CBS – Page 3 – A Piece, of the Sky

You don’t put a bumper sticker on a Ferrari.
– Joey

No airbrushing, filters or being too perfect, on FB and insta. It makes one seem too much like a bot. Too perfect is not appealing. You need a Goldilocks effect: just right. Like the person next door. I like the profile picture analysis. A variety of photos shows more sides of yourself, and is more proof that you’re not catfish, so long as it’s not obvious that you’re trying too hard.

A more individualized profile is more grounded, and more relatable. No filters, and no makeup equates to being more real. Have a natural glow and a personality that’s hard to fake. That’s how to survive the rise of the bots and catfish, on the internet. Human vulnerability and uniqueness will save us all.

The tension of the show is how real-life social media differs from the in-house social network, of The Circle. Contestants must compare and contrast what it means to understand the masses, versus what it takes to understand around twelve people. The question of which kind of fakeness is rewarded, in our society, was also explored in the Black Mirror social media episode, “Nosedive” – another Netflix show.

It’s interesting to see how social media rewards us – in the miniature – on The Circle. Contestants call out other people for being fake, in a game, about being fake. The fakest person is always on the lookout for who’s fake. This is on an online show, that is by its very nature, artificial and virtual.

I like that fresh players can still be added, to the game, after the game starts. It’s like unlocking a new character in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Gamification and parallels between social media and video games are also investigated, by the show. Shubby is a virtual media designer that dislikes social media – when an online social network is essentially just light virtual reality. Shubby, who fears fakeness the most, is the least prepared to recognize fakeness. He gets taken in by both of the catfish, on The Circle. No wants to feel led on.

On Tinder, and other social networking sites, so much is decided on just a profile pic and a bio (or lack thereof). So much is at stake, on a profile pic, in real life, that a profile picture competition, on The Circle, is realistic and timely. What I like about The Circle is how the show gamifies decisions and judgments we already have to make every day. Social media is just a highlight reel.

Kyeongran (경란) Eonni (언니) was onto Seonggyu (성규), from Episode 1. He seemed all jolly and happy, like Charlie, on Lost – but there was an exceptional and crafty mind, beneath that cheery veneer, beneath the mask.

Seonggyu won the Expression Auction. He granted Sangmin (상민) Oppa (오빠) immunity. Then, Jinho (진호) Oppa, who lost, picked Eunji (은지) in the Death Match. It was the mercenary, Jinho Oppa, versus Eunji, the lone wolf.

Eunji should have never given Seonggyu 8 garnets, at the beginning of the episode. Even Sangmin Oppa was aghast. Seonggyu should have gotten 2 and Sangmin Oppa, 1 – that’s it. Why did she give Seonggyu 8 garnets, and then Sangmin Oppa 6, and then another 2, to Seonggyu?

Seonggyu wasn’t even grateful. 48 Laws of Power. Never try to win people over by holding people in your debt. Never appeal to graciousness or mercy. Always appeal to greed and self-interest. Seonggyu didn’t owe Eunji any favors.

Seonggyu, and his producer, wanted to run the second horse race, in Episode 10, with their huge amount of garnets, and trick the other teams, with false bets. This created a real underdog situation, for the other teams. Karma did Kyeongran Eonni a solid, in helping her team win immunity.

Seonggyu tried to buy the race, by buying up all the expensive hints, but Sangmin Oppa’s loyalty was to many other people, in the game, than to just him, and he lost the Main Match and went home, after losing in tactical yut nori (윷놀이).

Buying the expensive decks, in Open, Pass, worked – but Sangmin Oppa, was only loyal to Seonggyu, in the beginning of the season. By Episode 11, the rising tide of Kyeongran Eonni and Jinho Oppa, could no longer be denied.

By spending too much money, too early, Seonggyu put a huge target on his back. He became the one to beat, instead of the dark horse. This happened to Eunji too, before her final Main Match.

She immediately began wasting her assets, on paying off people, like Seonggyu. At the end of the episode, she didn’t have enough garnets, in Indian Poker, to save herself, and Jinho Oppa eliminated her.