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Week 35 First Four Day Ratings; How the Sitcoms Did

WWeek 35 numbers (first four nights, Mon-Thu):

Households: FOX: 9.6/14.8; CBS 9.0/14.0; NBC: 8.0/12.5; ABC: 6.6/10.4; UPN: 1.8/2.7; The WB 1.5/2.3.
Total Viewers: FOX: 15.82 million; CBS: 14.14 million; NBC: 12.27 million; ABC: 10.22 million; UPN: 2.59 million; The WB: 2.2 million.
Adults 18-49: FOX 6.4/16.2; NBC: 4.6/11.8; CBS: 4.5/11.3; ABC: 3.9/10.0; UPN: 1.2/3.0; The WB: 0.9/2.3.

Analysis: The last full week of the season was this past week. We have 4 more nights left coutning tonight. Then it will be rerun season and summer programming. We still have finales like Desperate Housewives, Alias, Lost, American Idol, and 24 to look forward to So it should be a fun finish. President Bush's speech on Monday night messed up everything, especially for CBS. The CBS comedies were down, especially Two and a Half Men which didn't start until around 9:20. 9 p.m was a heavy battle, but ABC's special airing of Grey's Anatomy won big, followed by Deal or No Deal and 24. Prison Break on Fox at 8:20 p.m. starting the night with a second place finish in A18-49 and total viewers. Monday's usual highest rated show, CSI: Miami, scored 17.5 million viewers, losing to Grey's Anatomy in the 10 p.m. hour. ABC's Grey's Anatomy season finale did an outstanding 22.5 million from 9 to 11, and an impressive 9.9 A19-49 rating. Tuesday was all Fox with American Idol & House, with 28.33 and 22.38 million viewers. House was down from last week's ratings by nearly 2 million viewers. CBS's dramas did well against them with NCIS and The Unit both scoring well but everything else was anemic, like usual. A special The Unit episode at 10 p.m. was neck-and-beck with powerhouse Law & Order: SVU at 10 p.m.--but this time it won 13.08 to 12.97 million (HH rating SVU won 8.9 to 8.2). It was a different story though in A18-49, with SVU doing a 5.2 to The Unit's 4.3. Wednesday it was again Fox, as Idol was too much for everyone with 27.67 million in the 9 p.m. half hour, though down a bit last week. Lost on ABC was down almost 2 million from last week's 16.35 million to this week's 14.67 million opposite the AI juggernaut. Deal or No Deal scored 13.99 million viewers for NBC to start the night, down about 1.5 million from last week. Criminal Minds was not on tonight, so The Amazing Race had its two-hour finale from 8 to 10 and scored less than 9 million, so maybe that is why CSI: NY lost to Law & Order--13.59 to 13.23 million. Thursday it was an old time battle between CBS and NBC. CBS's CSI encore won in total viewers and Will & Grace Clip Show won in adults 18-49 at 8 p.m. That '70s Show ended its run at 8:30 p.m. with 10.02 million. CBS won the 9 and 10 p.m. hours with new episodes of CSI and Without a Trace scoring 25.4 and 19.81 million, but NBC's Will & Grace finale did better than thought with 18.43 million and won the 9 p.m. hour with a 8.4 A18-49 rating to CSI's 8.3. ER must have been boosted by Grace, as it did 16.56 million and a first place 7.1 A18-49 rating. Friday saw CBS winning with Dr. Phil Special winning the 8 p.m. hour, much better than last week's special, whatever that was. Loser of the night was again NBC's Conviction, which for some reason they aired during sweeps for two-hour tonight. AFV's season finale did decent in the demos from 8 to 10 for ABC. CBS won the night thanks to strong numbers for the NUMB3RS season finale at 10 p.m. Saturday saw decent numbers for CBS and Fox. NBC and ABC went to the movie route, and didn't do so well. FOX will win the week in adults 18-49, and probably hang on in total viewers as well. ABC will win tonight in a big way with the two-hour season finale of Desperate Housewives. ABC also has a two-hour season finale of EM: Home Edition earlier in the night.


Monday Sitcoms

• The King of Queens (CBS) - 8.21 million for an episode that started around 8:20.
• How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - 8.64 million. Can it jump start a lineup next season?
• Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 11.04 million, down a lot from its usual first run numbers...blame Bush.
• New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS) - 11.4 million tuned in, built from lead-in, but again blame Bush.
• One on One (UPN), All of Us (UPN), Half & Half (UPN) - Half & Half had an hour long episode doing 2.7 million. All of Us did well with 3.23 million.
  

Tuesday Sitcoms

• Will & Grace (NBC) 2 repeat episodes - Repeats did bad with 3.86 and 3.87 million.
  
• Scrubs (NBC) 2 episodes - New episodes did OK with 6.19 million at 9 p.m., and at 9:30 with 6.57 million.

Wednesday Sitcoms

• Half & Half (UPN) - Special encore of Monday's finale did 1.9 million, down from last week's Girlfriends repeat.
  

Thursday Sitcoms

• Will & Grace (NBC) - Clip show at 8 p.m. did well with 12.91 million and the series finale ended like it did in the old days with 18.43 million.
• That's 70s Show (FOX) - The last two episodes did decent, 8.58 million and 10.02 million.
  
• Everybody Hates Chris (UPN) - 2.84 million for an encore
  
• Love, Inc. (UPN), Eve (UPN), Cuts (UPN) - Repeats of the canceled series did under 2 million.
  

Friday Sitcoms

None.

Summing it up. Two and a Half Men, Will & Grace, That '70s Show 8:30pm and The New Adventures of Old Christine were impressive for the week. Everything else was OK (such as That '70s Show 8pm, King of Queens, How I Met Your Mother) or just plain old terrible (such as UPN Thursday).