4-D (The X-Files) - Reception

Reception

"4-D" first aired in the United States on December 9, 2001. The episode earned a Nielsen household rating of 5.1, meaning that it was seen by 5.1% of the nation's estimated households and was viewed by 5.38 million households. "4-D" was the 62nd most watched episode of television that aired during the week ending December 9. The episode was later broadcasted in the United Kingdom on BBC One in November 25, 2002.

Critical reception to the episode was mixed to positive. In a season review, Michelle Kung from Entertainment Weekly called the episode "worthy", but noted that it was overshadowed by the show's "ludicrous conspiracy plots". Jessica Morgan from Television Without Pity gave the episode a B rating. She slightly criticized the episode's resolution, writing that it "explained nothing. I mean, how do these other universes work?" Robert Shearman and Lars Pearson, in their book Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to The X-Files, Millennium & The Lone Gunmen, rated the episode four stars out of five. The two noted that, while the episode's premise "doesn't seem as well thought through" as Maeda's past efforts, "4-D" is "worth it". Shearman and Pearson concluded that the episode "earns its stripes by at last restoring to the series a pulse." Furthermore, they praised Gish's performance, noting that she "finally given a showcase that makes Reyes so much more than a New Age fanatic".

Other reviews were more mixed. John Keegan from Critical Myth awarded it a 6 out of 10. He wrote, "Overall, this was an episode with a very interesting concept, and it had the virtue of giving us a solid look at Monica Reyes. Hopefully this will win over some of her more vocal critics. But there were little inconsistencies and conveniences that rubbed me the wrong way, and because of that, I cannot say that it was as good as some of the other episodes thus far." In a comparison of "4-D" and the Fringe episode "There's More Than One of Everything", UGO Networks columnist Alex Zalben wrote that the Fringe episode won "by a landslide, kicked into high gear, while '4-D' was The X-Files winding down."