Heather Hundley wrote that the series sends "double standards" about promiscuous men and women. Hundley said that Sam is portrayed as heroic. She further wrote that Sam never suffers from consequences of his promiscuity and has been happily single and childless, while it portrays Carla Tortelli as a "nymphomaniac" who regrets her own promiscuities, which lead to out-of-wedlock pregnancies. She said the series' portrayal of premarital sex is "negative and unhealthy", omitting other dangers of promiscuity such as sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS. Mark LaFlamme of the "Sun Journal" called Sam's relationship with Rebecca Howe "mundane" and his flirtation with her "bawdy".