The Circle on Netflix

Randomly had a video come up on TikTok today (don't know how, don't think I've ever watched any Circle-related content on there) where QT was talking about how she only ended up on this season because her main ambition, to be cast on Big Brother, didn't happen. Will be interesting to see if they have a renewed interest in her now...
 
Michelle Buteau was completely missing from the finale. I don't remember her being in the intro in the first episode either...

I don't think she stepped on set at all.
 
Oh shit, completely forgot about that. Thanks for not spoiling.

P.S. So I think for the first time this final blocking wasn't face to face. Might have been better to not reveal the blocked player to the Circle so when they made their visit their identity would be a surprise.
 
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This season was pretty mid. For me the emphasis on strategy left this series feeling empty. IMO we saw more personality and genuine character in the reunion than we did all season. These players were playing with their cards so close to their chest that I don’t feel like we got the fights/drama that I would have liked to have seen.

IDK I feel like the show is really falling in to the same trap as BBUS… For me it’s a lot more entertaining watching players figure out how to maneuver the game than watching people execute a clear strategy. Also the twists dominating the majority of the series took away from my enjoyment… The one non-twist influencer chat/blocking gave me so much more than the twists did. I think we’d have had a far more interesting series had they felt the players to play their own game. QT and Jordan playing up the strategy element on any other season would have been blocked.

Positives of this season was the lack of catfish hunting after the first week and the winner. Brandon/Olivia was the only player in the final that had a proper arch throughout the season. That said it was pretty clear by the last blocking that they were sitting pretty in that middle winners spot.

Overall I think season 4 was a much stronger season.
 
Rison said:
Randomly had a video come up on TikTok today (don't know how, don't think I've ever watched any Circle-related content on there) where QT was talking about how she only ended up on this season because her main ambition, to be cast on Big Brother, didn't happen. Will be interesting to see if they have a renewed interest in her now...
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Yuck. I most certainly hope not. Like I said I my previous comment it’s players like QT that have made watching BBUS unappealing. I found her emphasis on strategy to be very one dimensional. She lacked any real character moments or struggles. I’d much rather watch a series of bumbling idiots over someone who thinks they have it all figured out any day.
 
Going back to Season 4 being a much stronger series Jordan was another character that really dragged this season down. He really didn’t play the character he said he was going to play. Season 4’s Alex/Nathan filled a very similar role in their series with a much stronger story arch. Watching Alex/Nathan struggle and have to pivot in order to push forward in the game made him a far more endearing character than had he just continued playing the mastermind.

Jordan trying to pull off a Circle of Trust alliance was laughable and made him that much more unlikeable as a player.
 
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I completely disagree with you on this series - for me it's the top US series after a rather dull fifth with a great cast and the more strategic play made it much more interesting without compromising on the contestants personality. Agree there isn't enough regular gameplay but the twists were pretty decent.

Only downer for me was the winner - Olivia and Brandon were a bit meh throughout and probably the least deserving of the finalists.

They need to return to using much greater contrasts when it comes to catfishes - and we're overdue a twist where somebody comes into The Circle playing a contestant who is already there playing someone else. Catfishing is far less interesting when they are playing their friends rather than using the images of a stranger where they have to create their full life story.
 
Brekkie said:
I completely disagree with you on this series - for me it's the top US series after a rather dull fifth with a great cast and the more strategic play made it much more interesting without compromising on the contestants personality. Agree there isn't enough regular gameplay but the twists were pretty decent.

Only downer for me was the winner - Olivia and Brandon were a bit meh throughout and probably the least deserving of the finalists.

They need to return to using much greater contrasts when it comes to catfishes - and we're overdue a twist where somebody comes into The Circle playing a contestant who is already there playing someone else. Catfishing is far less interesting when they are playing their friends rather than using the images of a stranger where they have to create their full life story.
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Olivia is the only player this season I felt invested in this series. Her being the underdog, needing to pivot, and coming in with some last minute strategy was a far more entertaining arch than watching others try and mastermind their way through. For me The Circle is much better when it’s cast for personality and any strategy comes naturally as the series evolves.

The only twist this season I felt brought anything remotely interesting was the Super Secret Influencer. The AI bot that was clearly just a producer really had no impact whatsoever on the game other than to feed catfish hunting, I really didn’t buy Paul/Caress falling in the sword for Kyle and it would have been far more interesting had they both been blocked, QT’s decision to block Autumn and completely ignore Jordan again felt manipulated. Like Paul/Caress choosing the sacrifice it felt like last minute production influence because they knew both situations were a stalemate.

Even Olivia/Brandon’s win which was the most spontaneous thing to happen all season was somewhat predictable as it was pretty clear after the secret influencer twist that she was in that prime middle position.

Overall I just couldn’t get invested enough for anything to really matter.
 
That's sooner than I was expected. I was just about getting round to cancelling Netflix too - not sure I've watched anything on it since the last series.
 
Just canceled mine and I’m going to wait until the cast reveal/final trailer before I decide whether it’s worth another subscription. If BBUS continues to stay as strong as it has been I’ll probably just stick with that.
 
An enjoyable first batch of episodes although in a recorded format a twist like the first one will always feel like production interference to save their favourite.
 
Enjoying this series alot - the profile switching turned out to be fun.

and both played better as each other. They should have kept the switch in play until after the meet though.

The Disruptor twist has worked well I think - always prefer a regular format point that changes things up rather than a series of unconnected random twists.

I think they have to lock in more concrete rules on what happens when influencers can't agree. I'd say if they don't they're put at risk and the others vote one out.
 
For me the most enjoyable series in a couple of years and felt a bit fresher than the last couple. Still annoys me though they won't make one simple change to the finale and go back to the finalists not being introduced as was the case in the first UK series. For some reason they changed it and stuck with it for multiple seasons despite it clearly being much better TV when they have to work out the catfishes themselves, though the order they revealed them today meant it was quite predictable.
 
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