The Good Shepherd (Grimm)

The episode was viewed by 5.32 million people, earning a 1.6/4 in the 18-49 rating demographics on the Nielson ratings scale.[1] This was a 2% decrease in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 4.62 million viewers with a 1.5/4.[2] This means that 1.6 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 8.24 million viewers with a 2.9 ratings share in the 18-49 demographics.[3]

"The Good Shepherd" received mixed reviews. The A.V. Club's Kevin McFarland gave the episode a "C" grade and wrote, "Tonight's epigraph comes from 'The Wolf In Sheep's Clothing' (of somewhat disputed Aesop/biblical origin), which tipped the episode's hand right at the start. So far the best episodes of Grimm have found a way to take a well-known folk tale — or the occasional obscure story — and give it a modern twist to fit in a crime procedural context. Not so with 'The Good Shepherd,' which is mostly a literal take on that story, depicting a Blutbad reverend presiding over a congregation of sheep Wesen (at one point Monroe says the name and the plural form, but I honestly have no clue how to spell it). It's all a bit too clever from the get-go, with the whole flock of sheep as the reverend's flock, the herd mentality, et al."[4]

Emily Rome of EW wrote, "Let it be known that Grimm has a thing or two to teach us about herd mentality, how con men talk when pretending to be religious men and just how many bake sales you need to replace stolen funds. I was relieved Rev. Calvin's megachurch vibe turned out to be an act because it just felt so fake. I know there are real fire-and-brimstone guys out there, but no men of the cloth I know talk like that."[5]

Nick McHatton from TV Fanatic, gave a 4.0 star rating out of 5, stating: "After a few weeks off from an early start, Grimm settled back into its Friday night slot with 'The Good Shepherd.' Sadly for Grimm, however, tonight tried telling a mostly procedural story rather than a serial one, and the show stumbled a bit because of it. However, aside from said stumble, there were a few moments that were more than worth the price of admission."[6]

Josie Campbell from TV.com wrote, "Characters and themes aside, the show unfortunately missed a cool opportunity to flesh out the Wesen belief system, or at least examine religion from the monsters' point of view. What does Leviathan think of the Old Testament? Do snake-Wesen get upset at their portrayal in the Garden of Eden? Are animal-headed Pagan gods Wesen too? Instead Grimm trotted out a vague Christian group for the sheeple to belong to and left potentially juicier aspects out."[7]