loyal, honest and a really good cop. My favorite "touch" was his unkempt hair. They have one lock of hair ALWAYS out of place, sticking out in the most ridiculous manner. It became his signature and I came to miss it when he washed his hair and it disappeared. Kenny Chen may be my favorite naive "little boy" (alongside Plan as Can in Love by Chance). He is so vulnerable and trusting and goofy. I can't wait until he stars in his own BL series. This kid deserves to be a star. Unfortunately, Chris Wu is pretty horrible. He is wooden, blank-faced, lacking the internal emotions needed for this complex character. This is a recurring problem in BL series. They go for the good looking bad boy, but rarely can they find an actor who can play the subtleties of those roles. Chris did have some good moments, toward the latter half of the series, when he got to open up and express his affection for Meng Fei.

Those moments, when the two relaxed and allowed themselves to be boyfriends, were some of my favorites in the series. Despite the very quick transition in their relationship, you could sense an ease between the two actors. They truly portrayed the trust and relief you can only get in the arms of your beloved. The kissing and intimacy scared me at first. I didn't think they were going to pull it off. The first kiss was so tight-mouthed that I feared it would never look natural. But by the end of the series, these two were making out like they meant it. It got steamy for a second!

I appreciated the secondary BL romance, though it was even more ridiculous than the first. But again, Kenny Chen made his character so believable I wanted to fly to Taiwan and marry him myself. And I truly enjoyed the hetero romance as well. I thought it was well established and with little back-story I was able to understand both sides of this couple and was happy they came together in the end. Kudos to Diane Lin who does an excellent job as well. The filial love between these two "siblings" was another strong aspect of the series.

At times I thought the music was inspiring and spot on, but at other times it felt like it was lifted from a library of stock music that I've heard in so many other series.

Solid direction, cinematography, editing throughout. Truly high production values that helped propel this to the top of my list.

I will watch this one again FOR SURE.

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This has been, hands down, the best gay drama I’ve ever seen. Did it have its issues? Sure. Would I change some things? Yeah. But generally, it was made with a lot of heart and warmth and a genuine desire to give people a fanfic-like story about a mob boss and the cop chasing him, literally.

Out of the 3 main pairings - Shao Fei/Tang Yi, Jack/Zhao Zi and Hong Ye/Dao Yi - I was most interested in Shao Fei & Tang Yi, the least in Jack & Zhao Zi, which was probably obvious from my recaps. But I really liked Hong Ye & Dao Yi, the only het pairing, and that’s a rare thing in gay dramas, that the het pairing isn’t there just so not everybody’s gay but that they actually have an interesting arc, too. So much kudos for that.

I loved Tang Yi and Hong Ye’s sibling relationship. I loved the glimpse of what could’ve been between Shao Fei and Chen Wen Hao. I loved the unexpectedly multi-layered relationship between Shao Fei and Captain Shi. I loved Tang Yi’s friendship with Doctor Jian. And I loved the flashbacks to Boss Tang mentoring Tang Yi…

What I didn’t expect was how non-cliché turned out Shao Fei to be. No crisis of sexuality or morality when he realized he fell for a male gangster. No, just pure love and determination to save Tang Yi even against Tang Yi’s will.

And the same goes for Chen Wen Hao. I started off hating that guy and ended up crying for him. He truly was a man screwed over by fate - and his friends. If only Boss Tang tried harder to get him out of jail. If only Li Chen waited for him. Everything could’ve been different.

I was one of the few who liked the music choices in this drama - from smooth jazz to the tinkling bells - and the slo-mo. But then, I’m old-school *shrugs*

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I'm keeping this short. This was my first full length BL series and I'm pretty disappointed. I often wonder about the director's vision. I'm not sure how the actors were told to act, but I can't imagine they were told to act like this was their first high-school performance. I can't describe how bad the MLs are at acting. Chris is obviously better, but not by much. I suppose the director wanted them to be over-exaggerated, but it was too much for me. The only actors I enjoyed were the dad roles (and Kenny because he was cute). Maybe because they're older; but at least something was there. Speaking of dad roles, I really want us to end the narrative that forcing/badgering a partner to speak to their parents is a 'helpful, loving' thing to do. Shao Fei was so quick to suggest meeting up when Tang Yi probably needed time and therapy.

I understand that dramas are 'dramatizations' of real life. Yes, that's clear. That being said, why did they take the route to portray their police force as caricatures of stereotypes? In the first episode, they burst in guns a'blazing and that's fine for a raid, but then Shao Fei holds Tang Yi at gunpoint??? Excuse me...officer (he does this twice)? I'm not sure what Shao Fei did so well that made it okay for him to disregard the rules of his job, but I didn't see it.

I would like to mention Jack and Zhao Zi(?) before I end. Jack did not pass the vibe check. He's our resident king of manipulation. To this day I don't know what his true role was and why he wasn't persecuted by Tang Yi, the bad guy, or Interpol. Jack snaking his way into Kenny's life is supposed to be charming and it is at first; but, it quickly becomes creepy and pushy.

Overall, I wouldn't recommend it if you're into more serious dramas. This is more lighthearted than anything. And that would be fine if the story and acting were good, but they should've picked a struggle. I don't remember the music so I suppose it was unoffensive.

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One of my favourites

Absolutely loved it. Tang Yi and Shao Fei just made sense, the actors’ chemistry is so good, it’s OFF-THE-CHARTS. Like yin and yang, Shao Fei balances and brings out the loving side of Tang Yi whereas Tang Yi makes Shao Fei settle down and have a focus other than the case he’s been investigating for 4 years- get his man for a different reason.

Chris Wu as Tang Yi is so good! His controlled expressions, his character arc is absolutely a joy to watch.

The background story keeps it real, this is why I avoid most school-based BL stories, I am bored with them.

All characters were interesting, this is the first HIStory series that I was not at all bored with at any second and didn’t fast forward any part.

The ending is very realistic for me.

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SUPERB!!!

One of the best BL Series I watched this year, 2021. At the first I am hesitant to watch due to a lot of series that I am currently watching such as Korean, Japanese, Thai's and Chinese series but without further thinking, I got hooked and attached to the first episode until I didn't notice the time has been passed by and finished watching it for one whole night until I saw dawn outside of my window.

CHEMISTRY is totally incredible, I love how they help each other and how they portrayed their characters in every scene, plus the side couple is also entertaining. I am now loving the lead stars Chris Wu and Jake Hsu.

STORYLINE, when you think of it, a Gangster and a Policeman will fell in love to each other and that took my attention, plus the twists of the story at the end, makes me feel like I am watching Korean drama.

REWATCH VALUE, well I had been watching the series for 3 consecutive times, therefore it is worth to watch and from it I can still feel that "goosebumps" and the "love" factor as if it's my first time watching the series.

This is definitely indeed a worth watch series from Taiwan.

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Definitely the best out of all HIstory parts.

I absolutely loved this one, and I am extremely glad I saved this one for last out of the HIstory parts.
If you are (like I was) thinking about whether you should watch “make our days count” or “trapped” first I strongly recommend you watch “make our days count” first and end the Series with this one.

The actors were extremely well chosen in my opinion, I absolutely bought their portrayal of their characters. I loved their chemistry, there was no awkwardness at all. The side characters where extremely fitting as well.

This whole Drama was a mixture of lighthearted fun and seriousness that didn’t feel misplaced at all.
I literally savoured every second and every emotion of this one, sadness, happiness, romance, I really can’t find much to criticise.

Definitely watch this if you’re still wavering.

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History 3 : Trapped is my first BL drama ever!

I think it's a good drama to begin with and I wasn't disappointed at all. It was really entertaining and now that I've seen other Bl dramas I think the plot is pretty original (it's not a school drama like it often is). The story was interesting but if we cut the BL part I think I wouldn't have like it as much as I had. I think the chemistry between the main leads but also between the second leads (I loved Jack) is really enjoyable. The romance between the leads is really beautiful, and I liked the end.
One thing I didn't like is the way of acting of some actor (for instance Tang Yi, in one scene he wasn't credible at all and that bothered me a little). I recommend this drama for those who want a good BL with an original plot (but it's far from being a good thriller, it's still a BL and the story focus on Tang Yi and Shao Fei).

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经赞演技, 经典对白, 美丽故事, 紧扣人心,
非看不可, 续集必要。

Beautiful and simple story line that depicts how beautiful falling in love is and more importantly sticking to it, even if the tough gets going.

The chemistry between the main characters is excellent, especially in certain scenes. I have to add that I would have preferred that some scenes between them could be a longer, rather than ending abruptly.

The other highlight is the lines between them is excellently crafted and it makes me sit up to listen attentively. In addition, it makes me want to watch more Chinese dramas to relearn Mandarin, which is my second language.

A must watch drama especially if you’d like to have your faith in love reinforced. Love can be that simple and totally beautiful.

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