Crabs in a Barrel

In April 2018, FX announced that the eleventh episode of the season would be titled "Crabs in a Barrel" and that it would be written by executive producer Stephen Glover, and directed by executive producer Hiro Murai. This was Stephen Glover's eighth writing credit, and Murai's fourteenth directing credit.[1]

The episode was watched by 0.553 million viewers, earning a 0.3 in the 18-49 rating demographics on the Nielson ratings scale. This means that 0.3 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode.[2] This was a 21% decrease from the previous episode, which was watched by 0.694 million viewers with a 0.4 in the 18-49 demographics.[3]

"Crabs in a Barrel" received critical acclaim. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 100% approval rating for the episode, based on 24 reviews, with an average rating of 9.3/10. The site's consensus states: "'Crabs in a Barrel' ends Atlanta's sophomore outing on a bittersweet high note that blends the surreal humor and thoughtful social commentary the series has become known for -- and concludes the Robbin' Season arc with big changes, questions resolved, and brilliantly subverted expectations."[4]

Joshua Alston of The A.V. Club gave the episode an "A-" and wrote, "'Crabs' follows an even more direct path than season one's 'The Jacket', which mostly focused on its jarring episodic story before concluding with a thematically climactic montage. The biggest difference between the two Atlanta finales lies in their disparate tones. 'The Jacket', despite its police-involved shooting and the specter of death looming over Alfred, ended on a celebratory, triumph note. Meanwhile, 'Crabs' is most of a victory lap, but it feels like a funeral."[5] Hanh Nguyen of IndieWire gave the episode an "A" and wrote, "Atlanta closed its finale with a bang, but not the literal one that many viewers and been braced for since the season began with a barrage of gunfire, a vibe that then continued with ongoing depictions of danger and violence."[6]

Alan Sepinwall of Uproxx wrote, "This finale doesn't feel like a story that anyone's finished telling yet. I hope more comes soon, and I can't wait to see whatever crazy, sad, funny thing it might be."[7] Matt Miller of Esquire wrote, "So goes the cycle of Atlanta: Robbin' Season: You're only getting ahead at someone else's expense, because that's the way things work in America."[8] Bryan Washington of Vulture gave the episode a perfect 5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "Robbin Season's low points were higher highs than those of its counterparts. Its singular exchanges surpassed other series' entire plotlines, with casual gestures stronger than their whole narrative arcs. It was aggressively better. And it would be premature to say when it will happen again, but Atlanta's existing has ensured that it will happen again."[9]

Emily St. James of Vox wrote, "The second season of Atlanta might be the best TV I see all year. It’s hard to imagine what would top it."[10] Dan Jackson of Thrillist wrote, "It's the work of a team of writers, actors, and directors who have successfully tuned out the decoders of the world. Hopefully as Glover's star continues to rise, Atlanta will retain that closed-off quality. Lando is free to explore a galaxy far, far away, but Atlanta has created a rich universe right here on Earth."[11] Sonia Saraiya of Vanity Fair wrote, "The seductive, off-kilter, brutally honest brainchild of Donald Glover delivers a finale that is purposefully hard to live with."[12]

Leigh-Anne Jackson of The New York Times wrote, "The writer, Stephen Glover, eschewed the surrealism and shock tactics that have shaped this season and replaced them with thoughtful tête-à-têtes and straight talk."[13] Jacob Oller of Paste gave the episode a 8 out of 10 rating and wrote, "with 'Crabs in a Barrel', Glover finds a throughline in his disparate interests and reckons with the systems he faced to succeed in each."[14] Alison Herman of The Ringer wrote, "We haven't been trained to expect answers from Atlanta, yet this finale delivers them regardless. With 'Crabs in a Barrel', the most surprising show on television gave us one more burst of novelty: closure."[15]