David Sims of "The A.V. Club" was "torn" in his review: ""The Betrayal"—which is played backward (down to cute meta jokes like having the Castle Rock logo be the first thing on screen)—is very much about its gimmick, and it wrings a lot of fun jokes from it, like Kramer's gigantic lollipop going from eaten to full, or Jerry saying 'bless you' to Elaine and a cut to 'three seconds earlier,' when she sneezes. The best meta joke of all comes right near the end, when we flash to two years prior and see a guest appearance by Susan, who implants the irritating catchphrase 'You can stuff your sorries in a sack, mister!' into George's head... Once you know the plot, everything feels a little less exciting... Still, one of "Seinfeld"'s great strengths is its story craft, and "The Betrayal" is the ultimate example of that, since it's all about the craft." Cinematic Happenings Under Development called the episode "gimmicky" in a review of the Season 9 DVD: "We're also given the ability to watch "The Betrayal" in reverse, which turns it from a gimmick-based farce into a nearly likeable episode."