This series got me very excited. It's a while since a series made me fangirl like this. I was waiting eagerly for every new episode. Still I cannot bring myself to rate it higher.

Let me tell you, that this series fooled me. I thought this could be something more than a silly BL series, but at the end of the day it proved me wrong.

STORY (7,5/10): While the overall plot is very serious, interesting and full of twists, there are many rather silly scenes throughout the series. The comedy wasn't working for me most of the time. The policemen looked like a bunch of kids playing cops. The tone of the series changed completely in the second half. From silly comedy and unnecessary cliche BL scenes it went to flashbacks and drama, only to be rather cheesy in the last episode. I feel like the script could have been better. Still, this is a typical HIStory series. While I wasn't that critical with other HIStory series, this time I feel the need to remove my BL googles and rate this objectively. So, frankly speaking, the storytelling was a mess. Even if you binge watch the series, the plot just doesn't "flow". They clearly had some trouble balancing this out. It felt like two different people worked on the script. Less comedy in inappropriate situations, more consistent storytelling, cutting out unnecessary scenes with unnecessary characters etc. would have done wonders. I'm also not a fan of those kisses, where a character has the eyes wide open or those trip-fall-catch scenes (BL fans know what I'm talking about). I feel like those HIStory writers have a checklist and are forced to include those scenes. Some embarrassing touching – check. Getting nervous, because someone is half naked – check. This is silly and I hope they could just stop. Or maybe I'm just too old to giggle and blush, because of such scenes. For me it's just second hand embarrassment.

The love stories were written pretty well though, at least between the main characters. Tang Yi & Shao Fei were intriguing to watch. I enjoyed the rather straight forward approach. At the beginning I wasn't that impressed by Shao Fei's character and by Jake's acting. But throughout the series I started to appreciate how he portrayed Shao Fei. Yeah, the character is a bit goofy, he seems a bit silly and impulsive, but he is smart, brave and strong. Both characters are very complex and multi-dimensional. You want to know what happens next, how their relationship develops. They are adults with a past and certain goals. I really liked how slow the relationship developed, if was very natural and plausible. The chemistry is pretty good too. It's awkward sometimes, but then again those awkward scenes fit the characters and the story very well. Jake & Chris feel very raw and real. Unfortunately in the last couple of episodes both characters lost some of their charm and become rather one-dimensional, because of the dramatic circumstances. Their interactions also felt repetitive. After they became a couple, sh*t started to get down.

Jack & Zhao Zi: This couple was just too silly for my taste. They were mostly cute and lovely. You get the impression the couple was inserted just for fan service. Zhao Zi as a cop is not working. Jack isn't that credible either (constantly playing with his knife like some wannabe street gangster, while being dressed like a K-Pop idol). I honestly feel like the series lost a lot of its seriousness in the first half because of those two characters. Comedy and cuteness is okay, but they really went overboard with the second couple. I got invested in them later on though. I can see why people like them. Both actors/characters were pretty charming.

The hetero couple: I think this is worth mentioning. Those two are very likeable characters, especially Hong Ze as Tang Yi's "sister". She is sassy and really cares for Tang Yi. The love story was cute and got me emotional. Thumps up for including a hetero couple and a likable woman in a BL series! But let's be honest: this storyline was not needed for the overall plot. Cut it out and nothing would change. I guess you can say the same about the second gay couple. At least Zhao Zi and Jack were more involved in the plot.

ACTING CAST (7,5/10): There were a lot of different characters, a lot of different roles. I felt that most of the roles were pretty challenging and most of the cast did a good job. Almost everyone had a moment where she/he could shine. Still I think there was room for improvement. The actor who impressed me the most was Chris Wu. In some scenes Jake Hsu even out-acted him, only to show us a rather lacking performance in the next scene. Looking back I really feel like Jake's acting was a bit inconsistent.

THE MUSIC (9/10): Very nice music, nice intro and outro. The music that played at the end of ep 12 was beautiful. The whole scene was great and one of the best BL scenes I have ever watched. They also had good background music in some tense and action packed scenes.

REWATCH VALUE (9/10): I normally don't rewatch a series. This is a first for me. If you want to understand everything and not miss any details, you have to rewatch it. It's worth it though.

Overall I give it a solid 8,5 and hope, we will see similar series in the future. Still if you look for a BL series, that you can take 100% serious, then this one is not right for you. It seems many local fans hated on "Trapped" and I don't understand why. "Trapped" is not much different from past HIStory series. It had the same ingredients: embarrassing scenes, emotional scenes, cheesy scenes, dramatic scenes and the obligatory HAPPY END. Yeah, it was not a high school romance, the police-gangster background was different and something we don't see often, but still it was your typical BL at the end of the day. Don't get me wrong, this isn't a bad thing. But like I said, for a moment I thought this could be something more.