The Circle

"I could totally do this show. I'd rock," I said, as DW, DD17, and I were watching the TV.

My kid gave me a look that said, sure, Dad, what ever you say, complete with an over-the-top eye roll.

"You really don't know your da'," I responded. "You didn't see me when I was pretending to be Roland Axam, and people could see my face and hear my voice." And indeed, I fooled people in a downtown pub into believing I was my fictional character for six long years. My Scottish, fictional character.

Even a Scot, who was visiting from Glasgow, was fooled in the two hours that we spoke.

I could totally pull off being a catfish on this Netflix reality show.

I'm talking about The Circle.

In this made-for-social-distancing TV show, several players face off in an apartment building where they cannot see or hear each other. The only interaction is performed through a social-media-like platform—like Twitter—called The Circle. Players create an online profile that everyone can see: they rate each other based on this profile and the online chats that they send to one another. They also participate in online games and challenges, and evaluate one another based on how these activities play out.

At some point during an episode, the players must rate each other in the order of preference. The two top-rated players become "super influencers," and they decide who will be blocked from The Circle.

When a player first joins The Circle, he or she can either create a real profile of himself or herself, or the player can create a fictitious profile, becoming what is known as a 'catfish.'

There are alliances forged and some backstabbing that takes place, and new players are introduced as others leave. Eventually, the top five players meet face-to-face and the final ratings reveal the ultimate winner.

Here's the trailer for Season 2:

Frankly, when my wife and daughter first started watching this show, I was in the next room, on my computer, editing photos. I could hear the players and their conversations, and I thought, what are they watching? It sounds so stupid.

The next night, as I was finishing up a blog post, I heard the show playing in the next room, with my family commenting on what was going on. I had to go in to see what they were watching.

"This is the stupidest show I've ever seen." In truth, I once saw a few minutes of Too Hot to Handle, another Netflix original show, and it was so ridiculous that I had to leave the room.

My youngest kid is drawn to this kind of television.

But by the third night, I would surf social media on my phone while sitting in the same room, as DW and DD17 watched The Circle. I'd lift my head from my phone, every so often, only to say, "This is so dumb."

On day four, I was watching with my girls. It was like watching a train wreck, but I couldn't look away.

We've now seen all of Season 1 and a season of The Circle: France. (Hey, I was practicing my French!) We've seen all of Season 2, except for the finale, which will be broadcast on Wednesday.

"I could totally do this show. I'd rock."

My kid is doubtful, but I think I'm pretty good at handling social media and I've already played a pseudo-catfish, and Roland and I are very different people.

I'm now looking out for auditions for a Canadian version (not really... but still...).