Viewers In its original American broadcast, "The North Star" was seen by an estimated 1.90 million household viewers with a 0.7 in the 18-49 demographics. This means that 0.7 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode. This was a 10% decrease in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 2.09 million household viewers with a 0.8 in the 18-49 demographics.
Critical reviews "The North Star" received positive reviews from critics. Matt Fowler of
IGN gave the episode a "good" 7.7 out of 10 and wrote, "'The North Star' was definitely a seasonal lull - a pause in the action. But an ill-timed one since I still feel like this season needs to keep the momentum going. With no strong antagonist to oil the engine, things need to move along with more assuredness than in previous seasons. In fact, a part of me feels like the biggest moments of this season will come right at the end, possibly with even some sort of cliffhanger like Nucky getting arrested." Genevieve Valentine of
The A.V. Club gave the episode a "B+" grade and wrote, "This week moves a lot of pieces forward on the board; maybe because of this, it misses some of the tight interconnectedness that helped give last week its punch. But it's a study in what gets shown and what's obscured, both from the characters and from us."
Alan Sepinwall of
HitFix wrote, "'The North Star' not only put Nucky back at the forefront, but did so while exercising the series' trademark patience and artistry. What's so impressive about this episode, and the best hours of the show, is how they let scenes and moments linger, whether it's Chalky watching Daughter Maitland sing, or the dying Sagorsky telling Richard his terrible war story from the Philippines, or Lansky and Luciano having their falling-out because of Lucky's paranoia about doing a deal with Joe Masseria's cousin." Seth Colter Walls of
Vulture gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "At this point, the
Boardwalk Empire universe is large enough that I'd be happy to watch movie-length episodes, just so more of the characters could have richer, longer scenes that engage all the things we already know about them. But for now we can hope that, by the time all the story arcs converge at season's end, it won't feel too forced." Rodrigo Perez of
IndieWire wrote, "Thematically, we're following a 'North Star' considering guiding lights reunite several estranged members of the
Boardwalk Empire cast, even if it's a bit of a mid-season episode lull. Perhaps the writers had to give audiences a reprieve after the sad suicide of Eddie Kessler last episode." Chris O'Hara of
TV Fanatic gave the episode a perfect 5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "It was good to see Margaret, but she was smart not to divulge too much information, especially if Joe Masseria in New York looks to hurt Nucky at some point. Richard has some catching up to do, but his return was also nice to see. Adding some levity to an emotion filled episode was the always jocular Mickey Doyle." Michael Noble of
Den of Geek wrote, "As I have mentioned before,
Boardwalk Empire is a rich enough canvas that it can handle character absences, even protracted ones, without losing pace or touch. In the case of Margaret, it is particularly effective, deliberate even, as she, paradoxically, is present in her absence."
Paste gave the episode a 7 out of 10 rating and wrote, "It wasn't enough to fully imbue these parts of the episode with life, but it was enough to keep them from taking away too much of its momentum. We're halfway through the season, but at least it finally feels like it's starting to take us somewhere interesting." == References ==