9 to 5 (musical) songs" were "fresh and original," although "Not every tune is a home run, and some lyrics are too plain-spoken. But enough of them stand out." He thought the creative team "has struggled to open the show up for the stage." In conclusion he said, "Is "9 to 5" as hip as TV's "The Office" or as joyously hit-filled as "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying"? No, but if you're looking for a little diversion, it will do the trick from 8 to 10:15." Linda Winer of "Newsday" called it "lavish and harmless entertainment... with a shiny-colored and efficient
The Black Riders and Other Lines years." Amy Lowell, however, found these themes reflective of Crane's own struggle with belief: "He disbelieved it and he hated it, but he could not free himself from it... Crane's soul was heaped with bitterness and this bitterness he flung back at the theory of life which had betrayed him". Elbert Hubbard, who had encouraged Crane's unusual poetry, was impressed by their unconventional structure: "The 'Lines' in "The Black Riders" seem to me wonderful: charged with meaning like a storage battery. But there is a fine defy in the flavour that warns the reader not to take too much or