Taxista (2021)

Entertaining but inconsistent tone

While I really enjoyed the show, I don't think I could give it a 9 or 10. It started off really interesting with a great premise however, nearing the second half the writing started to feel rushed and inconsistent.

We were introduced to Hana as a committed prosecutor who followed the law precisely, but by the end of the show, she didn't mind bending the rules for a good cause. Normally, I wouldn't have minded this but as a viewer it was confusing because she kept changing her mind right until the last 2 episodes. After finding the prison she concluded that being a dark hero was just as bad as being a criminal (I didn't mind this change of heart.) But then she changed her mind again in the last half hour of the show without much explanation again. After saving the taxi team from going to prison she planned to resign because she felt she could no longer act as a prosecutor (this I understood), but then we see in the last few minutes that she joined the taxi team. I felt that this could have been explained a bit more. My issue with this is that it didn't feel like character development but rather inconsistent writing, it all happened so fast.

I also felt that the show could have held a stronger stance on the dark hero/vigilante message. They did a great job with this in the first half but not so much in the second half. It felt like the writers were taking the safer route. I understand that the characters realized their prison was not the best idea (I agree with that too lol) but then they decided to "quit" the whole taxi business and let the law do its thing. I'm assuming they did this to surprise the viewers when the taxi team came back together a year later, but it was just a little confusing. Like I said it felt a little rushed and like they were taking a safe stance on the dark hero message. Whereas in Vincenzo I feel like they didn't shy away from this. I'm wondering if the tone would have been more consistent if it was just one writer. I haven't read the webtoon, but I'm curious to see if they approached the vigilante theme similar to the drama.

BUT regardless of this I REALLY did enjoy watching the show, I just felt it could have been executed slightly better.

Leia Mais

Revenge will bite you back

This drama has been the guru of all revenge movies…

Not a melodrama material. However ten times the fun.

Must warn for all the blood and gore, violence and angst, swearing words. This drama for sure and for real has that truth beyond the truth essence in life.
Each episodes depicts the harsh truth for the weak must suffer. Retaliation then made by this awesome not so ordinary party of five. Each has their painful story and each face their demons, eventually.

Villains are on another level of viciousness. Again, viewers consideration is highly recommended. Be very wise and thoughtful and keep in mind this is just story telling with intense visualization. So when it get too intense quickly take three minute pause, get a soda for a sip or just make sure to watch it with a friend.

Acting is top notch. Lee Je Hoon is on a roll of yet hit wonder. Have been adoring him with this type of genre, ever since Signal.
Then again, this production has an amazing ensemble cast. Heroes, villain and victims are played with excellent acting skill.
OST and BGM are well orchestrated. It is like the utmost perfect set up. Watching this drama from start to end is such a revelation that action super heroes film can be made as real as this. Without extreme CGI or embellished costume suit. Even their villain is scarier than some loony scientist or billionaire gone mad.

This drama deserves more seasons. It even has the perfect ep 16 ending. Superb!

Leia Mais

I don't normally write reviews....

So this is probably the second time I'm writing a review. I heard a lot about Taxi Driver before I gave it a chance and what pushed me to watch it was a friend's recommendation who's really picky about what she watches and the reviews on MDL.

First of all, for someone who's lost a loved one to similar incidents as portrayed in the show and can empathise with the plot and the characters, this is a great show to which I can connect at a deeper level than someone who hasn't experienced something similar.

I love how Lee Je Hoon perfectly portrayed Kim Do Gi, a man driven by his need to protect other people from going through everything he went through and Kang Ha Na (Esom) who didn't want to believe that the law was flawed, changed her idea about how justice was delivered.

I loved the cast for this show, they were familiar faces, good actors who played their characters well.

I'll admit that at the end the show became a bit predictable but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I enjoyed it a lot.

Its one of those shows, when you reach a certain point, you just know that it's different.

9.5/10

Leia Mais

amazing cast, amazing plot and fight scenes? count me in.

*sighs* i don't even know where to begin.
when i started to watch taxi driver, it was already episode 11 and even though it's very hard for me to watch 10 episodes in a row without getting tired ou bored, i couldn't stop watching -- and not because of the plot itself, but also because of the relationship you created with the characters.

taxi driver brings a contradictional situation because you don't want to be a criminal, but at the same time, since criminals do bad things do good people, you want them to suffer. so i personally think they were able to work with that very well: the characters are conscious of what they're doing; they know they aren't heroes, but they can't be silent in a situation of injustice.

the "taxi driver" group has such a funny dynamic! it's not a work that can be done alone and because they need each other very much and because the reason they're working in there is similar, they really look like a family. and their relationship is so so so captivating that you just want to see more of it. since the begining it's clear that every opinion matters.

another thing that made me enjoy so much is the fact that episodes have like their own plot (that is lowkey related to a main plot). i think that this kind of storyline is so interesting, because you're able to show a lot stories and create a lot of scenarios that need to be shown and that need to be discussed without compromising the whole drama.

of course you can find some flaws in the story. for example, i didn't understand much of the process of keeping the "villains" arrested in a cell, i've never read any foucault, but i don't think that was going to work out fine. and in the end, specially the 15-16 episodes i thought they just mixed a lot of things and it was such a rush... the end itself (the last scenes) is good but i think that the drama was supposed to end in the episode 14 and afterwards they just added stuff to have 16 episodes. (but that's my personal opinion).

well, basically: taxi driver is an amazing drama, with and amazing cast, with a good character development and with a lot of funny scenes... AND FIGHT SCENES (with i personally love). it makes you lose a little bit of hope in humanity, but it also makes you promise yourself that you'll never shut up in situations of injustice........... and that you'll never transfer money after receving a call from a prossecutor office.

(ps. english is not my mother language, so i apologize for any mistakes)

Leia Mais

Is Revenge Really Justified?

Taxi Driver Season 1 (2021)

Likes
1. Yay i love the Rainbow Taxi Squad!! Their teamwork, their disguises and cases were so cool. Esp love the invincible Kim Dogi.
2. My favorite cases were the voice phishing with Madame and the hs bully with #Choihyunwook and #Leeminjae. All the other cases were almost connected with the main storyline of the female villain. I also loved and cried at Go Eun's sister's story.
3. Most shocking cliffhanger ending was ep 12 because i didnt expect Minho to die. Hana just had a debate with Dogi that the she doesnt understand how the victims feel until she experienced it first hand. And even went to Dogi for help.
4. More than the cases, the story was about justice through the system or justice at the hands of a few people. Sometimes courts take too long and the law doesnt appropriately punish the perpretrators. Who will defend the victim and family? But i also liked what one of the bad guys said to Dogi, why is your revenge justified but mine isnt?

Im ready for season 2!! Hoping for Dogi x Goeun romance please!!

Dislikes
1. Kang Hana could have been smarter and faster when investigating. Most of the time she needed clues from the Rainbow Taxi.
2. The Udata episode and the twins went a bit too long, this could have been done in 14 episodes or less. They even added a last minute twist in the last 2 eps about Kim Dogi's mom's real killer.

Rating: 8.75/10

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Pour mener à bien une vengeance, vous vous perdez également...

J’ai commencé ce drama après avoir vu la critique plus qu’élogieuse de « achuland » (que je remercie d’ailleurs, je serai sans doute passée à côté si je n’avais pas lu sa critique =D).

Ce drama change un peu de ce que j’ai l’habitude de voir. Pourquoi me direz-vous ? Car ici, nous mettons en avant les familles de victimes d’assassinats… Nous voyons souvent des séries traitant de tueur en série ainsi que la reconstruction de la famille de ces assassins… Mais nous voyons rarement comment la famille des victimes fait face à cette perte plus que douloureuse…

Courte introduction : L’histoire nous conduit au cœur d’une organisation qui se veut réformer les criminels violents, sous le couvert d’une association d’aide aux familles des victimes.
Nous retrouvons en son sein une équipe particulière ayant eux-mêmes été sujet à la perte d’être(s) cher(s) & souhaitant aider les personnes qui comme eux ont trop perdu. C’est ainsi, qu’ils se lancent dans une quête de vengeance pour toutes ces personnes lésées…

Au fur & à mesure des vengeances, nous découvrons petit à petit chacun des membres de l’équipe & faisons face à leur passé ainsi qu’à leur gestion du deuil… Mais nous devons également faire face aux histoires de leurs clients qui sont plus « abominables » les unes que les autres… Il est clair que ce drama nous montre des crimes d’une violence extrême… Cependant, il nous permet de nous questionner & ne laisse pas indifférent !

L’histoire nous mène dans un questionnement assez profond… Au final, comment faire son deuil ? Comment accepter que la personne qui nous a tout pris puisse continuer sa vie alors que nous n’arrivons pas à nous reconstruire ? Ce drama nous montre ici la « vengeance » mais également la procédure de pensée du leader de l’organisation. Il rêve de faire que les criminels ne commettent plus d’acte(s) abjecte(s) mais à quel prix ? Pour réaliser ses aspirations, il devient lui-même un être douteux… Alors finalement, comment réaliser quoi que ce soit en restant le plus humain possible ? J’imagine qu’il est difficile d’arriver à une conclusion satisfaisante…

Cette histoire, comme de nombreuses sur la criminalité, nous montre encore la puissance des conglomérats… Plus on est puissant, plus il est difficile de nous attraper… (Est-ce ainsi dans la vie réelle ? Sans doute en partie…)

Le seul petit point noir pour moi dans cette série est que Kim Do-Gi ressemble plus à un « super-héros » qu’à un être humain à proprement parler… Pourquoi ? On le voit souvent se battre… Je veux bien qu’il ait été à l’armée & qu’il soit « badasse » mais il y a des limites… La scène où il est kidnappé par le président de « U-Data » en est sûrement le meilleur exemple. Excusez-moi mais… Vu le nombre de coups (à mains nues comme à l’aide d’armes…) qu’il a reçu, il est techniquement IMPOSSIBLE pour un être humain de s’en sortir sans séquelles & pire encore… Sans aller à l’hôpital =O !!!

Vous l’aurez sans doute compris, j’ai apprécié mon visionnage & vivre ces aventures avec cette petite équipe que j’ai hâte de retrouver dans une deuxièmes saison. (En espérant qu’ils gardent le même casting =D)

Leia Mais

Taxi Driver - A revenge drama that's bone-deep satisfying!

Taxi Driver, for me, has been one of the most enjoyable dramas this year.

The script is not perfect or excellent by any means. There are some plot holes, and the villains are pretty one-dimensional.
The taxi team isn't trying particularly hard to keep their secret taxi business private, and they weren't very smart or secretive with how they operated. There were also some illogical fight scenes where the ML takes on around 30 bad guys by himself continuously and still manages to beat them all. The narrative also slightly changed around the episodes when the writer was switched, leading the tone of the drama to become more serious as we moved to the finale. There were a few issues like these peppered throughout the drama.

But so what? I didn't start watching this drama for a perfect script with no plot holes. I watched this show to see bad guys get beat up and our vigilante taxi team get the justice they deserve. I wanted to see camaraderie and friendship, flawed heroes, vigilante justice, fight scenes, and thrilling car chases - and that is precisely what I got.

Taxi driver right from episode 1 tells us what kind of show it's going to be and stays consistent through the 16 episodes. It's not trying to be a smart or complex show, and that is its strength. It promised us revenge, vigilante justice, teamwork, and triumph of good over evil, and that's exactly what it delivers.

Here are some of the things I loved about the drama;

1) The perfect ending - This, folks, is how an ending should be done. No rush; they just spent the last 40 mins of the drama showing us the aftermath and how all our favorite characters' lives have gone on since the big finale.

2) Lee Je Hoon is brilliant. I love him more and more with each show I watch. I think he is one of the most versatile actors, and I loved him in this. There are parts where he disguises himself, and the different roles he plays are such a delight to watch.

3) The fight scenes are well done , even if a little unbelievable. I enjoyed watching Lee Je Hoon beat up almost everyone other than the taxi team. I also read that he filmed the action/driving scenes himself without a stunt double, which made me like him even more.

4) The cases that our Taxi Team deals with are truly heartbreaking. They showed some stories based on true cases in South Korea, which added a nice dash of reality to the show.

5) The camaraderie of the Taxi team is a joy to watch. Their backstories made me feel angry on their behalf. Their motivations for joining the Taxi team and dishing out their own brand of justice for victims similar to them were understandable and made me cheer for their lawless brand of justice throughout the show.

6) The OST deserves a special mention. I love the instrumental BGM themes and the music, especially the songs by YB and Cha Ji Yeon.

I would have given this a 7.5, which is still a good rating for me, but Lee Je Hoon, the OST, and the ending push it to 8.

8/10. Very Enjoyable.

Leia Mais

Sometimes we need bad guys to take the role

cast and acting was outstanding. The unique musical taste added a memorable flair to the entire drama. I truly enjoyed the entire ride The casts were excellent in portraying their characters well.
Lee Je Hoon is truly a great actor with a variety of expressions and feeling that drew people in watching him act. You gotta watch to feel his emotions.
Glad Pyo Ye Jin took up the role of "Go Eun", she portrayed it really well. the sadness of loosing her sister, the anger towards the people who did her wrong, she really made the character alive.
The rest of the rainbow taxi team made a great team, their chemistry were really great and they protect each other well without biased.

Leia Mais

"Where are we going?" "To get revenge."

Taxi Driver was a wild ride from start to finish and I'm glad it was a show I picked up. I loved watching Lee Je Hoon in Signal and Move to Heaven, so it was nice to see him in such a bad-ass role. While he still holds his soft side, this drama is action packed and he is at the front of it.

All coming together from backgrounds of trauma, a group of people make the Rainbow Taxi Service. They do what the law can't or won't and get's revenge on the people who did you wrong. They will do anything and everything to protect the victims and their families and make sure there is some justice for the wrongdoings of the criminals who inflicted the pain. While helping out their clients, most of the employees revenge gets solved as well.

While the Rainbow Taxi is out doing vigilante justice, a prosecutor is doing what she can to help get these criminals behind bars. Although, she is on the hunt for the deluxe taxi and who is driving it. This was one plot-line that I did not really care for in the show and found myself skipping through most of the scenes. After around 12-13 episodes (I can't remember exactly when), my care for that story-line changed as did the heart of Kang Ha Na. It definitely turned around the feelings that I was having and made the whole thing worth it in the end.

The one thing that helped get me so interested in this drama were the side characters. All of the rainbow taxi employees are amazing and the actors/actresses who played them did incredible! They are perfect side-kicks while all shining in their own light and don't fall behind Kim Do Gi too much with how much they do in the service. I can't pick a favorite out of the 4 because all of them were so great in their own ways and I'm glad we got to get more into some of their backstories as to how they ended up together. Every scene of them all together was so heartwarming.

Now to go watch season 2. :)

Leia Mais

Revenge is a dish best served by a badass Taxi Driver

This Drama is a fresh breath of air among so many dramas that have cliché and overused tropes. In here there are no super cups that break the law and bring down the powerful and corrupt CEO and chairman, In here you get to see how a group of civilians band together to stand against tyranny and injustice by taking the law into their own hands.
I thoroughly enjoyed Taxi driver, because not only are the revenge stories satisfying, they are also brilliantly executed. Usually in Dramas like this, the focus is on showing the vigilantes how wrong they are by breaking the law and in the end they surrender and get punished for their "crimes", thankfully none of that was here and are heroes remained steadfast in their pursuit of true justice and to finally impower the victims for once (something we rarely see in Korean dramas).
In regards to the ending; The ending to every drama that I watch is a make it or break it moment for me, and even if I have enjoyed a drama fully until that end scene, if the ending is unsatisfying to me then the whole drama becomes a waste of time, but there are none of that here, for once our heroes are not imprisoned for doing the right thing, but they are rewarded and helped and we can see them getting ready for another case, stronger than before and with new powerful allies.
The only gripe I had with this drama was the lack of any romance for our poor ML, I was hoping someone would try to heal his broken heart, and I was completely disappointed that nothing happened between our awesome taxi driver and the amazing prosecutor, but that doesn't take anything away from this masterpiece of a Drama.
I highly recommend this Drama to anyone that is interested in an action-packed, fast-paced, revenge story full of emotion and thought provoking scenes.

Leia Mais

As with many superhero stories, you go in knowing it will be more entertainment than realism. The concept is great, especially since I have a soft spot for vigilantes but the execution in this one wasn't done well. Because it revolves heavily around the taxi, it does have a hint of resemblance to Batman (which they reference themselves in the series).

The first couple of stories were satisfying and the exaggerations went well with that dab of comedic undertone. However, it just felt more and more lame as they entered heavily into the cloud-based firm revenge. While the script being overly basic can be overlooked, when the characters themselves began to lose their flavor, that's when there's really not much else to look forward to.

- The prosecutor was irritating from the beginning and she could have been written out completely with minimal impact.
- They try to humanize your mains by incorporating some type of trigger that causes them to relive their traumas but the way it was executed just made them again, lame. For a team that is supposed to be superior and calmly collected, and who's been doing this for a while, a whistle from some traffic cop is going to cause your main dude to pass out? Then your female main who's seen that online video over and over again in the past, is suddenly so traumatized by coming across it again during a job that she just abandons ship and locks herself up? While trauma does impact someone for a lifetime, this was incredibly excessive.
- The sister's suicide. They paint her out to be a sweet, loving person. But anyone who has enough right mind to make a last meal for a loved one, tuck a blanket over them, and then decides to publicly jump off a building and plop herself horrifically in front of the same loved one, is just a selfish ass.
- Oh, how the flashbacks were misused much too often. Instead of adding anything to the plot, they were just fillers to prolong the minutes. I also didn't buy into the dramatic music that tried to convince the audience into thinking the scene was eventful.

If they had maintained the same pacing as with the first couple of stories or didn't reduce character developments, it would have been much more entertaining. Unfortunate.

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