The Circle, Netflix’s first reality series that debuted in early January, has been described as Big Brother meets Catfish. In it, eight players enter apartments in a building that are all close by one another. They never meet, only able to communicate through a voice-activated messaging system called The Circle.
Because their interactions occur completely online, the players can participate as themselves or create fake profiles and pretend to be someone else. Most players were authentic, but a handful came in pretending to be someone they’re not. The reason? The idea is to communicate, chat, play games, and interact in a way that will get you voted as an influencer. Each episode, the two people who received the highest rankings become influencers and vote together to block someone from the game. That person is eliminated and someone new takes their place.
As the players wormed their way through the game, some had better strategies than others. Here’s a look. (Note: spoilers ahead).
Shubham: Strategy
Shubham came into the game as the only player who wasn’t an active participator in social media, and in fact, despised it. But he quickly got sucked into the drama and the desire for likes and becoming an influencer and succeeded in doing so multiple times over.
By the later episodes, he was strategizing about who to block, devising possible plans to keep suspected catfishes in the game as shields, and talked about how he was “hunting sharks.” While he was the most adorable, most likable of the players, he was also the most dangerous.
Adam/Alex: No Strategy
Alex, who played as Adam, came into the game immediately with a strategy: To pretend he was a handsome, muscular single man when in reality, he’s a short, pudgy, married self-proclaimed nerd. As he flirted with the girls (often creepily) and tried to bond with guys like Joey, doing things like pretending he was working out when he was really lying on the couch eating pizza, he was more hilarious than strategic.
Alex sometimes found it difficult to pretend to be someone he isn’t (surprise, surprise), and his so-called strategy was flawed from the beginning because he didn’t really do his research to be able to sound more like the guy he was impersonating. So it was more like he didn’t have a strategy at all.
Joey: Strategy
One of the most entertaining players to watch, Joey initially seemed like he was just there to be loud, flirt, and work out. But when you delve deeper beyond his strict workout regimen and highly involved beauty routine, you could see that he not only had a clear strategy for his game, but he was also nothing like what you might have thought he was.
Joey was working the girls, casually flirting with them while also being supportive when needed. He also bonded with all of the guys, even the ones he deemed to be threats. “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer,” he once said.
Sammie: No Strategy
Sammie was immediately popular on the reality series thanks to her girl-next-door chill vibe. Pretty and friendly, she showed both her sexy and tomboyish sides in her profile photos. But did she have a strategy? We’re not so sure.
It seemed more like Sammie was simply winning popularity contests, which helped catapult her through the game. She is clearly a good person who is kind, inclusive, and non-judgemental, a combination that made people like and confide in her, but she didn’t really play a hard game.
Karyn/Mercedeze: Strategy
Even though she was sent home, Karyn was playing hard as the classically pretty straight girl Mercedeze. Every message she sent was well thought out and strategic. Perhaps too strategic.
Karyn used a profile photo that looked heavily filtered and was far too talkative, which hurt her in the game. That said, she successfully flirted with players and formed bonds that will likely be lasting outside of the game. She came in hot with a strategy but was too aggressive.
Seaburn/Rebecca: No Strategy
Seaburn, playing as a girl named Rebecca and using his girlfriend’s photos, was having a grand old time in the game and his apartment. He fully embodied the female spirit, trying his best to chat with the girls as if he was one of them and flirting with the boys, sometimes successfully.
Seaburn seemed to think he was playing a much better game than he was, and while he had a strategy, it was far too off to be considered much of one. He managed to fool everyone but made some missteps along the way in his conversations that raised suspicions.
Sean: Strategy
Sean immediately had a strategy to pretend she was someone she wasn’t, a thin, attractive social media manager from the city. She quickly tried to form a bond with Chris, realizing that he was the likeliest person to tell things like they were without sugar-coating it.
Even though she felt bad about deceiving players by initially catfishing them, she made a bold move to reveal her true self to everyone, which was risky. She had a plan and executed it well. She knew who to talk to and confide in and thought long and hard about every message she sent before she sent it.
Miranda: No Strategy
Miranda came in as the first replacement player and she was immediately considered suspect. While she seemed sweet and even revealed her tough childhood to Joey, she wasn’t really playing with any type of clear strategy.
Miranda was flying by the seat of her pants, looking to flirt with the guys and form bonds with the girls. That, in itself, might be considered a strategy; after all, the goal is to have other players rank you highly so you become an influencer. But the fact that she was near the bottom every time suggests that she wasn’t playing as well as others.
Ed: Strategy
Ed's most obvious strategy was using his mother, who he brought into the house with him for guidance. It was a strategy but did it work? Not too much considering his mother did not seem to help much, not even knowing how to pronounce emoji.
Granted, she did stop him in his tracks before he posted stuff that sounded too macho or rude, like calling Sammie a “son of a gun.” Nevertheless, chances are even if she wasn’t there, Ed would have done okay. Helicopter parenting aside, Ed had a clear strategy, albeit a really weird one.
Chris: No Strategy
Chris was just being true to himself and was banking on that helping him win the game. And that's commendable. A religious man, Chris didn’t want to lie, cheat, backstab, or present anything but his authentic self.
Technically, that might be a strategy, but from a tactical standpoint, coasting along isn’t really “playing” the game at all. While it is hard to not appreciate Chris’s values and his insistence on just being himself, when it comes to gameplay, he needed to work harder to forge alliances.