This past month, Netflix released a new original series called “The Circle”.
In this reality competition show, contestants move into the same apartment complex in Salford, England however, the one caveat of that is that they never see each other face-to-face. They must communicate solely through a specially-designed social media site called “the circle” – hence the origin of the title of the show. As the players compete to win the grand prize of $100,000, they are presented with the opportunity to play the game as either themselves or via a new online persona that they create. Throughout a series of mini-challenges, groupchats, and relationship building, players must rank one another. The players with the highest rankings become “influencers” granting them the status that enables them to decide who amongst the lowest rated players are the ones getting “blocked” from the game.
Before I began watching this show, it sounded like one of those stereotypical reality competition shows that rely on exaggerated drama and boils down to what essentially is a broadcasted popularity contest. However, after admittedly binging the entire series in one weekend, I came to find that the show brought up interesting points about our society’s usage of social media and the personas that we cultivate and broadcast to the world around us. It also calls into question your own individual perception of others’ social media presence, in addition to your own. I know that I’ve definitely taken a second look at my own social media accounts wondering how I come off to those who glance at it and don’t personally know me.
The first thing that struck me when watching The Circle was how easy it was to get fully immersed in the drama occurring in the show due to all the different social and power dynamics present. Waiting for the reveal of who was blocked and watching the catfishers get exposed in each episode had me sitting on the edge of my seat. If I’m being completely honest, as silly as the premise of the show itself is, I couldn’t keep myself from staying engaged as I watched episode after episode to see what happened next, which just goes to show they are doing something right.
Part of what makes the show so interesting is the fact that all of the contestants are all so different in their own way. With players like Joey, who very much reminded me of someone straight out of the Jersey Shore, or Shubbham, a nerdy guy who notably loved to play ping pong, the cast of characters weren’t all the same and each one offered something different to the show. Despite their differences, surprisingly the top five players with the highest rankings managed to form strong friendships that very well may have never happened outside of this little circle – no pun intended.
If you are looking for a new show to binge, The Circle is an easy source of entertainment that will keep you guessing in regards to what’s going to happen next and where the show is going to go while also offering an element of comedy so that you are laughing along as the episodes go by. However, it also reflects our values as a society. For example, one player, whose online person was that of him pretending to be a girl, noted that guys are not usually encouraged to be sensitive or share their feelings and he found that catfishing as a female both encouraged and allowed him to express himself without being questioned or judged. This not only offered insight into the player himself but also into stigmas within our society that social media either supports or challenges.
Overall, The Circle is definitely a worthwhile watch. Whether you watch it for the pure entertainment of reality TV (because come on, who doesn’t love that?) or if you are curious in regards to the power of social media and the role it plays in the lives of not only you but those around you, The Circle is a show that checks every one of those boxes and more. There has yet to be a confirmation for a second season but fingers crossed that one comes soon, I know that I will be excited when that announcement comes!