Gauges work, but don't illuminate

If you're blowing fuses then you have a short somewhere. I'm pretty sure the taillights are in the bundle that runs under the driver's door sill to the back corner & down through the grommet. I would do a quick look to see if the loom is missing anywhere, especially at places where it passes through the body or around something that could rub it bare (not as sexy as it sounds).

But I might also start a new thread with your exact symptoms, it's unlikely everything that came up in this thread applies to your scenario.