eps3.6_fredrick+tanya.chk

The episode was written by Adam Penn and directed by series creator Sam Esmail. This was Penn's third writing credit, and Esmail's 22nd directing credit.[1]

In its original American broadcast, "eps3.6_fredrick+tanya.chk" was seen by an estimated 0.545 million household viewers with a 0.2 in the 18-49 demographics. This means that 0.2 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode.[2] This was a 9% decrease in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by an estimated 0.598 million household viewers with a 0.3 in the 18-49 demographics.[3]

"eps3.6_fredrick+tanya.chk" received extremely positive reviews from critics. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 82% approval rating for the episode, based on 12 reviews. The site's consensus states: "A grim hour effectively sets up the back end for season three of Mr. Robot."[4]

Alex McLevy of The A.V. Club gave the episode an "B" grade and wrote, "Whiterose is pledging faith to a different religious cult than capitalism, one where the ticking seconds on a clock are the body and blood of her savior. Time is both the vessel and the goal for everything unfolding. Until Elliot understand the nature of the plot that has so perverted their actions, they’ll be raging against the wrong foe. It's time to hear the good word from Angela about resetting the clock, forever and ever. Amen."[5]

Alan Sepinwall of Uproxx wrote, "After two of the series' most intense episodes ever aired back to back, the season downshifts again for 'Fredrick & Tanya,' a piece-mover episode with a heavy undercurrent of Evil Triumphant, as all the characters come to grip with the totality of Whiterose's victory, even if none of them can quite understand it."[6] Kyle Fowle of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "Mr. Robot, and especially 'Eps3.6_fredrick&tanya.chk,' is playing on that terrifying shift in perspective. This is an episode that, much like last week's, interrogates not only our understanding of what is happening with the Dark Army and Elliot’s revolution, but also the characters' understanding of their role within it all."[7]

Jeremy Egner of The New York Times wrote, "The lesson, as usual on this show, is that control is an illusion, a mirage that lasts precisely as long as the world's true masters allow it to."[8] Vikram Murthi of Vulture gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "'eps3.6_frederick&tanya.chk' stews in the depressive atmosphere created by the Dark Army. It captures brief glimpses of shock and despair, people lashing out or receding inward after experiencing a trauma. When it does tie up loose ends, in the form of two beloved returning characters, it’s given the proper emotional weight. Mr. Robot emphasizes that these are unique, distressing times, and there's no guarantee that the good guys will ever win again."[9]

Alec Bojalad of Den of Geek gave the episode a 4.5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "'Frederick & Tanya' closes out the mini 'Dark Army Triumphant' trilogy that was opened by 'Runtime Error' and then continued in 'Kill Process.' The three episodes represent the bleakest hours of Mr. Robot yet. They're also the show's single best sustained run since it began."[10] Caralynn Lippo of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4.25 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "From the deaths of two formerly-major characters to the ancillary killings of thousands in the Evil Corp terrorists attacks, 'Fredrick + Tanya' is, at the end of the day, an unrelentingly dark hour of the series."[11]