Charges and Specs

In its original American broadcast, "Charges and Specs" was seen by an estimated 2.59 million household viewers and gained a 1.3/4 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research.[1] This was a slight increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 2.49 million viewers with a 1.2/3 in the 18-49 demographics.[2] This means that 1.3 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 4 percent of all households watching television at that time watched it. With these ratings, Brooklyn Nine-Nine was the most watched show on FOX for the night, beating Glee and New Girl, fourth on its timeslot and seventh for the night, behind Growing Up Fisher, About a Boy, Person of Interest, NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS, and The Voice.

"Charges and Specs" received critical acclaim from critics. Roth Cornet of IGN gave the episode a "great" 8.8 out of 10 and wrote, "Brooklyn Nine-Nine wrapped-up its freshman season with an episode that reflected much of what we've enjoyed about the series all year. The relationships simultaneously went to some interesting places and remained faithful to what had been established previously. The writers have managed to justify the time that will elapse before we see these lovable maniacs next and have left plenty of room for big changes at the start of next season."[3]

Molly Eichel of The A.V. Club gave the episode an "A" grade and wrote, "For a show that's strength was its ensemble from the very beginning, Brooklyn Nine-Nine ended its first season near-perfectly. Every character in its considerably deep arsenal was used exactly how they should have been, with each character getting a chance to show off before the show goes on hiatus for the summer. Not only did each character get the proper hiatus send-off and 'Charges And Specs' have real stakes, but the show also set up the second season on a trajectory for a strong start for what's to come."[4]

Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote, "That's how you do a sitcom season finale, boys and girls. 'Charges and Specs' probably wasn't the funniest episode of the season, but it brought a bunch of character arcs to a head, gave most of the cast members a moment to shine, and ended in a place that could (as Schur notes in our interview) either fuel a whole bunch of stories at the start of next year or be waved away quickly if the writers aren't feeling it."[5]

Andy Crump of Paste gave the episode a 9.8 and wrote, "There's an impressive maturity to how season one of Brooklyn Nine-Nine bids its major and minor players adieu, and maybe more than anything else, that's what will make the wait for season two tough. We know that this series can make us laugh, we know it's capable of producing fully drawn characters; what 'Charges and Specs' demonstrates is just how much the series is objective-driven in addition to being comedy-driven and character-driven. If the next go-round with the people of the Nine-Nine precinct maintains these qualities, then we're going to be in for a stellar ride."[6]