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Hallyu superstar Lee JeHoon has returned to the small screen with his latest revenge thriller "Taxi Driver" alongside Esom, Pyo YeJin and a host of other incredibly talented actors, making for a star-studded cast and an equally vivid and diverse range of characters all set to deliver what will perhaps be one of the finest dramas of this year. Based vaguely on a lot of real events that have happened over the years in Korean society, crimes that have gone unpunished and continue to be overlooked and even worse, those which have resulted from corruption in the legal system, "Taxi Driver" is aimed not only at creating an imaginary narrative that's thrilling to watch but also at giving a sort of "surrogate" satisfaction to viewers who feel helpless about not being able to do anything to effectively help the victims of such atrocious crimes. A disclaimer is due however because this drama is not for the faint of heart.
Spoiler Alert! From this point on, the article includes spoilers to episodes 1 and 2 of Taxi Driver!
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The premise of the drama is set forth in the very first minute with the release of a despised criminal protested by thousands. However, despite all the chaos, he is taken away in a premium taxi to what he thinks, is freedom. However, this taxi is driven by Kim DoGi, played by an unbelievably cool and nonchalant Lee JeHoon. Kim DoGi is backed by his crew, the Rainbox Taxi Service who arrange for just the right amount of distraction to avoid police attention. After a tussle in the taxi when the criminal realises that he's being taken somewhere else. Before we know it, he's knocked out cold and eventually delivered to Miss DaeMo (Cha JiYeon) , a loan shark who "stores" these criminals in exchange for money, which is all that matters to her.
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At the same time we're also introduced to the female lead of the story, if we may call her so, HaNa (Esom), a no-nonsense prosecutor who is quickly aware of the discrepancies about the recently released criminal's disappearance while on a premium taxi. Clearly, nothing goes under her radar. She's determined about taking on his case but is dissuaded by her boss, the Chief Prosecutor who is in alliance with Bluebird Foundation through its CEO as well as the founder of Rainbow Taxi.
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With the cast mostly introduced, we meet one of the first victims of the show's narrative - a very young woman, Kang Maria (Jo In) who is in the hospital hitched to an IV with blood on her face. She wakes up abruptly and upon gauging her situation, with a man sitting by her bed fully asleep, she quickly makes her way out of there. However, the next time we see her, she's contemplating taking her own life out of despair with her current position. She wails, not wanting to die but having no other choice. She stands at the edge of a bridge, about to jump off when she notices a yellow sticker with "Don't kill yourself, take revenge. We will do it for you" written on it. Eventually, we're glad to see that she does in fact decided to save herself.
Kim DoGi is alerted and goes over to pick her up in his taxi after which he asks her whether she would be able to tell him what exactly happened. The drama then delves into the overwhelmingly depressing and heinous crimes that were committed against her during her time working at a food fermentation company. She is an intellectually disabled young girl who had to move out of her orphanage upon turning 18 and an insurance agent set her up with a job at the previously mentioned company. What seemed like a lovely little supportive community that aimed to provide a living for disabled individuals, quickly turned into an abusive prison society where she was tortured, harassed, and even sexually abused. When she tried to escape and asked a policeman for help, he returned her to the company in exchange for a hefty bribe.
Kim DoGi records her narration and takes it back to the Rainbow Taxi lair in order to decide whether the team wants to take this case on or not. Of course, everyone agrees and the team sets out to exact revenge. Everything that follows is an intricately planned story of vengeance which is executed perfectly over the course of two episodes.
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The fact that a case is wrapped up within two episodes is exceptionally satisfying, especially since K-Dramas do not tend to have an episodic nature. There's no doubt that a bigger picture awaits us, considering that Kim DoGi has his own motives and HaNa too, has her own goals. However, if we are to believe the trend of the premiere week, "Taxi Driver" will undoubtedly be the highlight of every K-Drama lover's week. So far, we've been given a very slight glimpse at the dynamic between Kim DoGi and HaNa and it appears as though this might as well be an enemies-to-lovers arc if at all there is any romance involved in the drama in the first place.
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Overall, the first two episodes have undoubtedly left a great impression and at the same time, have raised expectations beyond what anyone would have first imagined. If the ratings for the episodes are anything to go by, "Taxi Driver" will certainly live up to the remarkable and record-breaking success of its predecessor, "The Penthouse: War In Life".
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