Imitation (2021)

Steady story with a simple plot; not bad.

To be very honest, I assumed Imitation would be a musical Kdrama just because I saw that the major cast are all singers, but to my utter disappointment it turned out to be a drama on the life of kpop idols which casts real kpop idols. But anyways, judging as a drama, IMITATION is not a bad drama and I actually liked it even though it had nothing much to offer. I mean the plot, story and screenplay are in fact not something very new to the industry of Kdramas.

STORY & PLOT:
As the synopsis says, Imitation is all about the life of Kpop idols, on individual levels as well as a group, the kpop industry, it's management and also the kpop fandom culture. The major plot involves 2 kpop groups: "SHAX", a 6yo boy group of 5 members who are well established and considered the best kpop band AND "Tea Party" a rookie girl group of 3 members who go through back to back mishaps to debut and struggle in the huge ocean-like industry of kpop. They have some past, separately and together and they help each other grow while facing odds from the management, industry happenings, media and their fans. While the 2 lead characters fall in love and go forward in their relationship secretly, they also find unsaid truth about their pasts and with the help of their fellow teammates, try to resolve it through music.

CAST & ACTING:
Well, I am not sure about others but I honestly did not expect much in regards of acting since the people casted for the major characters are either rookie actors or are with less experience in the industry. So judging from that pov, they've actually done an moderately average job playing their respective roles. SF9 Chani despite playing small roles in many dramas has actually improved a lot and I loved him the most in the drama. After him was Park Ji Yeon noona (T-ara) who is somewhat experienced
also did good in her supporting role. I have seen Jung Ji So in some other dramas and I actually like her acting. Lee Jun Young (U-kiss) and Jung Yun Ho (Ateez) as main characters were good if not more.

I think Danny Ahn (Ji Hak) is the most experienced actor in this drama but he had very less scope to perform. I was a simp for this drama because. Additional character actors like Choi Jong Ho (Ateez), Im Na Yong (IOI), Hwi Young (SF9), Kim Min Seo, Ahn Jung Hun, Park Seong Hwa (Ateez), Lee Soo Woong (Boys Republic), Choi San (Ateez), Park Yu Ri, had very less role to play and they were not actually bad but I won't judge their acting, haha.

I night actually look funny while mentioning all these names but I am a kpop hardcore multifan as well and this drama is like an eye candy for me, particularly because of my love for ATEEZ (cries under the blanket).

DIRECTION:
Not sure whether I can tell much about it but I think it was moderately average because there was no scope in the story to begin with. It's not bad but as a Kdrama fan I can't say it's something very good as well. It could have been unique if it were a musical Kdrama and they had that chance because of this huge kpop idol starcast but I think they somehow failed to utilize the resources well. But for the screenplay editing, I'd say it's okay-okay and not flawed. One episode in between (don't remember which one now) felt a bit off, like slow development but manageable.

OST and Edits:
Ummm, yeah! OSTs are good; some are catchy, some are heart touching and some are melodious but again, not something I can call very great. I am happy with the SHAX tracks though and I have grown fond of "If We Were". The bg score and OST edits in the drama are good and have been done properly. Screenplay edits and organization are okay too.

CONCLUSION:
I actually don't know what else to say because it didn't have much content either. It is a 12 episode drama with almost nothing new or unique to offer but It was at least a good watch. I won't come to rewatch it ever but it's definitely worth a one time watch. I started because of the kpop idol full starcast and thinking it would be a fun musical which it actually wasn't hence the disappointment but go ahead and watch it if you're into Ateez or a hardcore multi. At least this ended well and didn't feel rushed.

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Starts boring, then interesting then boring again??

The first time I watched Episode One, I was bored. Not really bored but just bored, but since EP2 was coming out in two days I said "let's give this drama a chance." And it was amazing! For the first part...

The story is suppose to be a life as a idol, or at least that's what I think. Does this drama portrayed that? I'm not an idol so how would I know? But I could say the drama handled it pretty okay? I was thinking the show would put limelight into the idol life and how hard and stressful it is. I mean it did that, but only for some scenes. Most of this turned into a rom-com.
But that's not my main problem. It's just some relationships I don't like and have a problem with.

MA-HA AND RYEOK (Main couple)
I could say they're pretty cute. The only problem I have with them (well really Ryeok) is how Ryeok breaks up with her (Ma-ha) EP9 because he's worried about Shax's. Then literally the NEXT. The NEXT episode, they get back together? I get they're 12 episodes but come on, what the hell was the point of the break up then? For tension? If so, their was barely any. I get the breakup's are suppose to be like a "Oh my gosh NOOO!" for the viewers moments but if they broke up, at least give them 2 episodes to get back together? The romance with them felt kind of force? I did admit they're pretty cute but the first few episodes I couldn't really say 'aww" to a lot of their moments up until EP4 or EP5.

RI AH AND LEE HYUN
I personally can't say much about them, they barely get any screen time soo... They would look cute together though. Don't really love them but don't hate them either.

HYUN JI AND YOO JUN
Oh my gosh does this couple suck. No offense to any of you guys who like this couple nor any disrespect to the actors but I see no chemistry at all. It's obvious Hyun Ji has feelings for Yoo Jun but him? No. It looks like he doesn't even like her romantically. They barely even had interactions together, unless it was just him asking about Ma-ha. I really didn't like these two, by EP9 I was hoping they would get more development as a couple but nope. nope nope nope, did they not.

LA LI MA
I love her so much! Her character AND her actor! At first, you probably think (if you didn't read the webtoon) that Li Ma will be the antagonist/jealous SFL (second female lead) of the show. But it's really not like that!

FLAWS
Only flaw I can find (other than some of the actors acting) is the relationship between Hyun Ji and Yoo Jun. And some more duration time into the episode would've been great for character/relationship development. I mean that's a lot of problems with 12 episode shows, character development.

SHAX'S FANS
Oh my gosh do I hate the main three fan girls. So annoying! But they also do show something, They show a lot of real fans out their of real idols. Some fans actually do stalk their favorite idol and get way to much into their personal lives. As much as I hated the Shax fans, I'm glad they got showed.

EUNJO AND ANNIE
Honestly, yes they have a sad story but their plot reminds me of At a distance, Spring is Green with Yeo Jun's family problems barely being apart of the plot even though there's a lot of flashbacks. The same thing with Eunjo and Annie, their plot is barely brought up and resolved easily by 2 episodes.

Honestly when it starts getting boring is around EP10. Even though their was some REALLY GOOD ost in that episode!

The acting was good! I willingly just watched this because it was an upcoming drama, knowing none of the actors! Some scenes had some average acting, some bad and some good.

The Music. OH. MY. IS IT GOOD! I love ALLL of the ST (sound tracks) played in this show! This is mostly why I'm giving it what I gave it. I’m mostly biased here since I'm a huge k-pop fan.

Am I rewatching? Yes but not all episodes. As I did state I didn't like a lot of the relationships here. I'll rewatch episodes like EP4, EP7 and more.

SUMMARY
In total, the show is about a rising girl group, a popular boy group, and an average boy group all trying to make it bigger and bigger into the industry while obviously having a bit of drama and relationships on the side. I recommend to stay for the music if you hate the relationships as some relationships suck/have no development or are just average and have cute moments.

Anyway. Consider yourself lucky if you didn't watch this while it was airing, the torture of waiting every Friday for 1 episode. ONE.

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