How Sitcoms Did This Week In The Ratings; Week 4 Numbers Thus Far

Saturday, October 15, 2005

How Sitcoms Did This Week In The Ratings; Week 4 Numbers Thus Far

Week four saw some ups and some downs for the current sitcoms on the air. I will break it down once again:

Monday Sitcoms

The King of Queens (CBS) - Up from last week's 10.31 to 10.5 million viewers this week. The move back to Mondays has helped this sitcom.
How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - Last week we saw this sitcom build on its lead-in, this week it did not. Down to 9.84 million viewers this week. CBS gave it a full season order, so expect it to stick around.
Two and a Half Men (CBS) -Up from last week's 4.8/11 A18-49 rating to a 5.0/12, but still not Raymond-like.
Out of Practice (CBS) - Still lost three million viewers from its lead-in, but more viewers tuned in this week with 12.26 million from last week's 11.73. CBS ordered three extra scripts, but still not the back nine.
One on One (UPN), All of Us (UPN), Girlfriends (UPN), Half and Half (UPN) - I put all four together, because all four are consistent each week. 3.5 to 4 million viewers for each.

Tuesday Sitcoms

According to Jim (ABC) - Down to 7.84 million from last week's 8.03 million, with even that it is doing better than what My Wife & Kids did in early 2005.
Rodney (ABC) - After bad season premiere numbers. Rodney built on Jim with 7.98 million viewers, up from the season premiere's 7.49 million. Don't count Rodney out just yet!
My Name is Earl (NBC) - Highest rated sitcom for 18-49 again. Though down from last week's 6.0/15 in that measure to a 5.5/13 this week. 12.62 million total viewers tuned in, good for second place behind Commander in Chief.
The Office (NBC) - Lowest rated sitcom on Tuesday this week. NBC has to get a better lead-out.

Wednesday Sitcoms

George Lopez (ABC) - After ABC saw George score 9.13 for its one-hour season premiere, I knew that this hour would be ABC's until probably January, when that American Idol non-sense comes in for FOX. George scored 8.75 million this week.
Still Standing (CBS) - Just 6.98 million tuned in last week. This week it improved, but not as much as they would want to. 7.48 tuned in.
Yes, Dear (CBS) - Only 6.79 million tuned in last week, but this week it grew almost two million viewers with 8.76 million.
Freddie (ABC) - Impressive debut, thanks to the Lost halo-effect. 9.38 million tuned in and built on George in that and A18-49 with a 4.2/11.

Thursday Sitcoms

Joey (NBC) - 5.2/9 in households this week, slightly up from last week's 5.0/8, but this is not what NBC had hoped.
Will & Grace (NBC) - Built on lead-in by a lot. NBC should try this at 8 p.m. and move Joey to Tuesdays at 9:30 and then can it in January.
Everybody Hates Chris (UPN) - 6.33 million viewers tuned in this week. Not too bad, only off about one million from Joey.
Love, Inc. (UPN), Eve (UPN), Cuts (UPN) - UPN should rename 8:30-10pm to A.C. (After Chris). Freefall from 3.9 million at 8:30 to 2.88 by the end of the night.

Friday Sitcoms

What I Like About You (The WB), Twins (The WB) - WB doesn't expect much but it is constantly getting below a 2 rating in this hour, though Twins is building on its lead-in. Like should be canned soon.
Reba (The WB) - This might be the last season, thanks to WWE Smackdown.
Living with Fran (The WB) - Not too good, same level as 8-9 p.m.
Hope & Faith (ABC) - Last week was terrible, this week it did a bit better with a 4.3 rating.
Hot Properties (ABC) - Down from last week's premiere and this week did not build on its lead-in. This is a good show everyone--watch it!

Summing it up, this week's winners: My Name is Earl, George Lopez, Yes Dear, Freddie, The King of Queens, Two and a Half Men were the impressive sitcoms this week. Of note, Yes Dear went from terrible last week to a winner this week. Everything else was OK (such as Rodney, Out of Practice) or just plain old terrible (such as The Office, WB Friday, UPN Thursday).

Week 4 numbers (first four nights):
Households: CBS: 9.8/15.1; FOX: 7.8/12.3; ABC: 7.2/11.2; NBC: 7.2/11.1; The WB: 2.8/4.3; UPN: 2.3/3.6
Total Viewers: CBS: 15.35 million; FOX: 11.6 million; ABC: 11.09 million; NBC: 10.69 million; The WB: 4.38 million; UPN: 3.6 million.
Adults 18-49: CBS: 5.1/13.0; ABC: 4.2/10.7; NBC: 4.1/10.4; FOX: 3.8/10.1; The WB: 1.8/4.7; UPN: 1.6/4.1.

Analysis: Thanks to MLB's League Championship Series, FOX made a slight dent to everyone's ratings. But still this is nothing like last year when the Yankees and Red Sox were involved. Even with baseball, expect FOX to finish 3rd in viewers and third or even fourth in 18-49 for the week. CBS continues to do well, but needs help on Wednesdays at 8 and the Monday 8:30-10 comedies could be better. ABC has improved Tuesdays by a lot this year but Thursdays is still a problem. Primetime Live has taken a big hit. If I were ABC, I'd play a drama in there, since NBC's ER is quickly fading. NBC still has the most problems out of the big three. Earl is a good start but they need a better companion with it at 9:30, so they can move that show to 9pm soon and Earl to Thursdays so AfterFriends errr Joey, could be put out of its misery. Look for CBS to win in total viewers again and ABC making a run (thanks to Sunday) in the key demos (A18-49, A18-34), but A25-54 will be a close race between CBS and ABC.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Wednesday, December 8

The Conners - "Sober Sex, Plastic Silverware, and Losing My Religion" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Part of Becky’s recovery program mandates she make amends with people she has lied to over the years, leading her to meet up again with former high school friend Mikey to apologize for lying to him about her living a successful life. Meanwhile, Darlene visits with Pastor Phil (Jason Alexander), and Louise continues planning her wedding.

Home Economics - "Bottle Service, $800 Plus Tip (25% Suggested)" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
The family is in for a wild night out when they accompany Connor to a club to help him jumpstart his dating life. When Tom steps up as Connor’s wingman, things don’t exactly go as planned.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "The Gang Buys a Roller Rink" (FXX, 10:00PM ET/PT)
In the past, an innocent Dennis learns the horrifying details of Frank's business; a truly sweet Dee is excited to head off for Hollywood while Charlie and Mac's jobs at the roller rink are in jeopardy.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - " The Gang Replaces Dee With a Monkey" (FXX, 10:30PM ET/PT)
When the Gang suspects Dee is menopausal, they scramble to find a new employee for Paddy's Pub; Dee decides to put her acting career on hold in order to mentor young actors.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 6)

Wednesday, December 8

Rob McElhenney (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia/Mythic Quest) - Watch Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Ariana DeBose (Schmigadoon!) - Ariana appears on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Kristin Chenoweth (Schmigadoon!/Trial & Error/Kristin) - Kristin is a guest on Watch What Happens: Live at 3:30am on Bravo. She chats about her new album Happiness is…Christmas! on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Kimberly Williams-Paisley (According to Jim) and Ashley Williams (The Jim Gaffigan Show/Good Morning, Miami) - Kimberly and Ashley talk about Hallmark's Sister Swap on NBC's Today in the 9am hour and on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
Cynthia Nixon (And Just Like That.../Sex and the City) - Cynthia talks about And Just Like That... on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am and on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Heather Graham (Californication/Emily's Reasons Why Not/Scrubs) - Heather talks about her role in the film The Last Son on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Yvonne Orji (Insecure) - Yvonne is a guest on The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Eric André (Man Seeking Woman/2 Broke Girls/Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23) - Eric will be on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Vanessa Lachey (Truth Be Told/Dads) - Vanessa talks about living the island life with her kids and husband, Nick Lachey, her new role in NCIS: Hawai‘i and her new book on Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
Michael J. Fox (Family Ties/Spin City/The Michael J. Fox Show) - Michael talks about No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality on CBS This Morning sometime between 7-9am.
Patricia Heaton (Carol's Second Act/The Middle/Back to You/Everybody Loves Raymond) - Patricia shares the moment that made her re-think her relationship with drinking on The Dr. Oz Show, so check your local listings.
Zachary Levi (Less Than Perfect/Telenovela) - Zachary talks about American Underdog on ABC's Good Morning America somtime between 7-9am.
Kal Penn (Sunnyside/Deadbeat/We Are Men) - Kal talks about Hot Mess Holiday on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.