[11] Tom Ewing of The Guardian viewed that the mood created for the album "captures the dreamy, shimmering lustfulness of summer", writing that its songs "are built around layers of cascading, pulsing synth melodies, with the overall feeling one of tremulous romantic urgency; even an outright bedroom workout like 'Panties to the Side' slips into wistful lushness".

[12] The Guardian's Michael Cragg viewed that its "mid-paced songs [...] take the icky sex ballad template perfected by R. Kelly and wraps it in sparse, forward-thinking productions", writing that they "ride crisp, finger-snapping beats augmented by huge synth rushes, while moments of experimentation flutter around the periphery".

Most importantly, though, through these devices, Nash reveals more and more of the contradictions and complexities at the core of his work: the instability generated by his obsessive examination of traditional R&B tropes – love, sex, money – from every possible angle; the frictions of his own fractured self-perception.

[13] Anupa Mistry of Urb noted The-Dream's "neutralizing alpha male steez" and commented that "the most carnal, but still so everyday, type of passion informs" the album's songs.

[15] According to Alex Macpherson, The-Dream, "in both his lyrics and instrumentation [...] moves back and forth between flippancy and heart-swelling sincerity as if they were one and the same; he plays the role of the unfaithful boyfriend convincingly, largely, it seems, because he knows that he'll find forgiveness soon enough".

[34] Reviewing in June 2010, Los Angeles Times critic Jeff Weiss said The-Dream "manages to put a fresher spin on tired tropes".

[38] Rob Harvilla from The Village Voice credited him for "taking objectively terrible ideas—getting emotionally involved with this guy, for example, given his penchant for 'Patrónin'' and general sexual profligacy—and making them seem like brilliant ideas".

[41] The National's Alex Macpherson felt that he has an "apparent inability to separate the sublime from the ridiculous" and his competence as a musician: "He covers all bases, and erodes the differences between them".

[13] AllMusic's Andy Kellman felt that the album's flaws are transcended by "his way with a melody, an outrageous line, and an exquisitely adroit rhythm, all components in his immense crazy-quilt song cycle".

Like that sprawling double album, Love King's journey through the secret life of ass dares to meander, to free associate between tracks, to show just how a little can go a long way.

Ben Ratliff of The New York Times applauded The-Dream's "modern" musical approach and "small-scale epiphanies" in the lyrics, but felt that the album "doesn't transcend its highest individual moments".

[43] Rolling Stone writer Christian Hoard described it as "the soul-music equivalent of Dream's beloved Patrón: Not exactly eccentric, but finely crafted and intoxicating".

[39] Uncut magazine wrote that The-Dream's "relentless sex-pestering ultimately becomes tiresome but his music can often be magnificent: an aural pavlova of sugar-spun synths and ambrosial harmonies.

"[44] MSN Music's Robert Christgau gave the album a two-star honorable mention,[45] indicating a "likable effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well enjoy.