The Rocky Horror Glee Show "Slant Magazine" called it a "travesty" and criticized "the arms-length treatment of the Frank N. Furter character", and Amy Reiter of the "Los Angeles Times" deemed the episode flawed through its sanitization, despite initially having found the two shows "a particularly promising match". "The Rocky Horror Glee Show" received several favorable comparisons to previous themed episodes; Erica Futterman of "Rolling Stone" deemed it the best yet. Both "Entertainment Weekly" Tim Stack and Jarett Wieselman of the "New York Post" preferred it to the Britney Spears tribute episode "Britney/Brittany"; Wieselman hailed it as a "run-away success" that would satisfy "Rocky Horror"
The Rocky Horror Glee Show Watched by 11.76 million US viewers, "The Rocky Horror Glee Show" was the fifth consecutive episode of "Glee" to become the top-rated program on the night of broadcast in the 18–49 demographic. It received a mixed response from critics, was alternatively deemed the series' best ever themed-episode by "Rolling Stone" Erica Futterman, and was described as the worst hour in the show's history by Todd VanDerWerff of "The A.V. Club". The episode featured cover versions of seven "Rocky Horror" songs, which were released on an extended play album. "" reached number six on the "Billboard" 200. It marked the lowest