In ‘The Heavenly Idol’ A K-Pop Band Gets Some Divine Intervention

Waking up to find yourself a k-pop star might be a dream come true for some people, but it’s not that for Pontifex Lembrary, who is mistaken for one of the members of the band Wild Animals. Just a minute before he was the high priest of a creator named Redlin and he was busy fighting the devil in another world. Then, whoops, he’s being pushed on stage, although he keeps telling people he can’t dance. That’s how the k-drama The Heavenly Idol starts and things only get worse for Wild Animals.

Naturally, his just standing on stage tanks the show and the band’s chance at a comeback. Lembrary, played by Kim Min-kyu, gets insulted by his desperate band members. They assume he’s acting weird on purpose or perhaps he injured his brain when he fainted. Neither is true, but it’s hard to convince people you are actually a supernatural creature from another world. They are more likely to think you are crazy, finally caving under the pressure of being a wanna-be “failed-dol” group.

Wild Animal is so far from successful they could use some divine intervention. Part of the problem has been Woo Yeon-woo, the band member whose body Lembrary finds himself in. He’s only in the band for his looks and doesn’t contribute much. This fish-out-of-water k-drama follows Lembrary as he tries to acclimate to his new existence while finding a way to return to the world he belongs in. He soon realizes the devil that he fought in the other world has moved to the “real” world and the only way to get close enough to fight him is to become a success.

If he can make his ready-to-disband group top the charts, he can vanquish the devil before he damages this world too and he might be able to return home. Being a high priest in another world does not automatically translate to musical success in this one. Fortunately Yeon-woo has a fan, played by Go Bo-gyeol, who is prepared to help him even though she thinks he’s gone off the deep end with his devil talk.

As otherworldly as the plot is the show also touches on some of the hardships and pressures faced by k-pop trainees, the years of working and doing without that are not guaranteed to result in success. Hopefully, the angelic presence of Lembrary will help Wild Animals achieve their dream.

Kim Min-kyu previously appeared in Business Proposal, Snowdrop and Backstreet Rookie. Go Bo-gyeol appeared in the dramas Hye Bye Mama, Arthdal Chronicles and Mother. The tvN drama also stars Lee Jang-woo and Ye Ji-won. It airs on Viki.com in the US.