I feel like there is a verb that means exactly that, but I don't quite remember what it is. Is there's no verb that means exactly that, there must be a verb that means something similar, and I don't mean "satirize", because the meaning is different and doesn't imply an imitation.
For example:
This comic ____ a real life person who is known to be obnoxious and self-centered.
The verb "mocks" is possible, as the answer by moo suggested. Another possibility is "Parodies", the verb relates to the noun "parody". A parody is always specifically an imitation. It is usually an imitation exaggerated or distorted for rhetorical and/or comic intent. The imitation is used to point up the flaws of the original, or at least to comment on its characteristics.
One can mock something or someone without imitating it, although imitation is perhaps the most common form of mockery. But a parody is an imitation, by definition:
a literary or musical work in which the style of an author or work is closely imitated for comic effect or in ridicule
The word you are looking for is probably "mocks"
This comic mocks a real-life person who is known to be obnoxious and self-centered.
