Critics of frames described the idea as being too vague. "In retrospect, it seems those explanations were at just the right level-bands of detail to meet the needs of that time, which is why the essay had the effect it did. If the theory had been any vaguer, it would have been ignored, but if it had been described in more detail, other scientists might have 'tested' it, instead of contributing their own ideas." But frame array idea (frame systems) did not gain popularity. Minsky points out that lots of interesting questions about frames still remain to be answered.
NB: I wonder if this book (SOM) will receive the same kind of evaluation from Minsky after a while -- criticisms that I've heard of the book are very similar to the criticisms of frames that Minsky discusses here.