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March 28, 2024, 05:47:19 PM

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The Circle (Series 3)

Started by Ja'moke, March 18, 2021, 02:47:35 PM

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JesusAndYourBush

Annoyed how they left it at the end of last nights episode, thankfully they don't do many cliffhangers in that way.  Manrika wanted to keep Felix, and wanted Andy gone although couldn't say it blatantly because of the public arselicking earlier.  Syed wanted Felix gone, but Manrika wouldn't budge.  Next sentence is something to the effect of "Well, I think we've decided who to choose" which means they likely edited around an hour of chat where they both tried to beat the other down.  So either Syed persuaded Manrika to choose Felix, or Manrika persuaded Syed to choose Dot.  And annoyingly, it's likely Channel 4 had the final say to steer the narrative, so bye bye Dot.

BritishHobo

Yeah, I reckon Dot. The inevitable compromise.

Their triple-twist episode has really fucked the momentum of this. Having developed this group of five (Andy, Syed, Manrika, Dot & Felix), it's really shit and unsatisfying storytelling to allow two(three) newbies a path to the next episode, while a longer-established character is blocked. Presumably it's a final five, so one of these is guaranteed to be in the final, which is boring. Who cares about either one of them attending the dinner? I mean, imagine if it's Shabhaz. Come in five days from the end and go straight to the final.

George Oscar Bluth II

I get why they don't show us the reasoning before they announce who's blocked, but I do wish they'd go back and show us it to give a bit of context cos some of the blockings have seemed to come out of nowhere.

JesusAndYourBush

Yeah, after a small amount of deliberation someone always comes out with the pre-scripted line, something to the effect of "I think we've decided who we're going to choose", but often - according to the chat we've been allowed to see - they haven't.

I think I'm looking forward to tonights episode more then the final.  The final is inevitable, but it'll be fun to see them play with the two noobs to see if they find the catfish.

BritishHobo

I wonder whether the producers went for a single or a double-blocking. Femi and Pippa walking into the meet-up will be boring now that the 'Circle fam' have sussed that they're back - but the idea of Shabaz strolling into the final is, as much as I adore him, mad.

I feel bad for Shabaz. He didn't sign up to the show intending to be a last-minute newbie - he signed up alongside everyone else, with the expectation of playing the full game. Now he's getting shit for coming in late, and for trying to be shady with established players. What's he meant to do, concede the game just because he's new?

BritishHobo

It's such a cheap trick, the cliffhangering. Who is the hypothetical viewer that has watched every episode, but will happily skip the finale now that they've seen who Andy blocks. 'Oh no, I don't need to watch the long-awaited final five dinner party, or find out who wins - seeing who gets blocked last is all I wanted.'

Ja'moke

#66
That result ended up surprising me, even though at the start of tonight's episode, during the ratings, I was thinking Felix might be in with a shout. But then the way the rest of the episode went, it felt like it was building up for Manrika to take it. I should have known to stick to my gut that someone edited that much of a villain wouldn't win a British reality show.

The final dinner was a bit weird, in terms of how they ordered it. I thought for sure they'd put Manrika in first followed by Felix, so we'd get the full-on Dan and Kate style tension. Then put in Andy to break the ice, followed by Tom, and then finish things off with Syed who everyone loved. I felt like they didn't maximise the potential there.

Overall though, still a really entertaining show. And the American one is back next week!

EDIT: Also, thank fuck Channel 4 reversed their decision to pull the finale from the schedule tonight due to that old racist arsehole dying (they originally said it wouldn't air tonight but then went back on it).

JesusAndYourBush

In the final ratings the other three OG's voted for who they felt most deserved to win, but Manrika voted tactically, voting for Felix as her #1 because she didn't want to give the #1 to who she thought were her biggest rivals, Andy & Syed.  In doing so she fucked herself over.  If she'd voted for anyone else she'd have won.  I was surprised Felix won.  After Tom was 5th I was sure Felix was going to be 4th.

Quote from: Ja'moke on April 09, 2021, 11:42:20 PM
EDIT: Also, thank fuck Channel 4 reversed their decision to pull the finale from the schedule tonight due to that old racist arsehole dying (they originally said it wouldn't air tonight but then went back on it).

I wasn't aware of that!  When I looked at the programme guide sometime around 2pm I saw that BBC1 & 2 were a write-off until about 6am the next day, whereas the other channels seemed back to normal by about 6pm.

BritishHobo

Realised I didn't post after that finale. It just felt like a bit of a fucked series really. I would have been happy for Felix, Andy, Manrika or Syed to win, but Pippa and Femi making it to the final as well was the big cherry on top of how overly-guided this series has felt, being far more about tricks and twists and snide games than about people interacting. Likewise the finale having to cover everything from the final blocking and meeting, to the live-final-esque segment with Emma, was another example of the pacing and priorities being all over the shop. Too much going on, not a lot of time for them. You have all the contestants back, and basically none of them say a word. Surely the whole point of that is to hear funny stories and reactions, go over the highlights. They just raced through it.

Overall it felt like a really cynical, mean-spirited season, a horrible shit game run by a nasty cunt behind the scenes, fanning conflict and anger in a way they never have before, all exacerbated by a British viewing public who have clearly learned nothing from the lessons they self-righteously claim to have learned from Caroline Flack and #BeKind.

There were some lovely people and moments in this series but overall I think I hated it, and I hope the producers decide to stop being knobheads next time.

BritishHobo

Channel 4 have cancelled the show:

https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/entertainment/reality-tv/the-circle-cancelled-channel-4-newsupdate/

I can only hope someone with a conscience realised that series 3 and all the drama surrounding it was not a good look in the #BeKind climate. Looks like the production company are talking to Netflix about the future of the UK and US versions, so we may see more yet.