The series follows Louie, a fictionalized version of C.K., a comedian and newly divorced father raising his two daughters in New York City.
According to Nielsen Media Research, "Part 1" was seen by an estimated 0.71 million household viewers and gained a 0.3 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, "Part 2" was seen by an estimated 0.60 million household viewers and gained a 0.4 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, and "Part 3" was seen by an estimated 0.56 million household viewers and gained a 0.3 ratings share among adults aged 18–49.
Dr. Bigelow considers Louie as a "classic idiot" for believing in love, warning him that he should cherish the heartbreak, as the real "bad part" is forgetting about Amia.
Inspired by a pedestrian's talk about control, Louie returns to his apartment, finding a sleeping Pamela at his couch.
[1][2][3] In its original American broadcast, "Pamela Part 1" was seen by an estimated 0.71 million household viewers with a 0.3 in the 18-49 demographics.
[4] In its original American broadcast, "Pamela Part 2" was seen by an estimated 0.60 million household viewers with a 0.4 in the 18-49 demographics.
[6] In its original American broadcast, "Pamela Part 3" was seen by an estimated 0.56 million household viewers with a 0.3 in the 18-49 demographics.
It's always fun to listen to Bigelow call Louie a "classic idiot" even though he himself would never admit to knowing all of life's answers.
"[10] Jake Cole of Slant Magazine wrote, "Maybe the episode already critiques itself, with Louie's stand-up bit about male supremacy as the status quo a dig at his subsequent behavior.
'"[11] Joe Matar of Den of Geek gave the episode a 3.5 rating out of 5 and wrote, "It's a disturbing sequence that transitions into hilarity.
Pamela doesn't seem too genuinely afraid of Louie once it's over, but one assumes it might also be hard to regard someone the same way you once did after they got rapey with you, no?
I feel like it’s an unfortunate scene ultimately, because I guess I was really hoping for Louie and Pamela to one day have some kind of rosy, wonderful romance explosion resulting in a fun and funny relationship, but I don’t think we’re going to get that on this show.
Matt Fowler of IGN gave the episode a "great" 8.2 out of 10 and wrote in his verdict, "Once the ice caps melted between Louie and Pamela, and she was willing to talk to him as a (mostly) serious and sensual human being, it all felt right.
In fact, there were now two more females in the house she could use to make fun of Louie's mailbox, tree trunk body.
"[14] Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote, "Two weeks ago, the scene where Louie bars Pamela from leaving his apartment, demanding that she kiss him left a lot of viewers (this one included) wondering whether he intended to more directly confront the undertones of rape there, beyond Pamela joking that Louie is too stupid to even rape well.
"[16] Danielle Henderson of Vulture gave the episode a perfect 5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "Oh, so that's what's going on this season — Louie has been leaking his fucked-up frustrations about his ability to love on everyone within arm’s reach.
He takes her to an art gallery filled with various pieces of anti-art, including a bag of shit titled as such, a square canvas painted all-black and called 'Jews,' and a button connected to a speaker that blares a recording of the n-word, but at this point the series has enough scenes of Louie and Pamela proving their compatibility with like-minded sarcasm that for them to make fun of a pretentious art exhibit is low-hanging fruit.
"[18] Joe Matar of Den of Geek gave the episode a 3.5 rating out of 5 and wrote, "'Pamela Part 2' was about being on a date with Pamela and it did a pretty good job of conveying such an experience.
"[19] Paste gave the episode a 7 out of 10 and wrote, "Now we return and, although Pamela is still around, the attempted rape is seemingly forgotten and what we're left with is yet another quirky romantic comedy.
Matt Fowler of IGN gave the episode a "great" 8.5 out of 10 and wrote in his verdict, "Louie capped off what felt, for the most part, like a full-season story.
I'm proud of the big lug for finally making it work with someone, but I also don't necessarily need this to become the new blueprint for the show.
Club gave the episode a "B+" grade and wrote, "After all of the drama and the reminiscing, the catastrophic flooding and the crippling legal debt, Louie pulls back to make a perfectly lovely romantic comedy, one that suggests some of the psychic scars and emotional wounds that informed these episodes have successfully been purged from the system.
"[16] Danielle Henderson of Vulture gave the episode a perfect 5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "In the end, Pamela asks Louie, 'Is it okay to just be here?
"[18] Joe Matar of Den of Geek gave the episode a 4 rating out of 5 and wrote, "All things considered, if this is the end, it doesn't feel like the wrong way to go out.
Regardless of that, what we ultimately have on the screen is a story with a retrograde view on male-female relationships surrounded by the ordinary trappings of a romantic comedy.
These episodes aren't bad in that they’re not fun to watch; it’s that they’re artistically shallow and reliant on the same tropes as any other offering of the genre.