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.
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This review may contain spoilers
"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. :)
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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.
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This review may contain spoilers
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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"Revenge isn't completed by ruining the other person..."
This is one of the best crime drama I've watched by far. It got thrills, action, comedy, drama and based on true story crime telling. Try watching it and hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.One of the saddest story they portrayed a about the murder of an 8 yo girl but a man who was wrongly accused. He was a disabled man that was forcefully and beaten by police to confess to a crime he didn't even commit. The police even stole the girl body to fabricate evidence. (Horrible)
When the real culprit was found, this man was forced to forgive the real culprit due to statue of limitation to the case. Along with the policeman who beat him to confess.
This man lost everything because of wrongdoing of that police.
You can watch this part at the end of ep 15 (spoiler)
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.
As for the villain, Baek Sung Mi is really annoying along with the twin (the big guys). Truly hated their characters (but that means the actors are doing a great job portraying it)
Not forgetting the OST. The songs are great to listen to.
"Revenge isn't completed by ruining the other person. Only when you can live your own life is your revenge complete."
This is my favourite quote in this drama (spoken by Director Jung). Well this drama did teach that taking revenge by ruining your offender is not gonna heal you or give you satisfaction but instead live your own life to the fullest is the biggest revenge to your offender.
I'll definitely gonna re-watch this some other time. It was a great drama and all the time spent waiting for new episodes paid off with a great ending.
If there's a season 2, I'll watch it for sure.
^^
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taxi driver is brillant
really good and I like how they shifted gears halfway through so I wasn`t the same old thing all the way through. really hope there is another season cos it was really good. this could definitely have at least 5 or 6 seasons with a story like this. the suspense of the story and the fact that you don`t really know what's going to happen next makes you want to watch it even more. i do like the main lead and this type of story. i like how the story had the right balanced of honour, serious and sad senes.Was this review helpful to you?
Satisfying
Watch this when you are a bit mad and feel frustrated at this unjust world. A revenge drama usually takes the whole series to conclude. Here, there are smaller incidents that take two episodes each to resolve and are sooooo satisfying.The back ground music score brought the excitement of my child hood when I used to watch Knight Rider. Its not the same but gave similar vibes.
My most favorite part were awesome cool female leads as well a villainess that would chill your blood. I have never been this happy to see such a nice balance of strong male and female roles. All side characters did well.
The ML, Lee Jee Hoon did a great job of portraying varied roles. He has indeed been choosing excellent roles recently and I hope he continues his streak of success.
The female prosecutor worked very hard and stuck to doing what she believed was right and was empathetic with a lot of common sense. Some one who will make you respect her through her grit, resilience and intelligence.
The other female was just as awesome and got me excited when she rode a sports bike (You go girl!!!!).
Excellent lessons learned that you will pay a price if you go for revenge and even the smartest people can make mistakes. The ending was super satisfying. There is a hint of second season but hasn't been confirmed yet.
No romance, just a whiff of attraction.
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Creative original story-plot and great cast
Taxi Driver is a stellar series--highly recommend. I greatly enjoyed watching.Part 1 has no spoilers, Part 2 has some story line reveals/spoilers but not much. Watch series first. I call out a glaring blunder and then give some ideas for Season 2 ( dream on right?)
First--kudos to the concept developer/writer for engaging us on a difficult social topic: when and how is justice served? Does revenge come with a cost and is the cost worth it? Does the justice system (the prosecutors/prisons) contribute to rehabilitation or keep victims of crime safe? Who helps them when a murderer is released from prison who can then kill again? Does forgiveness factor into healing trauma from violent crime? Show's motto: can evil be overcome by doing good? The crime stories are adapted from real life in Korea too.
CREATIVE and original drama--The vigilante justice taxi team's CEO Jang Sung Chul portrays the ambiguity, the human foibles, the mistakes made along the way and this is what makes the show so compelling. What is closest prosecutors and the revenge taxi can come to achieving justice? Even the clients hesitate when deciding to push the 'yes I want help with revenge' button--these aspects add so much to the dilemma and story telling. The Blue Bird help group he directs gives us the backstories to keep us emotionally invested in a BIG WAY. Then, such satisfaction when the clients get reparations/justice such as $ for college that was scammed, and the team members take turns being the giver--which adds to their own healing/sense of making justice out of things. Just wonderful. Could be 5 seasons with this material.
Lee Je-hoon is an outstanding actor and while his action scenes are great and deserve the high praise... do we really need an Ironman action figure who can floor a group of hammer wielding men all by himself? These fights were a few too many and detracted from the story as they became just silly like all of sudden 'lets make an action hero show.' Je-hoon's undercover characters were fantastic, and added needed brevity and comedy. Perfect for this role.
Part 2 SPOILER ALERT Please watch series first.
Major writing blunder when Kim do ki sets a bomb for the porn CEO, drives off then sees prosecutor driving to the scene and does not have someone tip her off by burner phone 'don't go near shed-server there is a bomb.' She could have been killed ( she was injured). Just some lazy writing. I understand the lead writer left mid series ( big mistake they should have listened to the writer).
If there is a season 2, there are rich relationship potentials especially for Do Ki and Ha Na- not romance--but much needed human connection for characters--some deeper communication say how to heal and move on from trauma. When Do Ki has 2 major melt downs due to unresolved trauma and Ha Na is there both times and no hug or comfort? Just staring like a deer in headlights? Waste of this hugely talented actress. This was a moment for us to feel something more towards Do Ki, he could have reached for her hugging -sobbing- releasing and this would give the prosecutor more compelling reason to empathize with him personally and with the Taxi team's methods and reasons too. She joins later anyway--make it a believable build up. A missed opportunity.
And just some basic human kindness. They all seem to lack warmth of human touch. And for Pyo Je Jin too. What a talent! Did not like/agree scene when she is full blown traumatized and Do Ki wanted to go to her room, CEO said no--let her 'process'. Seriously? Even though he may not been able to help, why not allow him to say 'I'm here if you need me.' I know they are all damaged by trauma but still let them be more than robots! Do they need a woman writer on this team or is it all 'more action figure fighting scenes' instead of time on characters and how they evolve their approach to justice making and bond as humans and be tender towards each other too.
Idea for new calling card as they re-invent the taxi revenge approach Season 2:
BEYOND REVENGE IS RETALIATION THROUGH JUSTICE.
WE WILL DO IT FOR YOU.
DON'T DIE. CALL.....
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A crime classic
This drama is a classic. The plot is nothing new, as many dramas and films focus on the fantasy of an antihero. The main character is by no means the perfect but that's what makes this type of character relatable.Since episodic dramas are my favorite. It was great to see the creative ways in which he helped the victims find personal justice. In addition, the way he fought with his personal moral compass. As the plot thickens, being able to see the inner turmoil between him and the other crew members was gripping.
To avoid any spoilers, this is easy to watch from start to finish. You feel like your justice can also be had.
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SOMEONE GET ME SOME HAIR CLIPPERS STAT, THAT PERM GONNA DIE TODAY!
So before I say anything else about this drama, I need to say....on no planet is a pushing 40yr old whole ass man gonna pass for a high school student complete with a school uniform....even in flashbacks. I forgive him for dressing in a school uniform though, but only because little dude has such a peaceful and calming voice. Other actors can for sure pull off the bleak and aloof good guy, but not everyone could do it with such a beautiful relaxing tone.This drama is classified as Action, Suspense, Thriller, Mystery, Crime, Drama....but what I can't figure out is how it's not classified as a comedy. The lead actor is hilarious. I mean...dude is badass and haunted by his past, for sure and he does an amazing job playing the silent brooding type, but 50% of this drama is him doing overly exaggerated caricatures of stereotypical side characters. Little dude must have studied super meticulously, he nails every absurd aspect from the nerdy dude's awkward blinking and mouth shapes to the flashy thug's spread legged saunter. Ridiculously funny physical comedy.
That aside, gosh this drama was good. The stories were so compelling, the acting was great, the fight scenes were badass, all the action sequences were so well done. Whether it's the lead dude beating up a room full of badguys or spinning his taxi about to inflict wild maiming chaos, dude definitely comes through in every scene. The female leads in this are really well done too, the lead villain chick is brutal and evil to the core, the sidekick rainbow chick was exceptionally well acted and her character was written super well without relying on typical kdrama female character tropes. The prosecutor was also very well cast, and it was fun to watch her character's journey throughout the show.
I will say...whoever permed that comedic side character's hair needs to lose their cosmetology license. The bowl cut was also terrifying, but that perm should have had its own entry in the credits. I cringed every single time that poor dude came on screen (except the few times they styled him differently). The travesty of this show is definitely that no one murdered that perm with a nice pair of sharpened clippers. The characters were good, but whoever tf made the decision on how to style their hair is for sure on my blacklist from now on.
The ending was being pretty boring, sadly...like the last 2 episodes really drag on. They pull it off at the end with an appropriate level of baddassery, but you can't give your audience 14 episodes of constant action and then dip them into mediocrity for entire two episodes and expect them to retain their excitement. I was, honestly, pretty annoyed with the little old dude taxi boss guy. Like ok, you want revenge but you don't want to kill people. So what, you try to play god by locking people up and "reforming" them? His character got pretty dark and I was disappointed that he didn't receive more punishment for the choices he made, especially when his choices put literally everyone else in danger. BUT...I guess grieving people are allowed to be a little crazy and make mistakes here and there.
I never thought an "action" drama about a taxi driver could be even remotely interesting, but this one somehow made taxi driving cool. I don't usually rewatch dramas, but I might revisit this one again in a few years just to watch the crazy action scenes. ....providing I can stomach the perm situation....
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You can’t keep yourself calm and cool while watching this. Extreme angriness dominates you!
It has an interesting storyline –a number of people who lost their loved ones' lives from such crimes, group together and seek revenge for their client in their service called Rainbow Deluxe Taxi with a tagline that says “Don’t die, get revenge. We’ll do it for you.”Each case makes my blood boil! The amount of destructive emotion I felt is enough to fly into the fit of rage silently. I AM ANGRY AND ANNOYED for the intense and suspenseful drama, and have a weak heart for such brutality. But I still felt the satisfaction I needed after finishing their missions. The rainbow after a storm is only for a brief moment since sooner or later, another terrifying case will be taking into vengeance.
Kang Maria’s abusive and inhumane employer lights the raging flame within me. The first case presented in the show signifies the monstrous situation of the laborer with a disability that leads her to live like hell in that place.
Case number 2 was about the bullied student and how those bullies deserve the consequences they faced upon their actions. Another ups and downs scenario that denotes that young age does not lessen the weight of the sin and it may just be a small part of their teenage years, but to others, it may be a life-and-death situation. I just wished that they would give us a glimpse of their present circumstances in the final episode.
The Udata case talks about the evil businessman and how he controlled his employees in a patriarchal way. It is a good thing for me that he died but I am still salty on how minimal his injuries were compared to his employees. I am so irritated to him that I wanted Kim Do Ki to tortured him more.
On the other hand, the Voice Phishing episodes were my favorite. It has a different kind of revenge that isn’t vicious and gives good vibes all throughout. Kim Do Ki flexing his good looks for a use. He and his body had a new purpose during that time; to attract the scam leader and make her fall in love. This one is absolutely light, entertaining, and a hilarious one. Using the same tactics of the scammers, Kim Ki Do betrayed her trust given to him and resulted in the destruction of her business along with her people. Madam Lim was so whipped up by Wang Tao Zi (Kim Ki Do) that she was even ready to forgive him any moment.
Chairman Baek, the twins, serial murders, organ trafficking, and the unison of their past caught-villains that turns to be their biggest mission to overcome. They’re totally at a disadvantage and suffer great losses, each member of the Rainbow Deluxe Taxi was severely injured. An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. Revenge will bite you back.
Plot after plot. The big fat man that actually turns out to be twins. Second, the death of Mr. Wang ignites the provocative behavior of Prosecutor Kang that leads her to consume the service of the Deluxe Taxi. Also, Chairman Baek stabbed their back and concluded as the boss behind all illegal business that was thought to be an independent act of one of the twins. But the most arousing moment in a despicable manner is when all of the prisoners held in the private prison escaped and joined forces with Chairman Baek. It was a superhero-like concept in which the protagonist and his team had to fight once again with these monsters in a fast and contemptuous way. After fulfilling their previous missions, one thing is for sure, their team is great on catching them but negligent on the idea of trusting an outsider to handle the hell-like facility of the catched villains. I can’t blame them but it was still an agitated feeling, they should heavily tortured them.
The final case is about the serial murderer who turns out to be the one who killed Kim Ki Do’s mother. To the man who was falsely accused and took his 20 years serving in jail was so agonizing, specially that this story was inspired in a real life scenario of a man who forcely admitted the crime because the detectives tortured him. The poor victim who was a little girl and her family suffers a lot too from blaming the false suspect. Why do such evil people exist? The police, detectives, and the government have to blame for their dereliction of duty and abusive use of power in society. The lawmakers should adjust the Statute of Limitations and give proper justice to these heart-rending victims.
To sum it up, the drama was a great one indeed. I came here for Lee Je Hoon and he never fails to amaze me. The role really fits him; a hot, cold, cute, sexy, handsome, charismatic, hunky, and lovely character. Too many positive adjectives can describe him. Kim Ki Do supposedly have a quirky attitude if only he doesn’t experience losing her mother in a murder case. His dream of becoming an actor was showcased in every mission they did. Loving every single detail of witnessing a smiling and laughing Kim Do Ki passionately despite this side of him was purely an act for the success of their mission. He became so cold and less talkative after the unfortunate event happened to his family that completely changed him as a person. The only thing I can’t take seriously is the superman strength and stamina of Kim Do ki. He can take too many critical hits without fainting (except for the udata case), and he even beat a bunch of big hired gangs all against him alone. I know he flourished this skill and built it in the army but the human body has limitations too. Sometimes, it is proven that people acquire extraordinary strength when on the verge of danger but Kim Do Ki takes it to another level.
Another flaw is that it is a gunless action and thriller drama where the characters were against several law breakers and hid under the dark side of the world. For a show of explicit extreme savagery, the usage of guns was almost unseen except for that time when Prosecutor Kang utilized it during the arrest of Chairman Baek people. Instead, they prefer to use knives, hammer, fist and kicks during the fights. But the thing that made me scream impatiently was every time Do Ki had to walk very slowly chasing the devil on the run. He is giving them a chance to escape, attack, and defend themselves against him. All for the sake of a cool-action-shot typical in most action genre dramas.
Thank goodness that they didn’t include any fancy romance in the story. They mainly focused on the concept of revenge and consequences which were executed marvelously. Plus, the arrangement of the arcade game, karaoke room, and the atm bank machine as the platform to blow the final decision of the customer in using their service was done creatively.
Binge-watched this for days and never got bored. This was really a great and explendid drama!
“Even if we lose 100 guilty criminals, let’s not punish a single innocent person.”
Justice is served!
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