"Hide and Seek" gained immense popularity after being featured during the climax of the season two finale of the "The O.C.". After director Norman Buckley was given a copy of "Speak for Yourself" by music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas, Buckley suggested to creator Josh Schwartz that he listen to the album early on in the season. Schwartz then decided that "Hide and Seek" would be used in the season finale. The song was originally written to be played during the funeral scene of Caleb Nichol. It was eventually decided that the song would instead be used in the climax of the episode, wherein Marissa Cooper shoots Trey Atwood, during an altercation between Atwood and his brother, Ryan Atwood. The use of the song in the episode received praise from critics: "Vulture"'s Lindsey Weber called it "the most obviously important" musical moment on the show, while Celina Torrijos of Much stated, "Most fans of the show...will cite the scene where Marissa shoots Trey to Imogen Heap’s "Hide And Seek" as the most memorable music moment of the series." Ilana Kaplan of "Nylon" also included it on her list of the most memorable music moments from the show, calling it "one of the most defining songs of "The O.C."," and Angela Law of "Popsugar" included it on her list of the best songs used in the show. Grant Ridner of "Vox" described the scene as "infamous" due to its use of the song. Lindsay Zoladz of "The Ringer" called it "arguably the most absurd and melodramatic shooting scene in the history of televisual media" and "stupid and ridiculous and somehow (largely due to the song) genuinely, deeply moving"; "Metro"s Emma Kelly wrote that it was "the most memorable track from a series known for its music".