As my title has indicated, Tom Hardy's "Taboo" is a beautiful slow burn, as the story builds through each episode I was hooked on how Hardy's character would react to certain situations and was never left disappointed, without spoiling the story itself there are some wonderfully tense and sad moment's throughout.
The cast were amazing throughout the whole show, the story so gripping, the sets were down right amazing and overall production couldn't have been better!
I can't wait for a second season to see what will happen next.
Add a Review
-
Clive_W11 May 2020
-
Rob133118 January 2023Taboo is about adventurer James Keziah Delaney (Tom Hardy), who most think is dead, returns home to inherit his father's shipping empire in 1814 London and also seek vengeance for his father's death. He encounters numerous enemies while he tries to build his company against the monopoly that is East India Company. Hardy is one of the best actors on the planet...period. Besides maybe Leonardo DiCaprio he's my favorite actor and one of the handful of actors where I'd watch the movie/show knowing nothing more than that they're in it. Taboo is another in a long line of great performances for Hardy. The show is thrilling from start to their are rumors that they plan on making another season. I hope that's true.
-
bdewiyah8 July 2019Its so original that we need the second season ASAP PLZZZZ
-
gogoschka-125 February 2017Imagine a man with the shaman-like charisma and borderline madness of Jim Morrison (at least as he was depicted in Oliver Stone's film 'The Doors') but equipped with the vicious fighting skills of Wolverine. Add to that the intellect and strategic talents of Francis Underwood from 'House of Cards' as well as a - very large - dose of trauma induced mental problems (especially mother issues; well: some sister issues as well) – and you've almost got James Keziah Delaney (Tom Hardy), the central character of the new show 'Taboo'. And let me tell you: he just so happens to be one of the most compelling and original protagonists I've seen in a TV-show since Ian McShane blessed us with the character of Al Swearengen in 'Deadwood' (ok, there was that other guy from that cooking show, you know: 'Baking Bread' or something like that - he was pretty singular too).
'Taboo' is certainly not an easy show to describe - it's simply too unique for that - but let me have a go at it anyway. As with all my reviews, this is supposed to give you an overall impression of the show, so you won't find any plot details here, although some very minor spoilers are possible. Please bear in mind that I'm a hopeless screen junkie who has long lost the ability to properly use language unless it's in the context of film, so forgive me for constantly referencing other films and TV-shows in order to describe this series. If this grave condition of mine bothers you, you might want to stop reading now.
Still here? OK: imagine the dark, brooding atmosphere of 'True Detective' (I'm talking about the first season, of course) and transfer that mood to the city of London in 1814, at a time when the war between Britain and America is still going on but slowly nearing its end. Now further imagine that time period (candlelit rooms, horse carriages riding over cobblestones, fog rising from the river Thames and creeping through dark streets and busy docks) captured through the breathtakingly beautiful cinematography we usually find in a Ridley Scott film. Are you with me so far? Good. Because now that we've established the tone, mood and look of this show, we can explore the world of James Delaney a little further.
The end of the Anglo-American war is in sight, and as peace negotiations between the warring parties are secretly taking place, there's a third major player involved who is scheming to protect its influence: the East India Company, one of the first - and perhaps most powerful - corporations in history. It's this fascinating time of upheaval and secret battles for power in and around the New World which provides the backdrop for 'Taboo', and the show does an amazing job at transporting the audience to that era. This series features some of the best production design I've ever seen in a show (or a feature film, actually); everything looks lived-in and genuine; whether it be ships, houses, clothes or landscapes; every grimy cobble stone in every dimly lit alley virtually oozes authenticity.
When we first meet Delaney, he makes an entrance worthy of the Count of Monte Cristo. In case you don't know the story, that's the guy who was framed for a crime he didn't commit and then locked away for so long everybody eventually thought he was dead - only to return one day, rich beyond imagination, and with an elaborate plan on how to take revenge on everyone that had wronged him. This theme of a guy returning from the dead with unexplained riches but a mysterious plan on his mind is sort of the starting point for 'Taboo' (but it's only the starting point, so this isn't a spoiler). As we soon find out, Delaney's actually more like the Count of Monte Cristo's disturbed, savage twin, for he does things Edmond Dantes (that's the Count's real name) probably couldn't conceive of in his wildest dreams. Through his return - and by carrying out his plan - Delaney puts himself in the impossible position where he's not only up against the sinister forces of the East India Company, but also against the British Crown as well as the Americans, and it will take all his cunning and every dirty trick and violent skill at his disposal for him to stay alive and protect his interests.
Thanks to Tom Hardy's charismatic screen presence (and great writing), watching Delaney as he plots, threatens, kills, steals and hallucinates his way through this deadly game of chess is a thrilling joy and never less than compelling. Hardy creates the chilling portrait of a man who is haunted by the ghosts of his past; a man who seems to have one foot already firmly rooted in the afterlife and who communicates with the spirits of the dead - yet at the same time he's a relentless force of nature who pursues his goals with unwavering determination. There are many reasons to enjoy 'Taboo': this dark tale of dark passions - and even darker secrets - is beautifully written (by Hardy Sr., Hardy Jr. and 'Peaky Blinders' creator Steven Knight); it's gorgeous to look at (it was produced by Ridley Scott and shot by Scott's frequent collaborator Mark Patten), and it features great performances by such prominent British thesps as Jonathan Pryce, David Hayman or Stephen Graham - but make no mistake: this is 100% Hardy's show. The role of Delaney is tailor-made for him, and I honestly can't imagine 'Taboo' working with any other actor.
So to sum up my review: I highly recommend 'Taboo' to every Tom Hardy fan, but anyone who likes their tales dark and twisted and doesn't mind a somewhat deliberate pace (I'm talking to you, 'True Detective' fans) is equally well served - especially fans of original material. Great, unique television: 9 stars out of 10
Favorite TV-Shows reviewed: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls075552387/
Lesser-Known Masterpieces: imdb.com/list/ls070242495/
Favorite Low-Budget and B-Movies: imdb.com/list/ls054808375/ -
RaoulDuke128 February 2017The first season of this show is excellently written and directed. Tom Hardy does an outstanding job. The historical material is an educator's dream, but the content is a school teacher's nightmare! Every taboo is broken, and in pre-Victorian England, that's a lot of taboos!
This TV show explores a part of history that is often glossed over. I definitely tried to research a little more about the war of 1812 while watching it. Some quite interesting things happened in that war. The British burned down Washington D.C.!
If I had one critique of this show, it would be that the color scheme is a little monotonous. I think they should take off the 19th century filter.
I definitely am looking forward to the next season. I really hope that the intricate plot development continues and becomes more historically interesting. It will be difficult, however, to live up to this outstanding first season. Please, give it a watch! Though not with children - -
Supermanfan-1330 December 2020Tom Hardy is one of the best actors on the planet...period. Besides maybe Leonardo DiCaprio he's my favorite actor and one of the handful of actors where I'd watch the movie/show knowing nothing more than that their in it! Taboo is another great performance for Hardy. It is thrilling from start to finish and can't wait until they finally make Season 2!
-
Obviously it's not hard to see why, with Tom Hardy leading...
This show is so amazing it's hard to find the words. It's like one huge elaborate puzzle, and only Tom Hardy knows the way to the finish. And we all just get to sit back and watch him take us there. Though I don't want to diminish any of the other actors, as literally each one of them are all doing a very superb job. Taboo literally has the best all around acting in a television show that I've ever seen. At the end of every episode, it is unbearable to think that I have to wait another week to see what happens next.
The time period for this show, for me personally, sets the entire mood. It REALLY gives off a sort of Old London, Jack the Ripper feel while watching it. I'm not sure how else to describe the mood of the show, but that feels right.
Tom Hardy's character commands the screen. When he's on, you don't want to miss a single word or grunt. Taboo also has some great dark humor to release stress build-up at crucial times.
I apologize if I'm being vague, but I don't want to spoil a single thing. If you are looking for a show to watch, look no further. -
timdaldrup22 May 2017Finally I came to see this Gothic gem from the BBC and I am not disappointed - quite the contrary is the case.
In 'Taboo' the set up of the world and the creation of a very dark and at the same time tender atmosphere as well as the nicely arranged spectrum of taboo-motifs (like sexual transgression, the grotesque and strange, overwhelming violence etc.) kept me from being bothered by the fact that I didn't feel one jot more sympathy for its main character than for its antagonists. James K. Delaney is an intriguing mysterious character attracting us in a depraved way. But he is also an individual of extreme moral reprehensibility we eventually cannot go along with.
The series makes very good use of Gothic- and Dark Romanticism writers' style to build up the gloomy atmosphere of a depressed 1814 England still anguished by the loss of the great colony. It is no coincidence when Delaney claims at some point in the series:"The ravens told me". We find lots of Poe here either in theme or characters. Madness wanders through the world of 'Taboo' and at least at the dip of the hem this madness is always caused by the East India Company, the Crown or Delaney. Curiously all the characters except Delaney himself are appearing so vulnerably and fragile that their indulgence (to be helpless and lost in this made up society) arises a counter-part to the unforgiveness of the room they live in.
'Taboo' also declares the downfall of the classic adventure genre. There is no space for nostalgic explorers or discoverers in the plot lines, Delaney is a broken man as he returns from Africa, even if he is not willing to admit this. It's rather a farewell to the exotic, the story takes place after the alleged adventure and mainly stays at the well-known. Interestingly the series manages it to combine some accounts on slavery shifting the story to an international level (not many historic series/ movies do this, they mostly remain in the domestic frame).
Further the actors do a very nice job. Particularly Tom Hardy, Jonathan Price and the reoccurring Mark Gatiss play exceptionally good. However I have to say that there was no huge character development, which I wished to see. The characters are not uni-dimensional, but they do not alter in their facets. The series tries to offset this flaw with new secrets and confessions in every episode pretending these to be a change, whilst it is actually only about the introduction of new information. A very common writing technique, I think.
Overall I can highly recommend 'Taboo', especially for fans of Gothic, Grotesque and the 19th century England. -
Mercedes-S280-W14029 January 2017Excellent!
Without revealing to much I just want to say this: Acting is very entertaining and believable. Story is surprising and keeps you on your toes. It's definitely not for the faint of hart, seeing there's some blood and gore. The series is called Taboo and this really comes alive thanks to some good acting from Tom Hardy and Oona Chaplin.
And last but not least it's got ASS (Action, Suspense and a Strong story)!!
There's nothing more to say, just watch it and be pleasantly surprised. I was! -
Apparently Tom Hardy lost a few million on this one. I find it hard to believe. Perhaps the person who did the calculations only took into account how the show did on its mother channel on TV in the UK. But that's just the beginning of its story, I would say, because there is streaming and DVDs and foreign sales... A lot of people prefer to stream stuff because it's more convenient. A fixed TV time isn't always a good time to watch something. I'm pretty sure Hardy knew what he was doing, and anyway, it's just not freakin' possible that this show isn't gonna do amazingly well around the world. NO WAY.
It's a period show and not everyone is into those, but if you are, man, what a story. I have so much respect for Tom for being a great actor who just can't make a bad movie - and now he also created 'Taboo'? What a talent this guy has! You gotta love his approach to acting and storytelling and you can see he is only after the best quality in everything he does. 'Taboo' is yet another example of this.
The story line is very intriguing, it's cooking slowly but keeps you hooked, and all the characters are great and very colourful. There is so much attention to detail here, especially when it comes to historical accuracy, but not only that. It's easy to watch a show and say 'it's amazing', but take the time to stop and think about how much work went into designing this, and into the filming. It's not just the clothes and the places and mannerisms, etc., but the many different characters too, each of whom has their own story and personality. And then there's the whole main story and the many twists and turns, with James Delaney always being on top of things, always having an ace up his sleeve. How does one simply write such a show 'just like that'? We watch it and enjoy it, but the work - the work! Think about it every step of the way and you will truly be amazed at what Hardy achieved here. You'll see a perfectionist behind every frame.
I like all the actors playing all the different parts, they make it seem like this is happening for real. It's uncanny. And of course, Tom Hardy himself, the cursed James Delaney, who you know is a very bad man but you still want him to succeed. Hardy has outdone himself for sure, and hats off to him for always getting better and better, and doing it so easily. You can't take your eyes off the screen watching this. You just can't.
I wonder why there are only 8 episodes in this season. I was expecting something around 20 because this became my new favorite show. Now it looks like there might not even be season 2? If there's a petition to keep this show alive, just tell me where to put my signature. I'll sign with both hands and feet. -
Ok, let's get a few things out of the way. Tom Hardy is as fierce, committed and compulsively watchable as ever. If you're a fan, you get what you expect. Jessie Buckley, though lesser known, has a zesty charm and intelligence wherever she goes, and the same is true here. She's a highlight in a show that could otherwise have defaulted on cliched female characters. Set design and cinematography is decadent, dark and high budget... like a deeply sinister Dickens adaptation meets Black Sails from hell. Truly awesome. Sometimes passages of dialogue have the trademark Stephen Knight superiority... if you're ever going to be stuck in an elevator or on an island with someone, any one of his characters would be a fine choice.
On the other hand, Taboo suffers irrevocably from intensely bad pacing, among other things. The first two episodes establish only the bare external minimum, and are much more dependent on personality than progress. Still, without this initial momentum of progress character suffers too, even as plotting eventually picks up after about 4 eps and James vs. The East India Company gains twists and turns and little reveals. Hardy's character is distinctive, but only in distant shades and biting one liners. What he wants and why can be told by the external, as later on various action-y clever plots unfold to his ends, but going forth he remains oddly opaque even as the script attempts flashes of spiritual/ mystical perspectives on his part. At this point it is very difficult to buy into him a genuine mystic in any way. He just seems insane and his connection to the mysterious mother transient rather than profound. Is that the point? I don't know. However, he is not nearly the closed book that the sister/ former lover is. This character and her portrayal is so insistently cold and confounding, that even by the end it is unclear what went on here, and who wanted what out of this particularly odd connection. If you are thinking Lannister siblings, you certainly aren't going to get that here. The siblings here have an intensity that is manufactured, rather than built from narrative building blocks. I still have no idea how she fit into the story, or his motives. Or if she even harbored genuine motives of her own.
The character of James also has an opportunity to connect with an audience via his estranged young son, who he now intersects with for the purpose of this story. Yet the two continue to have the dynamic of a boss and a young employee played by an extra and it is too easy to forget that the son exists. This puzzled me the most. Even absence of interaction itself could make a big part of story. This subplot could have been the heart of the story, and I hope there are plans to make this such in the future. The dynamic with the step mom came closer, and by the last two episodes that FINALLY picked up the pace, was a highlight. She stands to force James to become easier to understand as a character. Characters like Godfrey the drag queen and Atticus the clever, rough sidekick eventually played well into forming a bit of a "tribe" for James... but too little too late. Again, pacing is the death knell here. I'm still not sure what I think about the outrageously over the top royal and all the scenes he took up. I appreciate that humor was attempted here, regardless of how dark, but I'm not watching because I want more of this guy.
Ultimately, the impression is that Taboo is cool and has a sharp, esoteric tone, but that no one has thought about a deeper purpose aside from Tom Hardy outdoing some old white guys over some land. That stuff is needed, but should be secondary, or you are forced to redo the essence of your character each time you put him against a brand new nemesis or in a new context. He will sound and look the same, and be as clever as always, but his arc will be unmoved and he will lack a theme for true motive from season to season. People may argue with me but in passages (and to a much smaller degree) I feel like Peaky Blinders, Knight's other and hugely lauded show has the same problem, at least with its main character (not so much the secondary scene stealers who have no matching counterparts in Taboo). You're better off just watching that one. There is less to scratch your head over. And if you already have, then I recommend passing on Taboo unless you're ready to watch one show's problems greatly compounded, not improved upon, in another. -
rockstarmanav28 January 2017There can't be a better start to 2017. After the first episode I am sure most of them viewers are hooked. Why won't they? Taboo is a cinematic experience. Everything is so detailed the costumes, the sets, the locations , the music, the characters. You can't expect more from a TV series.
There's nobody else who can play James Delaney better than Tom Hardy. And who wouldn't want to see Tom hardy every Saturday, eh? The guy can deliver some mad roles. Based in 1800s Taboo shows the dark tales of James Delaney the protagonist of the English series. Best part of the series is the mystery and suspense it has orchestrated. -
vandelour26 January 2017The first three episodes ?
Such interesting characters, well acted, great presentation of early 1800's England in all of its power and poverty. But it could have been a simple story, told with great impact if it kept to the tracks. But by S01E03 its already digging itself into the murk. People come out of nowhere, problems are resolved without logic, sometimes it seems like the whole show is about Hardy striding around in the mud, greatcoat flapping around his legs, scaring the bejesus out of people.
As usual with these episodic productions that live and breath with seasonal renewal, Episode 1 was fantastic, Episode 2 was pretty darn good and Episode 3 was creeping toward filler dialog etc.
Keep it simple, stupid. -
jdtt3424 January 2017The name says it all and is the best show on TV. So many great lines, "they're my rocks now". The dark and foreboding tone is intoxicating. A mix of history with a poetic twist and family intrigue. Sex, violence, politics, crime, corruption, witchcraft, spies, it is unyielding! The story line defies logic. It is the best written and acted show I have seen in some time. The writing is superb. I am hooked. Hope this gets renewed and not just a one season show. We don't watch primetime and always look for something "smart". This show is just that. It draws you in with the history angle but the back story and the current situation make you root for James Delaney. As his life went awry from the start, his experiences in life have molded him into the person he is today. A man who is completely undone, yet cunning and smart. A planner. A doer. A man who is determined to get what is his at all costs and make others pay. Thank you!
-
Naxxos29 January 2017This show is easily some of Tom Hardy's best work.
The first episode grabbed me in the first minute and never let go. The sets and costume/makeup are superb. It's dirty, dank and wonderfully dark. There are just enough supernatural fantasy elements to make it interesting and mysterious, but not so much to be over the top.
The acting is superb, especially Tom Hardy's character. His characteristic grunts and other non verbal communications play so well with his role.
The British East India company is historically intriguing, and lives up to the intrigue in this show. It's interesting to see such a portrayal, one of the primary players in the foundation of modern capitalism as an antagonist in this show.
Very enjoyable show. -
Not much on television worth watching nowadays so it is a very pleasant surprise when a series of this caliber comes along. The depiction of 1800s Great Britain in all it's steamy vulgarity and corruption is intriguing and mesmerizing. Ridley Scott and Tom Hardy are at their outstanding best. The production quality and scenery is first rate. The acting throughout is of a rare quality in today's market. Tom Hardy does not disappoint in his character portrayal as the lead character. Mystery, treachery, intrigue and darkness are present in abundance in the first three episodes I have watched thus far. The reach of the East India company with its unscrupulous pursuit of power and wealth by any means has me drawn in. I cannot wait for the next episode! At a time when the majority of television series seem to be filled with political propaganda disguised as entertainment this series stands out. Nothing pc to see here. Excellent!!
-
SnoopyStyle21 August 2021It's 1814 London. James Keziah Delaney (Tom Hardy) returns home from Africa to attend his father's funeral. Everybody is shocked since he was presumed long dead. As a son, he is the sole heir taking precedence over his half-sister Zilpha Geary. The main inheritance is a strategic stretch of land on the west coast of the New World. Sir Stuart Strange (Jonathan Pryce) is the Chairman of the all-powerful East India Company, rivaling the power of the Crown. Both are desperate to get that land as Britain negotiates the border with America as the war comes to an end. Actress Lorna Bow (Jessie Buckley) shows up claiming to have married James' father back in Ireland.
This is Tom Hardy at the height of his power. For a moment, he is both the hottest and the most compelling actor around. He could be both the Sexiest and win all the Oscars. He is still a man of intrigue right now. This show is his baby. It's his vision. His inability to get a second series, despite some good reviews, may point to something about his power as a producer. There is no doubt that Tom Hardy infuses James Delaney with his overpowering brooding. He is a man of deep damage and mysterious motives. The presentation of the East India Company is intriguing to say the least. This is high quality prestige television. -
s327616923 January 2017Taboo is a dark, devilish, delightful, psycho supernatural thriller.
Tom Hardy is perfect in the lead role of James Keziah Delaney. A brightly brooding figure, who stalks early 18th century London's bleak and brutal streets, like a large sinister black clad crow looking for shiny baubles to line his already bulging pockets. Of course, what James appears to be, a ruthless trader on the make and what he really is, may not be the same thing.
This is a superb series. Its a dark indulgence that's enjoyably eccentric enough to capture your attention and innovative enough to offer up something rather unique.
Don't let Taboo pass you by. Its by far and away the best thing I have seen in a long, long time. Ten out of ten from me. -
Sleepin_Dragon22 January 2017Firstly, Thank you BBC for putting a drama on for a Saturday Night, how many years has it been? Secondly thanks for making it something as special as Taboo. A few episodes in and I am utterly hooked, it is gripping, beautifully made, somehow cinematic, boasting wonderful music, glorious settings, and acting that is beyond impressive. Tom Hardy will always attract fans in their millions, his looks and talent make him a massive hit, I have a feeling we'll be seeing James Delaney for many years to come. David Hayman and Jonathan Pryce are both superb in their own rights. The trailers made this show look good, but in reality it is quite special, a period drama that is dark, gritty and wonderfully Gothic. I like that there is an air of mystery surrounding it too, can't wait to see how this unfolds. Do not miss this, you'll love it.
-
pontram1 March 2017First to say is that I think it's right to compare this show a bit with 'The Frankenstein Chronicles', which I will this later in this review.
'Taboo' is a complex story, interwoven with an at first seemingly simple setting. A presumed dead man returns home after his father had passed away. James Delaney is assumed an abuser of his sister, man-eater, ferocious killer, madman, and so on.
The show and the main characters do their best to paint this picture of Delaney, but while the story unfolds itself, it turns out that not everything is what it looks like.
I admit that for a long time I couldn't really connect with Delaney, the character is very repellent, at least in the beginning. He is not very sympathetic, too. But he is also interesting, because between all that mystery and 'being so dangerous' he is also deeply hurt and broken. The story of abuse and sexual relationship with his sister may have been true, or something that he desperately evaded by leaving the country then.
Compared to 'The Frankenstein Chronicles', Tom Hardy doesn't have the intensive presence of Sean Bean, but I'm sure he will one day, as he is much younger. Meanwhile, he does a very good job by being inscrutable and - strangely - lifelike, as his character Delaney would play simply himself after nearly 200 years in some stasis.
The similarities to the 'Chronicles' lay (only) in pacing, time and location, and - surprise - the depiction of dirt and mud. 'Taboo' - at least - attempts to go much deeper and excavates darker secrets of the mind and the dirty businesses, therefore being more difficult to accept but also often more gripping and surprising. Strangely to say, that 'Chronicles' is more grounded, but it has also a simpler story, and leads us to know the main character better, while 'Taboo' draws a very scratched picture of its man, so we cannot be sure what he really is and what he really wants.
Is it worth to watch 'Taboo' ? - definitively yes, if a bit slow pacing doesn't bother you, after all, there is much story-line and much 'chessplay' to process, which can't be all action.
Especially to mention is the great soundtrack by composer Max Richter, who is certainly in a league with Bear McCreary and Ramin Djawadi (or they are with him). -
peesea4 March 2017Don't expect historical facts,at all. Set during the Revolutionary war we are expected to believe the royal navy is being blockaded by Americans with Irish support in the Irish sea, that during the rape of china with opium and a roaring tea trade the head of the east India company (wrong man of course but Mr.Strange sounds SO cool)spends his spare time slave trading.....as an individual. And this is especially lucrative as he scuttles the ship wasting the slave cargo he was willing to risk all for?????
Also, we live in an era in London where lords,ladies and commoners freely mix and the latter rule London...lol. Every tough guy has more tattoos than David Beckham and street urchins wear Gothic eye makeup. the whores and ladies are dressed as Victorians, ball shot is used but blades aren't...so reload racing is how people fight,a bayonet would be far too easy. Except for our hero....he tears out throats with his teeth because he went to Africa....or was it Canada? I guess who cares, right? The main point is he found voodoo in Africanada and eats hearts. he can hear the dead, which is handy if bubbling water and whispering goths are your thing. Our hero comes from money...but talks and dresses like an industrial revolution coal miner from the north...when hes not speaking Canadiafrican voodoo,he might invest in rail t' mine next season!. His father was super wealthy and so is he, although he spent his youth as a cabin boy on slave ships....I'm so lost historically...but if you just forget ALL history and which period you're in and the entire class structure of Britain, its cool. Oh and in the 1700's you could csi your dads corpse...cool huh? and transsexuals, queers and Maoris they call Indians were widely accepted in dockside brothels, by the ever present... hooker with a heart o gold. There is a Victorian chemist and cocaine is widely used by him and his friends from the band 'Flock of Seagulls' although it wasn't invented 'til well after the war that is happening. Perhaps he brought it back in the time machine he uses to bring Victorian chemistry. If you actually sat down and carefully looked over the whole thing it has pretty much no basis in fact...perhaps season 2 will let us in on their whole lack of a time-line...perhaps its Supposed to be Sci Fi. Fun though. 7/10 for shear front. And for being watchable even though its clearly absurd. -
I know this is in its first season, but I'm blown away with the performances and cast and sets that these crews have done. The story line is edgy and keeps me wanting more, I look forward to more seasons of Taboo; I love that the main character James Delaney has flash backs and what appears to be some type of gift of a 6th sense to communicate with spirits & see things / communicate through fire as James Delaney is half native Indian / Métis and has absorbed other cultures. I'm not sure if this TV Series is completely fiction or loosely based on a true story (I haven't done my research). I applaud the writers that put this together either way so far so good, this TV series is amazing and one to watch out for at award shows. Great Job 10 out of 10
-
SubtleFury22 February 2020"Taboo" is very stylish, has gritty take on its period, interesting, mysterious character played well by Tom Hardy, promising plot that hooks you from the first episode... and then wastes it over the next episodes by just going over the same things, revealing little new, contriving its schemes and characters to stretch it to more TV time.
Honestly I don't mind the general plotline of the episodes, but they feel so stretched and things happen so slowly - creators could've put much more in each episode to keep it interesting and varying. Instead we get repeating scenes that have been already covered in previous episodes, plot progressing too slow and always aiming to finish in some fruitless cliffhanger, because you already know how it will end. Characters seem to be left out waiting in rooms for Tom Hardy to brood around town, do his thing at his own time, and just interact with them when it's covenient.
Ultimately it's a series that starts interesting and with a lot of exotic elements to Victorian period, but doesn't progress its promises and is content to keep its cool style, but drift in the swamp of much more mediocre series instead. -
kpainter-1980526 February 2017Like Peaky Blinders before it Taboo was very much a case of style over substance.
Poor story-line and obscure plot, steam punk costumes and an overall miasma of boredom. Is this really the best that the BBC can come up with?
I have to admit that I persevered to the very end and now have to ask myself why when I could have spent the time in a more fulfilling manner. -
teammarvel020 February 2017Many people might not have liked taboo because it's not your normal action series. This one's a dark and gritty drama. Its one of it's kind and the taboo team is really intelligent. The plot itself is a simple one but gets complicated.
The things that make this show awesome are the darkness. This is nothing like the other shows but it delivers. Tom Hardy's acting is a top-notch. The time of the story is set during the period of east India company. The politics are good. The reasoning is sound. The story development is awesome. I can't say one reason to not watch this show. It's very unique and worth watching. 10/10!