 In its original broadcast, "Papa's Cabin" received 2.66 million viewers, ranking 95th of 102 in the weekly rankings.This marked an increase in nearly 400,000 viewers from the previous episode, "Mars, Bars", which earned 2.27 million viewers.The episode received mixed reviews from critics, with reviewers generally calling "Papa's Cabin" a solid finale to the Dean O'Dell mystery but one that was less entertaining than previous mystery-ending episodes.