Ratings The episode was watched by 4.22 million American viewers, and received an 18-49 rating/share of 1.4/4.
Critical reception The episode received mixed reviews from critics. Rae Votta of
Billboard gave the episode a positive review, saying "An episode with a title like 'The End of Twerk' sounds like a
Glee recipe for disaster, but by all miracles this week skirted the line of absurd, touching, and managed to advance multiple character narratives. The last is especially a feat in the world of
Glee, and if the audience has to endure a little
booty shaking and inappropriate Mr. Schue failures to get there, then so be it." Derek Chavis of
The Baltimore Sun also gave the episode a positive review, despite expecting to dislike it, saying "
Glee nailed tonight for the first time all season and made me feel like I was watching the show I've loved for the last four years." Laura Frances of
Screen Crave gave the episode an 8.5 out of 10, saying "Even if twerking is an awful dance, it's always entertaining to watch people 'shake it', especially when they don't know how to (which was pretty much the case in this episode). For the most part, 'The End Of Twerk' was another success for
Glees fifth season. New storylines were introduced like Unique's bully problem, and Marley and Jake's breakup. Plus, we like that Mr. Schue is playing on Sue's level. He was on fire last night." Miranda Wicker of
TV Fanatic gave the episode a 3 out of 5, signaling mixed to positive reviews, saying the episode "was actually not terrible despite the ridiculous devotion to the dance move currently winning awards for the dumbest name ever. Will Schuester actually made me think twerking is maybe not so bad... and then I started to wonder if perhaps I'm living in some sort of parallel universe." Lauren Hoffman of
Vulture gave the episode a 2 out of 5, signaling more negative reviews, saying What exactly was the point of last night's episode? Why revisit Miley and twerking and the inarguably rape-y implications of 'Blurred Lines'? Because it's certainly not like viewers at home have been champing at the bit to see how, exactly,
Glee inserts itself into that particular drama. The debate around twerking started months ago and, in my estimation, ended soon after. How in the world does
Glee stand to benefit from reigniting that debate? It seems reasonable to conclude that the entire point of last night’s episode was that viewers should re-engage and get up in arms about 'Blurred Lines', but I'm personally exhausted when it comes to that particular battle and I'm willing to bet that the majority of
Glees viewers are, too. Hoffman did comment positively on Rachel and Kurt's subplot, saying "What's intriguing is Rachel's insistence to Kurt that rebellion is, in some way, desirable and important.
Glee has examined rebellion in the past, but never as a virtue that the New Directions members should strive for." Esther Gim of
BuddyTV gave the episode a negative review, saying "This is one of the most unoriginal storylines in the history of the show, like someone zapped all the writers of their creative juices. But hooray, there is an end in sight, since the episode is titled 'End of Twerk' after all." ==References==