Lovely sing-along chorus initially will remind many of past glories, but single ultimately will provide a refreshing cool breeze to any of numerous radio formats it graces.
"[1] Troy J. Augusto from Cash Box named it Pick of the Week, declaring it as "a lushly-arranged, slowly-paced ballad", "full of the same charming vocal harmonies and natural soul that gives the group its universal pop appeal.
Ready to explode at urban, A/C and Top 40, this cut leads a parade of future hit singles that should keep the Boyz in chart heaven all through the night and all through the year.
[2] Pan-European magazine Music & Media commented, "Silkier then the First Lady's nightgown, the first single off the "mommy" Boyz's upcoming album II further secures their position as the masters of the close harmony ballad.
He wrote, "Returning after more than a year, Boyz II Men get back into the "End of the Road" groove with a silky, powerful ballad penned by Babyface.
"[7] Mark Sutherland from Smash Hits gave it three out of five, saying, "Weeell, in their favour are the facts that they are still the meanest warblers in pop and that soul doesn't come much more silky or supersmooth than this.
Boyz II Men would later break their own record in 1996 with "One Sweet Day", a collaboration with Mariah Carey, which remained at number one on the Hot 100 for 16 weeks beginning in December 1995.
On the 2020 Hulu series High Fidelity episode "Track 2", actor Thomas Doherty sings a cover of the song in-character as Liam Shawcross, a musician who protagonist Rob Brooks (Zoë Kravitz) later has a one-night-stand with.
In the 2012 film Pitch Perfect, an a cappella version of two lines of the song is included in a medley performed by the Barden Bellas as part of the Riff-Off.
In season 1, episode 6, "The Birthday Girl" of That 90's Show in 2023, Bob Pinciotti (Don Stark) sings the song to his granddaughter Leia Forman (Callie Haverda).
Boyz II Men created a parody of the song called "I'll Make Love to You (But We Don't Have To)" on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in 2023.