Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers through the Season 4 finale of The Circle US.Originally created by British network Channel 4,The Circleis a very peculiar reality show. With four American seasons and two international versions on Netflix, the competition has players facing each other in a series of challenges and forming alliances to get to the final round. And, just as in other social based games, like Big Brother, they must craft a well-rounded, likeable, and non-threatening persona capable of making others more inclined to have their backs. The twist is that the contestants can only interact through text and photos in a fake social media platform called The Circle. Based on those interactions, they must then rate one another to determine who will be the influencers - and, indirectly, who will get blocked. For those that don’t believe themselves to be influencer material,The Circleallows the use of catfish profiles, which shines an even brighter light at the “constructed persona” aspect of the game. If they can convince their opponents of their authenticity, catfishes can go very far and even take home the $100,000 prize.
But while the contestants onThe Circleare in it for the money, for reality competition fans the most important part isn’t who gets to go home richer, but just how entertaining the show actually is. Since not everyone can be an influencer, here’s a ranked list of all seasons ofThe Circlereleased on Netflix, regardless of country of origin.
6.The CircleUS, Season 3
Wearing your heart on your sleeve is never a good strategy for reality show contestants. Still, some level of recklessness and emotional honesty is necessary both to win and to entertain viewers. AsMatthew, a.k.a. Ashley, puts it in his turn as an influencer, “you can’t play this game safe.” Sadly, the Season 3 participants ofThe Circledon’t take this advice to heart. Their unwillingness to show their true colors makes up for an unpredictable game, but a somewhat boring watch. The best example of this issue isDaniel. The youngest member of the cast manages to go far by playing up his perceived innocence and keeping a low profile, but he’s at his most interesting just after being blocked. It’s only then that he shows his dissatisfaction and allows himself to actually scheme with someone else, spilling tea onNickandJamestoSophia.
The Circleusually succeeds in keeping players and viewers on their toes by changing rules from one season to another or even between episodes. But the way this was done in Season 3 felt more than a little mean-spirited. WatchingMichellecompete against a fake version of herself for a place in the game sure offered some insight on how the concepts of likeability and authenticity are often mixed in our minds, but it was also painful to see a woman’s whole life experience being dismissed as fake simply because she wasn’t sporting the correct hairstyle in her wedding photo.
5.The CircleBrazil
For at least the first half of the season,The Circle Brazilsuffers from the same issues as its Season 3 American counterpart: the players seem eager to please and unwilling to be true to their real emotions. Some come and go without even making a dent in the game’s pre-existing dynamic.Renan, for instance, that doesn’t seem to have much of a personality besides being a hot guy interested in cryptocurrency. This, of course, shouldn’t be construed as passing judgment on Renan as a person, but, as a reality TV contestant, he just doesn’t have that much to add.
Luckily, in contrast, a handful of other players began to open up more throughout their stay at theCircleapartment building, sharing animosities as well as sweet, personal moments.Lorayne’s kiss with herCircleboyfriendAkelupon his blocking is extremely endearing, and her beef withJP Gadelhaafter he tries to ruin her alliance withMarinasure keeps things tense for a while, even if it never develops into a full-blown fight. Bickering twinsLucasandMarcel, catfishing asLuma, are great late additions to the cast. Likewise,Raf’s, a.k.a.Ana, “mean girl” personality is such a pleasure to watch that the only issue with his casting is that it didn’t come sooner. Last, but not least,Giovanna Ewbankis a very charming, competent host. However, her performance lacks some bite that would certainly help the series’ sense of humor.
4.The CircleUS, Season 4
After putting poor Michelle through that ordeal in Season 3,The Circletakes a more wholesome approach to shaking things up in its 2022 edition. FormerSpice GirlsMel BandEmma Buntonjoin the cast as an ensemble, catfishing as children’s authorJared. Scary and Baby Spice have to keep a low profile to avoid having their cover blown, and manage to add $50,000 to the total prize. It’s a cute addition to the game, and the other players sure are happy about the extra money. Unfortunately, cute celebrity guest appearances and hefty sums aren’t enough to make a reality show truly great. And, in the end,The CircleSeason 4 is more harmed than helped by its excessive cuteness. The vast majority of the players are nauseatingly sweet to one another, and few seem to be playing strategically. Or, at least, that’s what they want you to believe. In some cases, such asYu Ling’s decision to give the “antivirus” toRachelinstead of her old time allyAlyssa, it’s hard to tell kindness and naïveté from straight-up betrayal. This kind of dubious backstabbing could make for some top shelf entertainment, but, sadly, the players’ insistence on claiming everything they’ve done was out of the goodness of their hearts kills any would-be drama. But not everything is pastel hearts and rainbows in Season 4 ofThe Circle. When the players allow themselves to be great, they star in some wildly amazing scenes. Shout out particularly toJohnasking sex coach Alyssa for bedroom tips while pretending to be his mom. That’s the kind of second-hand embarrassment reality TV was created for.
3.The CircleUS, Season 1
The first season ofThe Circleoutside of the UK presented viewers with a diverse and delightful cast, from fan favoriteSammieto prematurely blockedKaryn, a.k.a.Mercedeze. It introduced the world to the concept of catfishing in the game, and to the realization that, more often than not, fake profiles aren’t nearly as interesting as the people running them. Though it’s not hard to understand why Karyn felt she wasn’t influencer material — being a large, Black, lesbian woman that could certainly suffer a lot of prejudice, it’s sad that she felt the need to play such a blander version of her vibrant personality to get ahead in the competition. The theme re-emerged when plus-size modelSeandecided to come clean and remove the pictures of her thinner friend she had been using in her profile to reveal her true self. It was a touching moment, with Sean nearly incredulous at just how welcoming others were to her. It would have had a greater impact, however, if she hadn’t been blocked by superinfluencerJoeyalmost immediately after. Nonetheless, the cast of the first AmericanCirclewas full of charming, relatable characters, and whether you’re laughing atSeaburntrying to pretend to be his girlfriendRebecca, who definitely knows everything about periods, or just amazed at just how much helpEdreally needs from his motherTammy, you’re bound to have a good time.Michelle Buteauis also an extremely charismatic host, with just the right amount of venom to give the audience a good laugh.
2.The CircleFrance
There are only two reasonsThe Circle Franceisn’t on this list’s top spot. The first one is the cast’s lack of diversity regarding both race and sexuality. In a game whose main premise is seeing how different people present themselves and interact with limited tools in a confined environment, having so many participants with similar backgrounds sure takes a toll. The second issue is the lack of a host. Though it doesn’t make a difference throughout the regular episodes, narrated byAlfred Gerbet, it makes for a kind of anticlimactic finale, with contestants finding out the results of the last ranking without anyone to generate suspense or guide the conversation.
But, apart from these issues,The Circle Franceis a near-perfect experience when it comes to reality shows. Far from being afraid of showing their true colors, contestants don’t hesitate to start fights or declare affection for one another. For instance, there are certainly many ways to respond when your friendInestells you that she will come up with a secret plan to take down the other players one by one. Making a goodbye video announcing to everyone that your friend Ines is coming up with such a secret plan, however, is hardly the best choice, and, yet, this is exactly whatGarydoes after being blocked. Between twinsEdmundoandJoão, a.k.a.Nelia, trying to figure out basic kitchenware andPaologetting a simple “OK” as a response to a message as long as the Epic of Gilgamesh, it’s hard to choose just one moment that truly represents the wildness ofThe Circle France. However, number one participant is most definitely winnerRomain, who enters a loving relationship withValeria, unaware that she is, in fact, her husbandMaxime, and throws himself on the floor whenever he’s caught by surprise - something that happensa lot.
1.The CircleUS, Season 2
The second season ofThe Circle USis the only one that breaks a pattern that established itself in all versions of the show released on Netflix: unlikeAlana(US 1),Ana Carla(Brazil),Lou(France), andAva(US 3),Bryantwasn’t the first player blocked because others considered him too beautiful to be anything but a catfish. The feel-good breathing instructor left the show not because of his apparent lack of authenticity, but simply because influencersSavannahandTerilishacouldn’t see eye to eye on who to block. As a matter of fact, they couldn’t see eye to eye on many topics. If you’re the kind of reality show fan that is in it for the fight, prepare to be delighted, because no feud inThe Circlegoes deeper than the one between those two. Savannah and Terilisha are the second and third blocked participants, respectively, and yet, even in the finale, they are still firing shots at each other. And you justknowthat it doesn’t end there.
But, even if they don’t reach Bryant levels of positivity, the rest of the cast is a lot more peaceful, which gives room to much more interesting dynamics to bloom. Straight offToo Hot to Handle,Chloestarts an in-game relationship withTrevoronly to find out that her beau is actually Trevor’s wife,DeLeesa. Playing a 24-year-old student/waiter namedRiver, 58-year-old gay writerLeehas to deal with lots of emotions throughout his chats with Courtney, an actual gay man in his twenties, and withJohn, an alleged 64-year-old gay psychic. What he doesn’t know is that John is, in fact, a catfish created to give two other players a second chance in the game. One of them isJack, blocked while catfishing asEmily. The other isLisa, who joinsThe Circleas no one else but her boss,NSYNC’sLance Bass. With five fake profiles,The Circle USSeason 2 has the highest number of catfishes among all seasons of the Netflix reality show. And watching players deal with this rollercoaster of truths and lies makes this season the real influencer of them all.
