While flying over Canada, their plane crashes deep in the wilderness, and the surviving team members are left stranded for nineteen months.
According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 0.226 million household viewers and gained a 0.03 ratings share among adults aged 18–49.
Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) and Travis (Kevin Alves) have been leaving the cabin every day to find food or traces of Javi, but they have not found anything.
While they maintain everything is in order, Misty is disturbed when she finds a Reddit thread, where a person claims to have access to Adam's credit cards and believes a woman might be involved.
The site's consensus reads: "While Yellowjackets is still picking up the pieces of its first finale's cliffhangers, more focus on the mysterious Lottie and grisly hints at the barbarism to come give this premiere an immediate pulse.
Club gave the episode an "A–" and wrote, "Yellowjackets doesn't miss a step in planting the audience right back in that claustrophobic yet all-too-expansive world.
"[5] Erin Qualey of Vulture gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "Well, friends, we have our first official act of cannibalism.
The second season of Yellowjackets wastes no time in getting to one of the core questions that loomed large over the first ten episodes: When will these girls start eating one another?
"[6] Proma Khosla of IndieWire gave the episode a "B–" and wrote, "Enough time passes between scenes that a viewer could even forget there's a human ear in Shauna's pocket, until she takes it out to stare at while pacing.
"[7] Bernard Boo of Den of Geek gave the episode a 4.5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "Yellowjackets looks to be in top form as it kicks off its second season, with the main plot lines maturing in fascinating ways.
"[8] Erik Kain of Forbes wrote, "awkward and jarring introduction of new teen survivors to the crash timeline aside, this was overall a really good episode that pushes us further down the path of darkness and despair and mystery and friendship and betrayal and teenage madness and middle-age sadness that makes Yellowjackets so damn special.
"[9] Esquire wrote, "Is this the story of a bunch of kids who drive themselves a little crazy in their formative years and suffer the psychological repercussions long into adulthood?
"[10] Cade Taylor of Telltale TV gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "“Friends, Romans, Countrymen” may only be the premiere outing of the second season, but it's enough to foreshadow impending Oscar-worthy performances from the cast.
"[11] Esther Zuckerman of The New York Times wrote, "Yellowjackets loves to remind us that there's a transactional nature to its female solidarity — it's about survival more than support.