Do you like well-developed plots and characters? Do you like amazingly diverse acting? Do you like insanely emotional, heart-warming romances? Do you like beautifully shot scenes? Then this is the BL for you!!
First thing I'd like to say is, I'm going to review this series in the bounds of its genre, aka BL Series.
If you've never watched a BL series before I definitely recommend starting with this one. It is truly one of the best.
One big thing to know about BL series: There's a lot of intense/cheesy romantic scenes.
The main reason I absolutely loved this series though was the fact that they didn't make it all about the romantic scenes or all about the main couple/side couples. They had a bigger overarching storyline that didn't feel forced at all and made a lot of sense.
Most BLs focus a lot on romantic scenes and making the show all about cute couple moments and it doesn't give the characters much room to grow other than in their love life. But this one does not do that at all.
It has such a great overarching storyline on gang life and the things Tang Yi and Shao Fei were struggling with. And the development of the story as well as the development of the characters, specifically Tang Yi and Shao Fei, was for the most part very fluid and well thought out. The plot never became repetitive, it was fast-paced but still managed to keep a lot of suspense that had me at the edge of my seat.
The acting was incredible considering some of the cast's lack of acting experience. I loved watching the live streams the cast and director recorded following each week of episodes as you really could notice the amount of work and thought that was put into the relationships between actors and their characters. The director did an amazing job at guiding the actors to understand more and more about their characters so they could portray them better in the show. And it's noticeable the amount of studying and effort the actors put into their characters. I truly applaud everyone from the main cast, especially Chris.
Lastly, I believe the series is doing what it aimed to do and that is to top the last few seasons of History. I personally loved crossing the line, which I think is the second most popular story out of the whole show, but it clearly did not have the chance to be as detailed with the plot lines as Trapped did.
I really believe this BL series does what many BL series can't do and that is finding a good balance between the romantic scenes the BL genre is known and loved for and a solid, logical storyline that makes the show that much more enjoyable to watch.
Some things I wish could have been better: the character development for Li An and Jack as a couple and as individuals, the development of Shao Fei's relationship with his boss, and the development of Zhi De's character. I believe most of these issues were created by the lack of time the show had. Most shortcomings of BL series are caused by the lack of time but I understand that this is caused by the small size of the industry and lack of funds.
I've already watched the show twice and I can say that it is really so good and interesting, I definitely recommend this show if you like a sad but still not-too-cruel angst story accompanied by cute romances.