Imitation – K-Drama Episode 3 Recap & Review

Copycat

Episode 3 of Imitation picks up with Idols On Air as Ma-Ha performs La Ri-Ma’s dance. Well, Kwon-Ryeok joins in and dances with her, with the pair managing to remain in-sync throughout. The show is smash hit but after Ji-Hak arrives to meet the group, Kwon-Ryeok simply walks away.

Ma-Ha follows and hands back his coat. Unfortunately he’s unaware that reporters are currently hiding out, snapping photos and watching all of this unfold. Still, the night draws to a close and Ma-Ha collapses onto her bed, falling asleep while she’s talking. Kwon-Ryerok meanwhile, heads home and is grilled for being so brash with Ma-Ha, especially outside with the fans’ coat.

Anyway, the big day arrives and Tea Party sit together waiting for Ma-Ha’s appearance on Idols On Air. Unfortunately Kwon-Ryeok is completely edited out the video so it appears she’s just on her own, copying again. However, Ma-Ha begins trending online.

It turns out the jacket Kwon-Ryeon gave Ha-Na was actually a gift from fans and giving it to her has been interpreted as a serious sign of disrespect. The fans are furious and stand outside with signs, demanding a boycott on all things Shax. They want an apology and that puts more friction on this K-Pop  group. It puts pressure on Ma-Ha too, who just has to sit by and watch this play out.

Ma-Ha instead watches as Kwon-Ryeok’s written apology appears online. He apologizes for everything and explains the situation, including the edited video. He also meets the fans too and apologizes to them. Eventually they crack a smile and agree to let this slide for now. Reporter Byun however, watches suspiciously from the wings.

CEO Park is not happy. He didn’t sanction Kwon-Ryeok to do this but lets them off the hook for now. His attention instead turns to Ma-Ha, whom he learns works with Ji-Hak and JH Entertainment. Well, Tea Party get some good news when they’re paid for their services. Even better, they’re given the opportunity to set up their own identity going forward.

Remembering their moments as Omegas-3, they prepare to meet AMMONITES, who happens to be an audio engineer. He agrees to help produce their album.

The next day they begin recording but Kwon-Ryeok shows up and throws Ma-Ha off her game. Eventually he talks to her through the studio and challenges the girl, telling her stay as a copycat if she’s going to act like that. This is enough to spur her on and fight back, singing her heart out.

Meanwhile, Shax’s latest tour sells out in 30 seconds but changes are being made within Sparkling. This sees Yu-Jin taking center stage for the promotion.

Things are looking up for Tea Party too. Ji-Hak is confident their song will do well, and begins doing some promotion, handing it out around town. This gives them 3 minutes on “Music Arena.”

Well, when they arrive at the show they receive a pretty humbling meeting, with the crowd nonchalant to their arrival. However, Yu-Jin is happier to see the girl group. He, along with Tea Party, both greet Shax as they show up.

The Episode Review

Imitation returns with another good episode this week, changing the focus across to K-Pop scandals and how these can be blown out of proportion. We’ve seen a few of these handwritten apologies crop up this year through scandals, especially with the ongoing issues in Korea around bullying. Here, Imitation takes the same route.

However, this drama does a good job balancing that out with a more straightforward plotline about trying to make it big in the industry. Ma-Ha and co. are such a likable trio that you can’t help but want them to succeed.

The issues with Kwon-Ryeok feed into this too, with him coming under fire with the Shax fans. Although personally I think the show missed a trick by not calling them the “Love Shax!”

On a more serious note though, this drama does a good job shedding light on the music industry and although it doesn’t have intense romance or very melodramatic beats, it does play nicely into an honest slice of life depiction that make this industry so fascinating. With only one episode a week though, this is a tough one to wait for!