Robert Dougherty, author of "Lost Episode Guide for Others: An Unofficial Anthology", said that the episode is "important in establishing Kate's past life", but that "it isn't that important in the grand scheme of the "Lost" design." Ryan Mcgee of Zap2it called the episode a "slight letdown in comparison to the pilot episode", but arguing that "most episodes fall short of the pilot's brilliance" and that the use of flashbacks "demonstrated ["Lost"] would be a character-based drama, a move that solidified its audience and let viewers gradually know the many people that crash landed on the Island." Dan Kawa of Television Without Pity gave the episode a C+.