02x10 - Campaigning to Win

[bunniefuu]

{\an8}[upbeat pop music plays]

[Michelle] Good morning. On this show,[/i]
we hold these truths to be self-evident,[/i]

that all players are created equal,

that they are endowed by The Circle
with certain unalienable rights,

and among these are hot tub privileges,

occasional parties,

but not the right to sleep in
when we need entertainment.

[James Sanderson's
"Hail to the Chief" plays]

What in tarnation?

[Courtney yawns]

What does this mean?

-Oh, God.
-["Hail to the Chief" continues]

My pupils are not even dilated yet.

[Lisa] What a wake up.

Are we at m*llitary camp or something?

[Lisa] Oh, no. I hope not.

{\an8}[tone]

{\an8}-"Democracy Day."
-"Democracy Day." What the hell?

I've never understood politics...

["Hail to the Chief" fades]

...especially this early in the morning.

[Michelle]
Wake up, 'cause democracy doesn't sleep,[/i]

especially on Democracy Day.

Our players will be given opportunities
throughout the day

to make decisions
and exercise their rights.

[tone]

-"There is a delivery at your door."
-[m*llitary music plays]

[Mitchell]
Circle, you are full of surprises.

-[Chloe gasps]
-[Jack] What the f*ck?

[Lisa laughs]

{\an8}I have my podium.

I had a dream!

So I think we're going for
the president of The Circle[/i].

{\an8}Hello, ladies and gentlemen.

[imitates Obama] Fellow Americans...

If you give me your vote...

{\an8}You'll be given chocolate every hour!

Woo!

That's all you've got to do.
Just bribe 'em.

[tone]

"Players, it is time
for your first democratic decision."

It's really early.

Can we do it in like an hour or so?

What is the proposed bill, Circle?

[tone]

"You will now vote for the player
you wish to bestow a great gift upon."

I thought we'd vote somebody out.

Here we are voting
for somebody to get a gift.

See, Circle, you do have a heart.

[Lisa] "The player who receives
the most votes

will receive a presidential package
filled with treats

{\an8}fit for a commander-in-chief." Okay.

{\an8}All right.

{\an8}That's wonderful.

Can you vote for yourself?

{\an8}I hope y'all vote for me.

Y'all know I love a treat-treat.

I'm Mitchell,

and I approve of this message.

This is gonna be a tough decision
'cause I love everybody.

{\an8}I vote for Mitchell.

-[chimes]
-I'm going to lock John in.

[chimes]

I don't think Chloe would be mad.
I feel like Chloe would understand.

There is only one person
that I would vote for,

and that would be
my number-one ally, River.

{\an8}[chimes]

Circle, submit my answer as Courtney.

{\an8}[chimes]

{\an8}You're my man, dude. You're my man.

[Michelle] Like on Facebook,[/i]

everyone can see
how everyone else has voted.

Wow.

Oh, that's nice.
Look at how the gays came through.

[Mitchell] What?

This is so crazy.

Always Courtney and River. Of course.

I mean, that really shows
they are a force to be reckoned with.

{\an8}-Oh, Trevor voted for us.
-Oh.

{\an8}Mitchell voted for Trevor.

{\an8}Oh, wow. Okay.

{\an8}Trevor and Mitchell
are really good friends.

{\an8}I didn't expect Mitchell to vote for me,
so I appreciate that, bro.

{\an8}We do have our bromance for real.

Mitchell, f*ck you.

{\an8}Wow, Khat got no buzz.

{\an8}No one voted for us? Wow.

Where'd Trevor go?
Trevor went to John. Wow.

So, River and Courtney are even.

Who won?

[Michelle] Don't worry.[/i]

You know The Circle's
gonna take care of that.

So as the newest player,

John will get the deciding vote.

Pick Courtney.
You voted for Courtney. Pick Courtney.

-You need to give this to River.
-Courtney, Courtney.[/i]

I do not want all of the attention.

Courtney, Courtney.

I do not want the popularity right now.
[laughs]

-I mean, we voted for Courtney.
-Yeah.

It makes sense we'd give it to Courtney.

[tone]

[Courtney groans]

I mean, yes! [snickers]

[relieved exhale] Ah...

b*llet dodged.

Every time there's a rating,
Courtney's up top, man.

[tone]

"Courtney, your presidential package
is at your door."

Let me go and grab her.

[m*llitary brass plays]

-I wonder what treats we're talking.
-I really love Skittles.

[Courtney grumbles]

Sour Patch Kids, the watermelon ones.

Oh. [grunts]

Anything chocolate except white chocolate.
I don't like that.

Um...

This is the biggest bouquet
of flowers I've ever seen.

[music ends]

You really went all out with these.

[Michelle] Let me go ahead and reserve[/i]
my seat on Air Court One right now.[/i]

He'll be the first president ever
to declare Beychella a national holiday.

-[playful music][/i]
-[snores]

After a hard four minutes
on the Democracy Day campaign trail,

River is b*at.

-[playful music continues]
-[snoring]

Meanwhile, down in the gym,

Mitchell is proving
he's the powerhouse of politics,

and he wants to check in
with fellow athlete Khat.

We came in together.
We had the Joker experience,

and from day one,
we both were just utterly honest.

So I wanna check in and see
where her head's at with all this.

[chimes]

Circle, open Mitchell's private chat.

[rings, chimes]

-Message:
-[tone]

"What's going on, Khat?"

{\an8}[Khat] "Wanted to check in
and see where your head's at

because I know we can keep it real
and sh**t each other straight."

And let's follow that up right away.

{\an8}-Message:
-[tone]

{\an8}"I wanna build real relationships,

{\an8}and it's pretty tough to do that

without coming across as disingenuous."
Send.

Message: "What's up? Question mark."

{\an8}"Thanks for checking in. Red heart emoji."

{\an8}"Last night, I was starting to think
this game wasn't for me,

{\an8}but after a good night's rest,
I'm feeling better."

"I decided to let go
of the twists and turns

and focus on having fun,
building those connections."

{\an8}-"#BackOnTrack." Send.
-[chimes]

[Mitchell]
Wow, exactly where I'm at. Like,

I don't wanna be one of those fake people
"scratch my back, scratch yours."

I wanna build real relationships.

{\an8}-Message:
-[tone]

{\an8}"I 100% feel you on that."

{\an8}"Recently,

it's been really setting it on me
that this is a game,

and it seems everyone else
has been playing it but me."

{\an8}[Khat] "But I don't play with all of
the #ScratchMyBackIWillScratchYours."

Message: "Everything you said
I feel to my core, Mitch."

"Being honest, you're the one
I don't have question marks around,

so I'm sticking to that."

[chimes]

[Mitchell]
And that's exactly what we're looking for.

-Message:
-[tone]

"Ditto. From day one,

I just felt that we could keep it
so real and honest with each other."

"#YouEarnedMyTrust."

{\an8}"I think we were right
from the start about Courtney and River."

And then let's go...
Let's follow that right up with,

{\an8}-message:
-[tone]

{\an8}"I really think Courtney's the Joker."

{\an8}"It makes sense,

{\an8}given that Courtney
and River are so close."

"All adds up why River was influencer."

{\an8}-[chimes]
-"#SuspectList."

{\an8}[quiet music plays]

-Message:
-[tone]

{\an8}"Mitch... Dot, dot, dot."

{\an8}"They're playing the game
the best out of everyone."

{\an8}"Trust your gut.
I'm definitely trusting mine."

{\an8}"#YouHaveMyTrust."

{\an8}Boom! Yes, Khat.

-Circle, leave chat.
-[tone]

I love Mitchell. I love Mitchell.
Love him to death.

I'm calling it right now.

The final, the top people
that are going to the final,

me, Khat for sure,

Trevor, and Chloe.

And if we just unite...

[imitates expl*si*n]

...game over. Literally. Circle[/i], game over.

[Michelle] Wow, that passionate speech[/i]
almost made me forget[/i]

that The Circle is definitely not over.[/i]

Let's leave Mitch to workout
and join Trev Trev

who is working those thigh-highs, honey,
and talking with Courtney.

I mean, who says
MILFs playing DILFs can't multitask?

Message: "Bro, I wanted to check in

to see how you are feeling
about The Circle atmosphere."

{\an8}"What are your thoughts? Question mark."

{\an8}-Send.
-[chimes]

{\an8}Okay. Well,
I feel like this is a situation

{\an8}where I can just be honest by saying
I do think that there are players.

I wonder if I should tell Trevor
that Khat's after Chloe,

and how he'd feel about that.

If that's your girl,
that's your Beyoncé like you told us...

{\an8}[Deleesa] "I think it's important you know

{\an8}that Khat is definitely trying
to set Chloe up to be blocked."

What? Really?

{\an8}This is like a whole nother situ-mination
that I just was not expecting.

You just gave me a lot here, Courtney.
What?

[gasps]

{\an8}Circle, message:

"Trevor, I was shook."

{\an8}"Period."

{\an8}"Khat put me and River in a group chat,

{\an8}and she wouldn't let go of the idea

that Chloe was lying
about Emily coming to see her."

[Deleesa] "Even though Chloe
clearly told us when Terilisha did."

"It felt like she was trying
to get us to bad-mouth her

even though Khat
doesn't really know us at all."

He didn't have to share this.
He knows it affects Trevor's game.

{\an8}Message: "Nah, that's ridiculous."

{\an8}"She's going too hard, and she needs
to take a chill pill for real."

{\an8}"She doesn't know anything about us,
especially Chloe for that matter."

Bam! Yes.

Me and Khat are cool,
and I like her personality.

Like, it's just,
why are you coming for Chloe?

What did Chloe do to you?
Nothing. She didn't do nothing to you.

-[chimes]
-[Courtney] "Me and Khat are cool,

and I can't believe I'm hearing this."

"I would have never expected
that she could be this type of person."

"Shaking my head. #NaiveTrevor."

Hearing that Khat is, like,
super deceptive,

it just makes me question her character.

[upbeat pop music plays]

[Michelle] You better look out,[/i]

because claws are sharpened
and headed for a certain Khat.

Meanwhile, The Circle[/i]'s newest player,
John, played by Jack and Lisa,

is also canvassing for support.

I think maybe
an interesting person to chat with,

'cause we don't really know
where his head is at, is Mitchell.

That'd be a good idea.

-[chimes]
-"John has invited you to a private chat."

Let's go, John.

Circle, take me to private chat with John.

{\an8}-[chimes]
-Circle, message: "Hey there, Mitchell."

"How you doing, buddy?" [lips smack]

Nice. Okay. "How are you doing, buddy?"

{\an8}"Nice to finally meet you.
I'm still getting the lay of the land."

"How has your time in The Circle been?"
Send.

Let's catch him up to speed.

Whatever he's curious about,
let's sh**t from the hip.

-Message:
-[tone]

"John, to tell you the truth, brother,
it's been peaks and valleys, man."

{\an8}"I thought I'd found the love of my life,
turned out I was flirting with a dude."

{\an8}[both laugh]

{\an8}-"Catfish caught me."
-That's you!

-Catfish.
-[Jack] The love of your life?

God, what did you do to Mitchell?

[Jack] Circle, message:
"How did that happen?"

"Sounds like a heck of a predicament."
[laughs]

It was John. It really was.

Message: "I thought I was flirting

with a beautiful blonde girl
called Emily."

[Jack] "Turns out it was a guy,
Jack, toying with my heart."

{\an8}-[laughs] "#YouWinSomeYouLoseSome."
-[laughs]

{\an8}Looks like you lose more than you win.

{\an8}-Sorry.
-Oh, Mitchell.

[Lisa] Should we remark, like,

"You shouldn't have any trouble
with the ladies," or, "the female..."

Whatever. Uh, "You're a good-looking guy"?

Yeah, maybe, "You seem like a great guy."

-Circle, message...
-[tone]

{\an8}[Lisa] "That's a real shame."

{\an8}"You seem like a great young man."

{\an8}-[Jack] "I'm sure there will be..."
-"...plenty of nice girls..."

"...vying for your attention," or something?

I like that
because it makes him seem popular.

It's a compliment. I like that.

"John. That's a real shame."

"From what I can tell,
you seem like a great young man."

[quietly] Thank you, John.

"I'm sure there will be plenty
of nice girls trying for your attention."

My guy John.

If that's a psychic prediction,

that means good things
are in store for me, brother.

I appreciate that.

[LIsa] "Means the world to me, John,
coming from you."

"Do you have any psychic predictions
about anyone in The Circle?"

[Jack] Um...

Should we mention something
about his guitar?

Because we know he got a guitar in here

-and he's learning to play. Yeah.
-He does?

-Did he tell you that?
-Yeah.

Oh...

So maybe if he asks us anything, like,
we'll definitely like slip in,

"Are you learning..."

Maybe, "You've discovered a new passion
during your time in The Circle."

Message: "I believe you may cope

with any potential troubles
through some artistic expression."

{\an8}"Perhaps maybe some sort of music?"

John, who were you talking to?

I don't know
if I buy into the whole psychic thing,

even though he knows I picked up a guitar,
which is pretty cool.

I feel like it doesn't say anything to me.
I just... I don't buy into it.

-Message:
-[tone]

"At what point did you realize
you had psychic abilities?"

{\an8}-Send.
-[chimes]

Message:
"I began detecting traces of my abilities

fairly early in my childhood."

"It wasn't until later in my teenage years
that I really spent time focusing on

and grappling
with the extent of my abilities."

-[grave voice] The extent of my power.
-[laughs]

"At times,
it was both a blessing and a curse."

[Mitchell]
"I often felt very misunderstood."

See, that's something I can relate to.

-I feel good about the conversation.
-Me too.

I'd like to see where Mitchell's on,
on a more strategic page.

Circle, message:
"Being that I'm the new guy around here,

do you have any advice?"

[Mitchell] "Anybody you recommend
getting to know in particular?"

Man, we're getting into, like,
some game stuff.

I feel like a terrible person,

like a little girl talking
about people behind their back,

and I hate it, but it is a game, so...

[Michelle] Mitch, what happened[/i]
to integrity and unity?[/i]

Did you leave that at the gym?

Let's run it up.

-Message:
-[tone]

"I really like Khat and Trevor,
and I trust them."

{\an8}"I don't know
if I trust River and Courtney

{\an8}because when it comes to it,
they have each other's backs,

{\an8}but do they have ours?"

Wow! That is interesting.

I really appreciated it
when I was the new guy,

and Emily was able to do that for me,

drop down the walls, and be like,
"This, this, and that is what's going on."

"Watch your back,
not everybody is who they say they are."

"John. That's great to hear, Mitchell."

"I had Trevor on my trivia team,

and he seems like
a solid young man and loving father."

"I look forward
to getting to speak with Khat."

"She appears to be a very sharp girl."

[clicks tongue]

Yep.

You're welcome, Khat and Trevor.

Message:
"It was nice getting to speak with you."

"You have a great head on your shoulders,

and I appreciate the advice
and the welcome. Catch you soon."

-"Cheers." Send.
-[chimes]

Cheers, John.

It was actually really great chatting
with you as well, brother.

I enjoyed it.

[Michelle] I bet you did.[/i]

You'll never forget your first
two-people-catfishing-as-a-psychic chat.

[pop music plays]

As the afternoon creeps by
on Democracy Day,

the players are getting political.

-Courtney's naming names.
-[Courtney] Khat, it's your time to go.[/i]

Scram.

[Michelle] Khat's reading the cookbook
How to Serve Texan Truth[/i],[/i]

and The Circle's got a scary new alert.

-["Hail to the Chief" plays]
-God.

sh*t. God dammit!

-I gotta get some American sh*t on.
-Come on.

Oh, my gosh.

Sir, yes, sir.

You may be seated.
I guess that's more like church.

I think we don't have to be
at attention anymore

-'cause the music stopped.
-Oh.

[Michelle] But you better pay attention[/i]

'cause The Circle[/i]'s got
a fun democratic game for y'all.

Each player will design a campaign poster

-for another player in The Circle.
-Wow.[/i]

I can't draw for sh*t.

[Michelle] On this poster,[/i]
they must create an image for that player[/i]

with a slogan that best fits
their campaign to win The Circle[/i].

Political AF today.

[Michelle]
Then, for maximum political intrigue,[/i]

they'll be uploaded anonymously
to The Circle.

Ha!

Everybody grows another set of balls
when there's anonymous games going on.

I wish I hadn't used all my glitter.

[Michelle] It's okay.[/i] We got you, 'cause[/i]
The Circle came through with a delivery.[/i]

-Let's go.
-Let's go.

Oh, I love arts and craft.

[peppy music plays]

[Lee] This is fantastic.

[Lisa] Oh, my God, an easel?

[exclaims]

We are gonna toss this on right now.

It makes me feel Italian
holding one of these.

I got my paint brushes. Mm. They're soft.

I'm excited about it.

[Michelle] The Circle's chosen who will[/i]
anonymously create a poster for who.[/i]

John. I'm so happy. It's 100% about love.

{\an8}I think that this'll make
Mitchell feel good, you know?

{\an8}We like him, even though we don't really.

-Right.
-[Michelle] {\an8}#Politics, guys. Right?[/i]

{\an8}Let's go! I love Khat.

We are gonna crush this, baby.

Courtney, perfect.
I know exactly what I want to do-do.

For my girl Chloe.

This is going to be nice,
sweet, and complimentary.

I can do my painting of Trevor,

and then incorporate red into my picture
so he knows it's me.

River! Okay. I like it. I could do it.

[Michelle]
Okay, you guys. Time to get political.[/i]

{\an8}[both] "You now have 30 minutes
to create your campaign poster."

-It's time for me to get to work.
-Love it.

[percussive music plays]

I like the way this sounds.

♪ Duh-nuh, duh-nuh, duh-nuh
Duh-nuh, duh-nuh ♪

Neck, body,

big-ass hair.

Oh.

Oh, my God. Chloe deserves it.

Emily, if you're watching this,

this is how you apply foundation, babes.

[percussive music continues]

[Khat] This'll be a good way to strategize

and potentially put myself
on Courtney's good side.

Courtney sees this, he'll be able to tell,
"Khat definitely did this."

I'mma throw some things
only he could've known that I knew.

[Jack] Maybe a gold star next to his name?

[Lisa] Yeah.

-It's like a surgery. Scalpel.
-Yeah, it's like I'm your nurse.

I hate kissing people's ass,

but gotta do what you gotta do
to get that money.

[Michelle] Oo, I know that's right.[/i]

[upbeat organ music plays]

Oh, no! "Ciricle."

[laughs]

Guess what?
That'll become a Christmas tree.

I'm very happy
that this is in anonymous mode

because I don't want people thinking...

♪ Trevor's shady ♪

What do you think?

[Jack] It's pretty good.

Yeah. I don't think
the artistic styles are different.

They're all gonna know
this is River by the way.

{\an8}He loves his rainbow life.

This is better than half the sh*t I made
in high school.

I surprised my damn self.

I feel like I should have gone
to university to study art.

[Lisa laughs]

[Jack] There we go.

[Lisa] That's great.

I'm gonna get done just in time.

[tone]

"Players, your time is up."

Okay, I'm done, and I'm happy,
and I hope John will love it.

Wham, bam, thank you, ma'am.

Trevor's gonna love me after this.

Boom!

Voilà!

[kiss noise]

Magnífico.

I think it's joy. Gives me joy.

All aboard!

Team Khat. Sir, yes, sir.

[Michelle] At ease, soldier.[/i]

Players have to take a photo
of their posters

to upload for their adoring public.

Sheesh!

That is money.

[Michelle]
Now it's time for the poster presentation,[/i]

and somebody please pass me the popcorn.

The moment of truth.

{\an8}-Circle, open up the first picture.
-[tone]

[Michelle] First on the campaign trail[/i]
{\an8}is John's poster drawn by River.[/i]

Oh! Mine's first. All right.

-Oh, this is great.
-Oh...

-That's so cute.
-I love this.

{\an8}"Circle Santa needs you."

{\an8}"Psychic love" with the rainbow heart.

{\an8}"Vote John." [yelps]

{\an8}That's pretty good.

{\an8}This is more River.

{\an8}River. Just based on the heart emoji.

{\an8}I think everybody will appreciate it.
It has a really good vibe.

{\an8}I like what they did
with the tree is the "I." That's cool.

{\an8}It's not an "I." It's in the middle
of the "R" and the "C." It's "Ciricle."

{\an8}So the first one is nice. Oh, my God.
I hope I'm not the only mean one here.

{\an8}[laughs]

[Michelle] Next up, we're gonna see[/i]
{\an8}if love and politics really do mix[/i]

{\an8}'cause it's Trevor's poster
drawn by his Circle boo-boo Chloe.

{\an8}That's mine. Woo!

{\an8}"Everyone needs a cuddle."

{\an8}-It's cute.
-It's cute.

{\an8}Everyone's gonna know I've drawn that.

{\an8}"Everyone needs a cuddle"
is a very British thing to say.

{\an8}I really hope
that Trevor knows I've done that.

I feel like Chloe would have did this.

Ah, let's look at the next one.

[Michelle] Okay, Chloe,[/i]
{\an8}here comes Khat's poster by Mitchell.[/i]

{\an8}[exclaims] That's us right there.

{\an8}Aw...

{\an8}"Honest, loyal, genuine."

{\an8}"Trustworthy."

{\an8}"Pure-hearted."

{\an8}She's none of those things.

{\an8}I haven't seen a lot of those qualities.

{\an8}I feel like Khat's done that herself.

Even when it comes to the game
and how I play,

those things are me.

That's so nice. Everybody's so nice.
I literally can't. Okay.

[Michelle] Next is[/i]
{\an8}Courtney's campaign poster by Khat.[/i]

{\an8}This is mine.

{\an8}Whoa-wah.

{\an8}"You can count on me..."

{\an8}"...to snatch yo wig."

{\an8}What does that mean?

{\an8}I don't get it.

{\an8}-Khat could've done that.
-I'm thinking Khat.

{\an8}This gotta be Khat.

{\an8}I think Courtney'll like this.

This can let him see me in a better light.

It's great.

It's too late.

See, more nice paintings.

[Michelle] Next is Chloe's poster[/i]
{\an8}painted by Courtney.[/i]

{\an8}Is it a painting if there's no pictures?

{\an8}Yes! This is mine.

{\an8}It looks quite basic. [laughs]

{\an8}That's a boring one.

{\an8}Somebody did not put much work into this.

{\an8}I was expecting a picture of me

{\an8}with a crown on my head
with massive boobs.

You get an "E" for effort, hunty.

Hey, sis can't draw.

[Michelle] Next up,[/i]
{\an8}we got Mitchell's poster by psychic John.[/i]

{\an8}Oh, look at ours. [laughs]

{\an8}I think it's fun.

{\an8}I think this was John
with his Santa vibes,

{\an8}and I think he k*lled it.

{\an8}"Nice list. One, Mitchell. Two, Terry."

{\an8}Even above his husband Terry?
Ballsy move, John, but I appreciate it.

{\an8}Aw...

{\an8}This is lovely.

{\an8}I like the blood splatter too.

Everyone is being nice so far.

[tone]

[Michelle]
Mm-hm. You had to say it, Courtney.[/i]

On cue, it's River's poster by Trevor.

It's so mean.

"Curly and calculated."

Oh...

[gasps]

Wow.

-"#GotYourBack."
-Don't you think that's shady?

-That is shady.
-Calculated?

They throwing sh*ts at him?

Everybody's been nice and fluffy,
but that's an att*ck.

Shady.

-I wouldn't wanna be called calculated.
-No.

Somebody has a target on my back.
It's either Mitchell, Khat, or Trevor.

I didn't want it to be like, so mean.

Just wanted to let him know,
"I think you're calculated."

You're gonna calculate your ass
right out of the game, so...

Shady. Shady. Shady.

Y'all trying to put eyes on River,
but eyes are on Khat.

[laughs]

Oo, somebody don't like me. [laughs]

I don't wanna see you no more.
Get off my screen.

[sighs]

I feel like a biatch. [inhales]

[upbeat pop music plays]

[Michelle]
After the creativity and mudslinging[/i]

of the political poster challenge,

some of the players
are having a serious debrief.

That looks like juggling to me.

[laughs]

[Michelle] After drawing[/i]
the shadiest poster of the day,[/i]

Trevor wants to bring back
the feel-good vibes

by hitting up newbie
and all-around good guy, catfish John.

Message: "Hey, John, what's up, man?"[/i]

"Tell me,[/i]
{\an8}how old are your three children?"[/i]

"I love getting advice and chatting up
other parents, fathers."

Perfect. Here we go.

I want John to know there's someone here
that he can really bond with,

has a connection
that he won't have with anybody else.

[Lisa] We should say,

"Actually, I became a grandfather
for the first time."

Yeah. So let's say, um...

Circle, message:
"My oldest is Ben. He's 34."

{\an8}"My daughter Michelle is 30.
My youngest son Robert is 27."

"Back in March, I entered grandfatherhood

when Ben and his wife welcomed
a beautiful girl named Charlotte."

[chimes]

[Deleesa] Aw... "...named Charlotte."

-Message: "Wow, John. Congratulations."
-[tone]

"I bet becoming a grandfather
feels just as rewarding

-as having another one of your own." Send.
-[chimes]

-Oh, he's so nice.
-Yeah.

{\an8}[Deleesa] Message: "You're everything
The Circle has been needing."

"Your children are extremely lucky
to have you, and we are lucky too."

-[Lisa] "#JohnTheCircleDad."
-[Jack] That's nice.

I do feel bad being
like this kind of catfish.

You lied about who you were
the last nine days.

Now you're like, "It's bad"?

But it's different,
because I just think people will be so sad

-to know that like John's not real.
-[Jack] Yeah.

Welcome to the dark side.

I know.

[cheerful pop music plays]

[Michelle] Let's leave Darth John[/i]

and check in on some apartments
not that far, far away.

Mitch is a force in the kitchen.

And we are cooking.

[Michelle]
River's letting hate flow through him.[/i]

[Lee] Oh, ho-ho!

[Michelle] And The Circle[/i] empire[/i]
is about to strike Khat.[/i]

-["Hail to the Chief" plays]
-f*ck.

Circle.

-[song ends]
-[buzzes]

-Boom!
-[screams]

[all] "Alert!"

Here we go.

Um, I didn't expect this.

[all]
"Players, you now have the ultimate chance

to exercise your democratic rights."

What's that mean?

I don't like exercising.

-[tone]
-Oh... Oh, this.

"You must now rate each other."

[exclaims]

I knew it.

What's the catch? Always a catch.

That is so democratic too.

Here we go. Ratings, ratings.

{\an8}[all] "As a new player,
John can rate but cannot be rated."

Yes. Yes. That's great news.

John's getting all the perks.
Bloody Santa.

-[tone]
-[Courtney] "The top two players

will become influencers."

For me, it's like,
I wanna be an influencer now?

I've already been in top two.
Will that put a bigger target on my back?

This is gonna be anybody's guess.

The Cardashians
need to be the influencers.

Circle, take me to my ratings.

[intriguing music plays]

[tone]

[Lisa] Okay, first.

I think we gotta go with someone

we feel could have our back till the end,

and right now the best indication of that,
I think, would be from River.

So, Circle, put River
as our number-one rating.

{\an8}[tone]

{\an8}In first place, I'd like to put Chloe.

{\an8}This is a tactical decision
because if I'm gonna be an influencer,

I want Chloe to be an influencer.

We are close,
and we have each other's back.

My feelings towards him are real.

The butterflies are definitely there,
and I can't ignore it.

So for those reasons, Circle,
please lock in Trevor as my first place.

{\an8}[tone]

Although Chloe is my girl,

and I feel like I would be
on the top of her list,

I don't know if I will be first place.

And...

I think Mitchell would save Trevor

if he became an influencer.

So for those reasons,
I'm going to rate Mitchell in first place.

{\an8}[tone]

Circle, please place Khat in first place.

{\an8}-[tone]
-Khat had told me I earned her trust,

and I told her she had mine, which is big.

I don't say that unless I mean it.

So, Khat,
I'm putting my trust in you here.

{\an8}Don't let me down.

{\an8}I hope you're an influencer,

and I hope you are real,
and I can trust you.

[tone]

I choose Chloe
to go into my second rating slot.

{\an8}[tone]

{\an8}If I'm not in an influencer slot,

[music continues]

by potentially pushing her here,
that could help my game.

The player I'm rating third
is someone that I spoke to today,

and that's Trevor.

{\an8}-[tone]
-We have a pretty decent rapport.

[tone]

[Lee] That's the hard one.

You know what? Let's do it.
Let's put Khat in our fourth position.

{\an8}[tone]

So fifth.

[Jack] It's smart to bump Mitchell down.

Mitchell, we know,
is kind of against Courtney and River,

and I could see Trevor
and Chloe putting him high.

-Khat.
-[Jack] Khat putting him high.

He could be influencer, and if he is,
he would want River or Courtney out.

So I think we bump Mitchell to fifth.

{\an8}-[Lisa] Perfect. I agree with that.
-[tone]

I truly believe, for tactic reasons only,
Mitchell will be higher up the ratings.

I don't want him to be an influencer,

and I feel like
other people would rate him high.

So, Circle,
please can you put Mitchell in last place?

{\an8}[tone]

Please place Courtney as my last place.

{\an8}Courtney. Courtney. Courtney.
I want to love the guy.

{\an8}That smile is infectious.

{\an8}If Courtney made it
to an influencer position,

he is definitely not sending home River,
he's definitely not sending home Chloe,

and it leaves me really
in a vulnerable position to go home.

So for that reason,
I'm dropping Courtney to my last place.

For my last-place rating,

Khat has started some chaos
within my alliance. Uh!

At least she tried to.

It's a no-brainer.
We have to go with Khat.

{\an8}[tone]

Circle, please...

submit my ratings.

[chimes]

And it's a done deal.

[buzzes]

[all] "Alert!"

Bada-bing! Bada-boom!

{\an8}[all] "Democracy Day is now over."

As a citizen of The Circle[/i],
I felt empowered.

Now, give me the power.

We locked in our votes.

I know who should be number one,
Mr. President, and number two, Mr. VP.

God bless America.

[Michelle] And God bless The Circle[/i].[/i]

[upbeat pop music plays]

And there goes Mitch,
the one candidate who, if elected,

would insist on push-ups for all,

which I do not think would go down well
with one half of psychic John.

[Jack] Man, I'm out of shape.

[laughs]

[Michelle] This is much more[/i]
my kind of evening ritual.[/i]

Okay.

[music continues]

[Michelle] And another evening ritual here[/i]
is dropping in on a private chat.[/i]

This one features Trevor
hitting up Khat to get the lowdown.

Message: "What's good, Khat?
What you up to right now?"

"Question mark." Send.

Trevor's messaging me to see
if our connection's still there,

if we're still good in the hood.

{\an8}Message: "What's good, baby?"

{\an8}"Just finished cooking
some fish and shrimp."

{\an8}"Laid up with a food baby.
Laughing emoji." Send.

{\an8}-[chimes]
-Fish and shrimp? Girl, I'm hungry, man.

{\an8}Message: "Damn, I need
some of that Southern cooking too."

"Just checking in on you."

"How you been coming along so far?
Question mark."

{\an8}Send.

{\an8}I'm just trying to see if Khat is gonna be
forthcoming with any information.

Message: "Not even gonna lie."

"These last few days
have been weird for me."

{\an8}"Felt like the game wasn't coming to me

{\an8}like how it was coming to everyone else,
but I'm doing better."

{\an8}-"Thanks for thinking of me." Send.
-[chimes]

{\an8}I'm trying to see, you still with me?
Still rocking with me?

Message: "But what happened
to your confidence, love?"

{\an8}"You were rated second
in your first ratings. Don't forget that."

-Send.
-[chimes]

What he said is very sweet,
very nice, very genuine.

{\an8}Message: "You're the sweetest.
Thank you. Red heart emoji."

{\an8}"I felt like being me
could only get me so far."

{\an8}"With all the clues being thrown around,
I caught myself trying to dig around,

but couldn't quite get
the pieces together."

Oh, so I think this is where
she's talking about Chloe.

But yes, girl, you play with fire,
you're gonna get b*rned.

Don't do that 'cause you don't know

who's friends with who, who takes offense.

Like, I took offense to it.

Now I kinda feel like she regrets it.

Message:
"At this point, I'm just like F it,

and enjoying the rest of my time here."

{\an8}"Don't feel naive.
These folks are playing,

{\an8}and they're willing
to do anything to win."

I love Khat. See, I can't deal
'cause I don't wanna see Khat leave now.

Ay, ay, ay. What a game.

{\an8}Message: "I definitely can say
that out of everyone,

{\an8}talking to you seems the most natural."

{\an8}"This chat is always open.
Holla whenever you can."

{\an8}-"Until next time." [kisses] Send.
-[chimes]

Tsk. Oh...

Heart. Heart emoji. [blows kiss]

Message: "You know I got you, ma."

{\an8}"Glad you feel free to talk to me,
and thank you for listening as well."

{\an8}"At the end of the day, it's a game,
and you know you're doing your best."

-"100 emoji." Send.
-[chimes]

That was easy.
That was us just being ourselves.

We're good. We're squared away.

{\an8}If anybody goes home tonight,
it'll be one of the snakes.

It's definitely not gonna be me

'cause there's no way Courtney and River
are both in an influencer spot.

There's no way.

[out-of-tune guitar plays]

[Michelle] It's nighttime,[/i]

and Mitchell has made
a Keith-Richards-level breakthrough

in his guitar career.

There's C chord.

Switch right on over. Here's the D chord.

-[Michelle] Oh my God, I got the goosies.[/i][/i]
-[whistles]

And as much as I'd love
to watch Courtney do a puzzle...

[buzzes]

-[tense music plays]
-"[/i]Alert!" All righty.

Oh...

I hate it when it just pops up like that.

[tone]

[all] "The ratings results are in."

This is the moment of truth, man.

Let's do this.

[tone]

Who do we think it is?
Hopefully, it's Khat.

Who's six? I have no idea who six is.

I could be at the bottom.
I don't know what's going on.

I don't wanna see Trevor's face.
I don't wanna see his face.

Oh, my God, I can't look. I'm scared.

[exhales]

I would just absolutely lose it
if I came in dead last.

[music continues]

Come on, Circle. Tell us.

[music swells]

[tone]

[Khat] You f*cking assholes.

I wonder why, though. I wonder why.

[Mitchell] What?

I put her in first.

That's what you get.
You was playing with the wrong ones!

[grunts]

I feel so relieved.

-She's fallen several spots.
-Yeah.

[Khat]
I went from two to six. That's crazy.

[tone]

The nerves came down just a hair.

I hope it's not Trevor.

I'm feeling pretty confident
for some reason.

[music continues]

Don't let it be me.

[music swells]

[tone]

Oh, my gosh!

-[tone]
-Are you serious?

What?

The two that I wanted in the bottom
are in the bottom where they belong.

How are we that low?
I, honestly, am blown away.

[tone]

Who'd be fourth place?
It could possibly be Trevor.

Trevor was fourth last time.

I won't be shocked
to see Trevor in fourth.

Hoo...

[exhales]

[groans]

[music swells]

[tone]

It is me. I'm realistic. I'm in fourth.

It's fine.

I weren't expecting Courtney to be fourth.
That's not good.

Clearly, his scratching-back strategy
is working better than mine, but...

It's 'cause I don't have
a scratching-back strategy.

But this means
Trevor is definitely in top three.

[tone]

"Third."

It's got to be Chloe or Trevor.

Hopefully, I'm not third,
and I do get the top place again.

[Deleesa]
I'm cool if Trevor's third, or am I?

I don't know.
That means River would be an influencer.

I wanna be able
to be an influencer on my own.

No Joker, nothing. Just me.

Oh, my God. Oh, honey, honey.

Be Trevor. Come on.

[music continues]

[music swells]

[tone]

[both gasp]

Oo!

River is third.

And it's me. Okay. All right. All right.

So I'm still at risk.

I'm safe. I'm safe.

I'm safe.

[tone]

That means, like, my plan is, like,
working here.

♪ Me and my baby are in first and second ♪

I need to see it to believe it.

[tone]

Yee! [laughs]

♪ I'm an influencer, I'm an influencer
I'm an influencer ♪

I'm first again. Are you joking?
Are you joking?

Chloe's on a roll, man.
She can't be stopped.

Wow, good job, Chlo.

I think I'm okay. You never know.

Everyone's voting me as the most popular.

Your boy is safe. I'm safe.

♪ I ain't going home
I am not getting blocked ♪

[Michelle]
No, you're not, but somebody is,[/i]

and it's time to get down to business.

[buzzes]

[all] "[/i]Alert!"

No. No, no, no.

-[tone]
-"Circle influencers Chloe and Trevor..."

"...must decide which player to block."

Oh, I can't do it.

This is gonna be such a hard decision.

"Chloe and Trevor must go to the Hangout..."

"...to make their decision."

We're so close to the end.

That's when the claws come out.

This is always a heavy moment.

[Deleesa groans]

Come on, then.

Oh, no. [clicks tongue, groans]

Good luck.

Nothing we can do about it now.

[intense music plays]

I'm f*cking freaking the f*ck out
right now.

[music continues]

[Deleesa] Oo!

-This is actually so cute.
-[Chloe sings creepily]

-Oh, my God.
-[gasps]

It feels good to be back.

This is beautiful.
This is nice. I like this.

I like... Oo.

Who's number one again? Woo woo!

Cheers to finally being in here. Cheers.

It's like a little date night.
Our first little date.

I love it. It's so cute.

[music ends]

[rings, chimes]

I'm ready to get down to business.

-Message:
-[tone]

"What's up, baby girl?"

{\an8}"Out of everyone,
I'm happy to be here with you."

{\an8}"Although this is probably going to be
an extremely hard decision."

-Send.
-[chimes]

-Circle, message:
-[tone]

"Oh, babe,

you don't understand how happy I was
when I saw you at the top with me."

"Talk about couple goals."

-[chimes]
-Oh... [laughs]

Circle, message:
"Let's start with Courtney."

{\an8}-"What do you think?" Send message.
-[chimes]

I mean, I like Courtney.

However, if I'm trying
to play a tactical game,

it kind of would be a smart move
to go with somebody

who is a potential thr*at to Trevor.

Courtney is one of my strongest allies,

but I can't let Trevor
come between me and my alliances.

-Message:
-[tone]

{\an8}"Courtney is a solid dude.
I trust him. What about you?"

{\an8}-Send.
-[chimes]

I'm so happy.

-Circle, message:
-[tone]

{\an8}"I absolutely adore him."

"Phew! How about River?"

{\an8}-Send message.
-[chimes]

Nervous to see
what he's gonna say about River.

I'm the one who actually thinks
River is playing a calculated game here.

Message: "Great.
River's also another cool dude,

and we have a great bond."

"I was curious
about his campaign poster, though."

{\an8}"Someone must think
he's playing a calculated game."

{\an8}"How do you feel though?"

[groans]

I thought exactly the same.

When it comes to River,

I just don't know
if I could 110% trust him

not to switch the game up

for his benefit.

Having both Courtney and River
in the game is a thr*at.

They're always gonna look out
for each other.

I need to stick up for River here.

-Circle, message:
-[tone]

"I was also curious
about his campaign poster,

but I remembered the person
behind the poster

{\an8}is probably more calculated."

{\an8}-Send message.
-[chimes]

"...the person behind the poster
is probably more calculated."

Oof. [inhales]

You know,
I'm the one who made that poster.

So actually,

I'm just like a naive little girl
pretending to be a guy.

Just stirring up a little bit of stuff.

That's the person behind the poster.

[Chloe] Message: "Me and River
have got a really strong bond."

"If it wasn't for him,
I may not still be here."

{\an8}-Send message.
-[chimes]

That means Chloe is
definitely going to be protecting River.

Trevor and Chloe have a very strong bond.

It is in Trevor's best interest
to keep that strong.

Message: "I completely agree with you
and completely understand you."

"How do you feel about Mitchell?"

{\an8}-"Question mark." Send.
-[chimes]

Okay.

I'm not gonna hold back.
I'm really not. Circle, message:

[tone]

{\an8}"I feel like Mitchell is
who he says he is."

"At first, we had a bond,
and he called me his Circle sister."

{\an8}"However, I don't really trust him
with saving me if it came down to it."

{\an8}-Send message.
-[chimes]

I really like Mitchell though, so...

{\an8}Message: "I trust Mitchell
and highly respect his character."

"I think he would save me,
and him knowing how I feel about you..."

[sighs]

"I don't think you would be at risk
if it was up to him."

Mitchell really is a stand-up guy.

He's being a perfect bro
and a perfect gentleman.

He trusts Mitchell, and I feel like,
"If he trusts Mitchell, I trust Mitchell."

-Message:
-[tone]

{\an8}"Well, I trust your instincts
more than anyone's."

{\an8}"I wouldn't wanna put you
in an uncomfortable position."

{\an8}"I understand... Dot, dot, dot.
How about Khat?"

-[chimes]
-Uh...

I just feel like
Chloe's gonna g*n for Khat.

I like Khat.

He better not be friends with Khat
'cause then me and him are over.

From the moment she came in,
her and Trevor bonded.

I feel like she's a great person.

-Message:
-[tone]

"Khat is my peoples."

"She's been straight-up with me
since she got here."

"She's also another person
who I think would 100% save me

if the roles were reversed."

[chimes]

No. This can't be happening.

[inhales]

Trevor, you're not meant
to say that, babe.

Do you not know what she said about me?

[groans]

No. Uh-uh.

It's almost like
you have two of Chloe's alliance

versus two of Trevor's alliance.

Now this is the hard part.
The big, big hard part.

-Circle, message:
-[tone]

"I was worried you were gonna say that."

"I considered her
as someone I could 100% trust

until my own Circle best friends told me[/i]

she had been throwing dirt behind my back,

{\an8}saying I was lying
about Emily not coming to see me."

{\an8}"Khat then messaged me
making excuses to cover her back."

"#Fake. #Snake."

-Send message.
-[chimes]

This is a big problem
because I really like Khat,

and I think
that was just a mistake on her part,

and I do think
she deserves a second chance.

-Message:
-[tone]

"Yeah,
Courtney came and told me that too."

"Part of me thinks
she deserves a second chance."

{\an8}-Send.
-[chimes]

[groans]

[quietly] For f*ck's sake.

This is so hard because I felt like
she was being...

remorseful.

[exhales]

But is she being remorseful
and meaning it,

or is she just sorry she got caught?

-Message:
-[tone]

"I wish we didn't have to block anyone

{\an8}because I truly like every single person."

{\an8}"However, when it comes down to it,

we have to weigh the negatives
with the positives." Send.

[chimes]

I know, and that is what is so hard.

With Khat in The Circle,

me and Trevor will be voted high,

and I doubt River and Courtney will be.

So that gives me and Trevor an upper hand.

If we're talking playing the game,
that would be playing the game.

[dark musical sting]

[sighs]

[Michelle]
While Chloe and Trevor deliberate,[/i]

the at-risk players
are taking it all in stride.

Psych! They are obviously freaking out.

If Chloe and Trevor block me,
I will be devastated.

I feel like The Circle
does very much so resemble real life.[/i]

Everybody's your friend to your face
and stabs you in the back.

Oh, my God!

What's gonna happen?
I don't know what's gonna happen.

-Circle, message:
-[tone]

"Do you want me to deliver the news?"

-"#VirtualHugMe." Send message.
-[chimes]

Message: "No, babe.
I have to be a man here

and own up to the fact that we were cool,
and I've played a role in the decision."

That's like... He's an actual man.

He's an actual man,
and he's taking control.

God, Trevor, when are we getting married?

[intense music plays]

[buzzes]

Oh, God.

-"Alert!"
-[laughs]

"Alert!"

"Alert!"

"The influencers
have made their decision."

I'm hoping it's the right one.

I feel pretty confident,
but I... You never know in this game.

Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

-Okay.
-I'm getting popcorn

for the dramatic effect.

-[Lisa] You're gonna get popcorn?
-Yeah.

-[tone]
-"All players must go to Circle Chat."

Circle, take me to Circle Chat.

[rings, chimes]

Boom!

Moment of truth, baby.

What is gonna be is what is gonna be.

Here we go.

[sighs]

[music continues]

[Chloe squeals]

Oh, God. I wonder how he's gonna word it
and how he's gonna phrase it.

-Message:
-[tone]

"This was
an extremely difficult decision."

{\an8}"We have gotten close
to everyone here in our own ways."

"It came down to one thing in particular,
our future in The Circle." Send.

[chimes]

I have to face this,
whatever the outcome is.

This is it. One of us is going home.

Chloe, you got my back.
Trevor, I think you got my back.

Best person to go home for our game,

-Khat.
-Khat.

I may be a thr*at. Let's just say,
hypothetically speaking, I'm a thr*at.

River and Courtney
are way bigger thr*at than I am.

Message: "We had to weigh up
the positives and the negatives."

{\an8}"Unfortunately,
this is where we were led."

{\an8}-Send.
-[chimes]

[whimpers] This is so hard.

[moans]

[groans]

Just one more day. Come on.

Trevor gave me his word
that he's got my back.

[inhales]

-Message:
-[tone]

"The player we have decided to block is..."

"Dot, dot, dot."

Oh, my God.

Who?

Hate this part.

We better still be waking up here
tomorrow morning.

That's all I'm saying.

Oh...

I'm freaking shaking.

[music swells]

-Message...
-[tone]

-[music ends]
-[chimes]

[upbeat music playing]