‘Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE’ season 1 review: A debut that lights up the screen

A dream of a lifetime, but only six spots to make the debut. Netflix’s captivating new documentary, Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE, brings us behind the curtain and follows the journey of the formation of a new global girl group. This isn’t like The Voice or American Idol; it’s not a reality TV competition in any sense of the word. Instead, it’s the real-life journey of aspiring performers training and competing in a year-long K-pop trainee program. KATSEYE as a girl group has already debuted before the airing of the series, but the documentary is a raw and enlightening experience of how difficult it can be as a performer and to debut, especially in the K-pop system.

The search for the stars

One of the strongest aspects of Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE is how direct and transparent it is in how the group comes together. At least, to the viewers watching the Netflix series at home. Right from the premiere, the training staff and executives are clear about the phases and steps it is going to take before the group forms. We know by the season finale that KATSEYE will be a group. However, we still learn about how the girls are critiqued, how many are needed for the survival show, and what it will take to get there. The show frames itself with an easy-to-follow timeline and a strong tonal shift between the training phase of the competition and the survival show. The structure made it feel fresh with an exciting energy to keep up with the fast pacing.

And the reality of being a performer in this high-intensity environment is sobering. Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE does a great job promoting the importance of training. In particular, consistent and developing training. Sure, some trainees came in as incredible singers or dancers with years of experience, but the mentality had always been that they could get better. The rankings (we’ll get to this soon!) make it clear where contestants stood talent-wise and how they could improve. Learning to dance in heels was a fascinating segment because, as a non-performer, you never think of it as a different style or technique. You immediately think dancers can dance in heels — that wasn’t the case here. It opens our eyes to how tough it can be and the levels of training it takes to get better.

The reality in reality TV

The most shocking aspects? The overall group rankings of the trainees and how the staff make these decisions. Let’s not forget: the members of KATSEYE are a real group and they’ll be watching the show. All the past trainees will relive where they ranked on the list; it’s a lot of real-time drama to comprehend. However, for us viewers at home, this method brought us along on the development too. We witness the trainees rise (or fall) in the rankings over the episodes, and it paints a picture of who was more likely to make the group or not. At some point, the rankings give you a good idea of the frontrunners, both from a fan-voting perspective and from the executives/training staff score. Since this is a documentary and not a real-time competition, this treatment didn’t take away from the fun of watching the journey.

When it came to the decisions, the candor from the trainees, staff, and executives from HYBE x Geffen added the necessary weight to the big moments. Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE feels more real and human as we gain more context about behind training issues or how they determine the rankings. Hearing a staff member be open about why a trainee might not make the group grounds us into where their skill set could go. And the executives candidly saying what they liked or didn’t like about a trainee in their 1-on-1 camera interviews showcases the realities of what is out of the girls control. They’re in the K-pop training machine; it’s rigorous and tough. It takes a lot of training before even being considered as a potential idol.

A great example of this came during the survival show phase when they introduce fan voting. During a segment around the Mission 2 timeframe, there was a great duality when Karlee (trainee) reflected that she wasn’t going to make it because her clips in the music video weren’t her best ones. This is paired with a HYBE x Geffen executive acknowledging that fan responses and reactions can affect where the label shifts its support. It was refreshingly transparent. We’ve always guessed during reality TV shows and the music industry that decisions get made for the “edit” or “outcome,” but this segment confirmed the suspicions that it is kept top of mind.

The same goes for how they acknowledge the power of social followers and countries. For instance, Sophia (trainee) grows in popularity with her viral moment and Manon (trainee) receives support with a huge fan base. Strong performers during training who led the pack hit the bottom because they don’t have fan support, like Emily (trainee) or Megan (trainee). It’s not to say one was more deserving than the other. All the contestants trained hard for their spot and took part in the process. It’s fascinating to dissect which elements played a stronger part in the trainee’s journey. For instance, Manon had a bumpier start due to her work ethic and skill set, but her high fan base gave her the extra time to redeem herself and repair bridges with the group. And the girls weren’t shy about letting their feelings known about that.

Left on the cutting room floor

A noticeable drawback of Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE came in the editing and screen time of contestants. With so many trainees, staff members, and executives in the mix, there is only so much screen time allowed. We have the core cast of characters, but there are many others in the program who hardly appear. After getting cut from the program or survival show, we still don’t know much about them. Like Brooklyn (trainee) or Celeste (trainee) just randomly appeared at one point. And who was Angelina (trainee)? Who was she?! She placed so low in the rankings but she never appeared once.

Another strange aspect was that the editing tended to show more contestants who didn’t make the final cut over those who made the band. There was a lot more screentime for trainees like Emily, Lexie, Ezrela, Iliya, Adéla, and Naisha to name a few. Sure, this was also to build out their stories and round out the documentary. However, we needed more time with Yoonchae, who didn’t get a lot of screen time. Thankfully, the other five members (Daniela, Lara, Manon, Megan, and Sophia) each got their story arcs and segments. Still, for a series about creating and launching the girl group, it seemed like a missed opportunity to not highlight more.

Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE is an insightful and entertaining look into the K-pop/music trainee world. The pace is fast, the emotions are big, and you learn a lot about how this group comes together. The characters don’t shy away from the realities of training and what contributes to selecting the final group. The editing of the contestants leaves us wanting more, but by the time KATSEYE forms, you’re hooked on the documentary and curious to see where the group goes next.

Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE season 1 is available to stream now on Netflix.