Paula Vitaris from "Cinefantastique" gave the episode four stars out of four and called it "one of those rare episodes where everything comes together—funny, bizarre, absurd, ironies, and sad." She applauded Boyle's acting, noting that he "gives a performance that simply takes over the TV screen", and argued that "only actors as strong as Duchovny and Anderson, with their blissfully deadpan delivery, could withstand such a titanic presence, but withstand it they do." "Entertainment Weekly" gave the episode a rare "A+", writing, "Boyle gets lots of help from another superlative, laugh-a-minute script nicely captures one of the overarching themes of the show: fate and man's isolation." Reviewer Zack Handlen of "The A.V. Club" gave the episode an "A" and wrote positively of the ending, writing that, "for an episode that ends with a likable character killing himself, 'Bruckman' isn't what I'd call a downer." He called the entry his "favorite episode of "The X-Files" because it's funny, suspenseful, does well by Scully and Mulder, and creates some indelible characters."