Im Shi-wan stars as underdog tax collector in Tracer

by tineybeanie

Tracer is an upcoming Wavve drama featuring Im Shi-wan (Run On), Go Ah-sung (Life on Mars), Sohn Hyun-joo (The Good Detective), and Park Yong-woo (Priest).

Known pejoratively as the “trash landfill” of government agencies, the National Tax Service is the main focus of this drama. The main caption on the poster says: “We’ll bleed them dry or destroy them,” and the drama is described as “an invigorating investigation drama about a dogged guy pursuing bad money.”

In the teaser, the National Tax Service is shown as a rowdy place that handles all the worst scum, and where working means doing no actual work. Im Shi-wan stars as a new team leader that joins the department and makes waves because of his actions. He begins challenging the status quo by interrupting a corporate meeting and promising to return after performing a thorough and fair investigation. Copy flashes onscreen and describes Im Shi-wan as the “dogged guy” who has rolled in from out of nowhere. Wearing an umpire vest, he starts listing off taxes that need to be paid by someone who seems to be a baseball player. The player’s henchmen hold Im Shi-wan back as the player begins lobbing balls straight at him.

Im Shi-wan promises to find the missing money as he starts destroying the pillars of a lovely upperclass home. He then calls out his team for not having any pride or self-worth in their work. His superior, played by Park Yong-woo, yells at him, but Im Shi-wan quips back that he doesn’t want to be on the losing team. Next, we see our first glimpse of Sohn Hyun-joo, who plays the ambitious Seoul Central District Tax Commissioner. Contemplating the trouble that Im Shi-wan is causing, he says: “If he wants to be used, we will use him.” It seems that whatever decision was made, it has impacted the National Tax Service negatively, and Go Ah-sung, playing the team rookie, is upset that all the related records have gone missing.

Im Shi-wan is still firm in his convictions, and in his voiceover, says: “Who made up the rule that only poor people have to pay taxes? Don’t we exist to catch that inequality?” He’s convinced that a certain company has been evading taxes, whereas Sohn Hyun-joo thinks of the situation as a game of who can deceive each other best. Perhaps inspired by Im Shi-wan’s actions, Park Yong-woo says that maybe they should do work they’re not ashamed of for a change; another cut shows Sohn Hyun-joo furious and abusing his employee.

As the teaser closes, we see different members of the team including Im Shi-wan, Park Yong-woo, and Go Ah-sung pursuing real investigations of tax fraud, instead of just sitting around like before. Im Shi-wan says: “We need to show that people are more scary than money or power.” In the final cut, an elevator opens revealing Im Shi-wan who says: “The world may have pretended to be blind thus far, but that stops now.”