in a retrospective review of the album, stephen thomas erlewine from allmusic appreciated the new direction of carey's music, commenting on the increased urban feel of the work. he described the record as "a collection of hit singles surrounded by classy filler" and "while [the songs] are all well-crafted, many of them blend together upon initial listening". however, he noted an increased control in her voice which led him to describe some of the ballads such as 'butterfly' and 'breakdown' as among her best work. he said "butterfly" was one of carey's best records and she was "continuing to improve and refine her music, which makes her a rarity among her '90s peers." rich juzwiak from "slant magazine" awarded the album a score of four and a half out of five stars, calling it "elegant" and praising carey's mature vocals. juzwiak particularly praised "breakdown", which he called one of the album's best tracks. of carey's vocals, he wrote, "the relatively high and thin register that she sings in when not belting (and that's often) could be the most important of butterfly's changes, as it marks the first time that mariah the vocalist seems consistently real. she's utterly soulful." in his consumer guide for "the village voice", critic robert christgau gave "butterfly" a "dud" rating, indicating "a bad record whose details rarely merit further thought".