Operation: Broken Feather

The episode followed New Girl as part of Super Bowl XLVIII lead-out programs. In its original American broadcast, "Operation: Broken Feather" was seen by an estimated 15.07 million household viewers and gained a 6.9/18 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research.[1] This was a 231% increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 4.55 million viewers with a 1.9/5 in the 18-49 demographics.[2] This means that 6.9 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 18 percent of all households watching television at that time watched it. As of now, this is the most watched episode of the show. With these ratings, Brooklyn Nine-Nine was the third most watched show on FOX for the night, behind New Girl and Super Bowl XLVIII.

"Operation: Broken Feather" received positive reviews from critics. Roth Cornet of IGN gave the episode a "great" 8.5 out of 10 and wrote, "'Operation: Broken Feather' was a guest star-packed episode, but still managed to put the spotlight on two of the show's central relationships. The appearances from Oswalt, Sandler, and crew made for moments of hilarity, but the rapid-fire inclusions meant that none of the guests truly had the time to shine. This post-Bowl special still managed to deliver on the core strengths of the series, though. What's great about Brooklyn Nine-Nine is that, without putting to fine a point on it, these characters continue to grow in ways that make sense and yet surprise us."[3]

Molly Eichel of The A.V. Club gave the episode a "B" grade and wrote, "This plot was worth it for the journey, with a letdown of an ending: Gina's slow-clap discovery of their ruses. Yet, the ending paraded the defining character traits of each of those at the hands of Holt's meddling ways, establishing these people for the rookies who will hopefully tune in again on Tuesday. 'Operation: Broken Feather' was a solid way of saying, 'Y'all come back now, y'hear?'"[4]

Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote, "And 'Operation: Broken Feather' continued the upswing in the material that Golden Globe Winner Andy Samberg is getting lately. He's still goofy and immature, but in a way that doesn't make you wonder how on earth this guy became and remains a cop. (Jake falling off the ladder while failing to dunk was the funniest non-Holt moment of the episode.) The writers have also done a good job of very slowly and carefully advancing the idea of Jake being attracted to Amy (and vice versa), so that it comes up when relevant and interesting, but isn't shoehorned into every episode and every moment so that no one in the audience could possibly miss the idea that they are destined to wind up together."[5]