Viewers The episode was viewed by 4.04 million people, earning a 1.1/4 in the 18-49 rating demographics on the
Nielson ratings scale, ranking third on its timeslot and ninth for the night in the 18-49 demographics, behind
Hawaii Five-0,
Blue Bloods,
Dr. Ken,
The Amazing Race,
Last Man Standing,
Shark Tank,
20/20, and the third game of the
2015 World Series. This was a 15% decrease in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 4.74 million viewers with a 1.1/4 and it's also a massive 24% decrease from the previous season premiere, which was watched by 5.28 million viewers with a 1.4/5 in the 18-49 demographics. This means that 1.1 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 4 percent of all households watching television at that time watched it. With DVR factoring in, the episode was watched by 6.36 million viewers and had a 1.9 ratings share in the 18-49 demographics.
Critical reviews "The Grimm Identity" received positive reviews. Les Chappell from
The A.V. Club gave the episode a "B+" rating and wrote, "On that front,
Grimm is off to a good start for season five. Last season
Grimm embarked on one of its most ambitious narrative arcs ever by pushing Juliette down the dark path of evil Hexenbiest, and it doubled down on that direction in the season finale when Trubel shot her dead and she died in Nick's arms. This was a huge development for
Grimm — the first main character killed off in its run — and the season premiere doesn't shy away from the ramifications of that death. It also wisely uses that death as the springboard for the rest of the season, with the implication things aren't going to get better anytime soon and a status quo feeling is a long way away." Kathleen Wiedel from
TV Fanatic, gave a 4.0-star rating out of 5, stating: "Hail, and welcome back, fellow Grimmsters! I'm pleased and excited to be writing the reviews of
Grimm again this season.
Grimm Season 4 suffered from what many (myself included) felt were missed opportunities, especially with Juliette's plot line. Can
Grimm Season 5 do better?" Liz Prugh from
EW wrote, "We pick up right where we left off in last season's finale, with a desperate Nick holding his beautiful, monstrous ex-love's dead body in his arms. Trubel is standing above the sad scene, knowing that she had no other choice. Juliette would have killed Nick, and would Nick really have tried to stop her by killing her? Would he do what was necessary?" MaryAnn Sleasman from
TV.com, wrote, "
Grimm has always struck me as an uneven series in terms of pace and quality. There are so few mediocre episodes, in my opinion. I either love an episode or find myself rethinking my Friday night priorities. That's both the blessing and the curse of serialized television. It's also a disappointment when your high hopes are dashed. After the high
Grimm ended fourth season on, I was SO. FREAKING. READY for Season 5. Maybe I was too ready. Maybe I needed to dial it back a bit. 'The Grimm Identity' wasn't what I was hoping for or even expecting, but it's just the first episode in a long, long season.
Grimm built itself a strong foundation over the years and one unfortunate episode is nothing to panic about." Christine Horton of
Den of Geek wrote, "And so begins another season of fun and games for our favourite folklore-inspired series." ==References==