Neil LaBute is a polarizing guy. Whether you love his abrasive, dialogue-heavy style or find it agonizing, you can't deny that he pushes boundaries. Back in 2013, he did something weird. He teamed up with DirecTV’s Audience Network—a channel most people didn't even know they had—to create the Full Circle 2013 TV series. It wasn't just another drama. It was a structural experiment that felt more like a play than a television show, and honestly, it paved the way for the "interconnected" storytelling we see everywhere on Netflix today.
The premise was dead simple but incredibly hard to pull off. Each episode featured just two characters sitting in a restaurant, talking. That’s it. No car chases. No green screens. Just the raw, often uncomfortable friction of two people hashing out their lives over appetizers. But here’s the kicker: one character from the first episode would carry over to the second to meet someone new. Then that new person would carry over to the third. It formed a literal human chain that eventually snapped back to the beginning. It was a narrative circle.
Why the Full Circle 2013 TV Series Was Ahead of Its Time
If you look at the TV landscape in 2013, we were right in the middle of the "Golden Age." Breaking Bad was ending. House of Cards had just signaled the rise of streaming. Amidst all that noise, the Full Circle 2013 TV series was practically silent. It relied entirely on the LaBute sting—that sharp, cynical insight into how humans lie to themselves and each other.
The show wasn't trying to be a blockbuster. It was trying to be intimate. By focusing on a single location, the Palotino restaurant, it created a sense of claustrophobia. You weren't just watching a show; you were eavesdropping on the table next to you. It was voyeurism in its purest form. This "bottle episode" format for an entire season was risky. Most networks would have passed on it instantly because it lacked "visual scale." DirecTV took the gamble.
The cast was surprisingly stacked too. You had Tom Felton, freshly out of the Harry Potter universe, trying to shed the Draco Malfoy skin. Minka Kelly, Julian McMahon, and David Boreanaz also showed up. Seeing Boreanaz, who was basically the king of procedural TV with Bones at the time, do something this stripped-down was a shock to the system. He played Jace, a guy who was charming but fundamentally flawed. It reminded everyone that these "TV stars" actually had serious acting chops when they weren't chasing serial killers every week.
The "Chain" Structure Explained
Think of the show like a relay race. Episode one features Character A and Character B. Episode two features Character B and Character C. This continues until episode ten, where Character J meets Character A.
This wasn't just a gimmick. It forced you to re-evaluate people. You might see a character in one episode and think they’re a total jerk. Then, in the next episode, you see them from a different perspective, or you see the person who made them that way. It played with the idea that nobody is the villain of their own story. We’re all just supporting characters in someone else's mess.
The LaBute Factor: Dialogue as a Weapon
Neil LaBute wrote the first season, and his fingerprints are all over the Full Circle 2013 TV series. If you've ever seen his films like In the Company of Men or The Shape of Things, you know the vibe. He writes people who say "kinda" or "sorta" while they’re busy ruining each other's lives.
The dialogue in Full Circle is fast. It’s rhythmic. Characters interrupt each other. They trail off. They use silence as a weapon. In the episode with Tom Felton (Tim) and Minka Kelly (Abbey), the tension isn't about what they say—it's about the years of unspoken baggage between an exchange student and the woman from his past. It’s uncomfortable to watch. It’s supposed to be.
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- Realism over Spectacle: The show didn't use music to tell you how to feel. The "soundtrack" was just the clinking of silverware and the low hum of other diners.
- The Script is King: Without stunts, the words had to carry 100% of the weight.
- Short Form: Episodes were only about 25 minutes long. This was before "short-form" content was a buzzword. It was perfect for the attention span of a digital audience, even if it was airing on satellite TV.
Critics at the time were split. Some called it "stagy" or "pretentious." Others realized it was a masterclass in acting. It’s the kind of show you watch when you’re tired of explosions and want to remember why humans are so fascinatingly awful to one another.
What Happened After Season One?
The show didn't die after the first loop. It actually became an anthology series. Season two shifted the focus to a police corruption scandal in Chicago. Terry O’Quinn (Locke from Lost) and Stacy Keach joined the fray. It kept the "circle" format but changed the tone from personal drama to something more akin to a noir thriller.
By season three, they were diving into political scandals. But for most purists, the Full Circle 2013 TV series will always be defined by that first season. It was the most "LaBute" the show ever got. It was raw, it was mean, and it was deeply human.
Interestingly, there’s a lot of confusion today because Steven Soderbergh released a miniseries also called Full Circle on Max in 2023. They aren't the same. Soderbergh’s show is a sprawling crime thriller about a botched kidnapping. The 2013 version is a quiet, conversational character study. If you’re looking for the original, make sure you’re checking the credits for the Audience Network or Neil LaBute.
Why You Can't Find It Easily
Finding the Full Circle 2013 TV series today is a bit of a scavenger hunt. Because the Audience Network shut down in 2020, much of its original programming fell into a licensing black hole. It’s not sitting on the front page of Netflix. You usually have to hunt for it on niche VOD services or find the old DVDs.
This "lost media" status is a shame. We talk a lot about the "Peak TV" era, but we often forget the weird experiments that happened on the fringes. This show was a precursor to things like The Affair or Easy, where the structure of the narrative is just as important as the plot itself. It proved that you could build a compelling world without ever leaving a single room.
The Legacy of the 2013 Loop
So, does the Full Circle 2013 TV series still hold up? Absolutely. Honestly, it might play better now than it did then. We’re so used to "prestige drama" being synonymous with "expensive" that seeing something this stripped-down feels like a palate cleanser.
It reminds us that drama is just conflict. And the best conflict usually happens over a dinner table. Whether it’s a secret affair, a buried grudge, or a business deal gone south, the show captures those moments where life changes forever between the main course and dessert.
If you want to understand how modern TV learned to be intimate, you have to look at these experiments. The show wasn't perfect. Sometimes the dialogue felt a little too rehearsed, and some "links" in the chain were stronger than others. But the ambition was undeniable.
How to experience the Full Circle 2013 TV series legacy today:
- Look for the DVD sets: They often include behind-the-scenes looks at how they rehearsed the long, unbroken takes.
- Watch it for the acting: Ignore the plot for a second and just watch how someone like Robin Weigert or Billy Campbell handles a 10-minute monologue. It’s a clinic.
- Compare the seasons: See how the "circle" format works for romance versus how it works for a crime thriller. It’s a lesson in narrative flexibility.
- Check out LaBute’s other work: If the tone of season one grabbed you, his plays like Reasons to be Pretty are the natural next step.
The Full Circle 2013 TV series remains a fascinating footnote in television history. It was a show that asked the audience to pay attention, to remember details from three episodes ago, and to empathize with people who weren't always likable. In a world of infinite scrolling and second-screen viewing, that’s a rare thing. It’s a reminder that sometimes, the best stories aren't the ones that span the globe—they're the ones that never leave the table.