Sunday, October 18, 2009

Week 4 TV Ratings and Analysis; How the Sitcoms Did

Week 4 numbers (first four nights, Mon-Wed):
(Network averages for Thursday were not available once again, thus here are final network averages for Mon-Wed. Final program numbers are available in the analysis, though.)


Households: #1. CBS 8.3/13.4; #2. ABC 6.6/10.5; #3. Fox 5.1/7.9; #4. NBC 4.4/7.1; #5. The CW 1.4/2.1
Total Viewers: #1. CBS 13.19 million; #2. ABC 10.06 million; #3. Fox 8.73 million; #4. NBC 6.95 million; #5. The CW 2.06 million.
Adults 18-49: #1. Fox 3.6/9.6; #2. CBS 3.6/9.5; #3. ABC 2.6/6.9; #4. NBC 2.3/6.2; #5. The CW 1.0/2.6.

Week 4 Analysis: For week three we have CBS on top through the first four days in all categories (though they were tied with Fox in 18-49 through Wednesday). Fox will likely win the week in 18-49 thanks to MLB ALCS on Friday and Saturday. Through the first four days in week four I can project, CBS has the lead in all categories, with ABC second in HH/viewers but third in 18-49, with Fox in third in HH/viewers, but a close second in 18-49 and NBC is back in fourth everywhere. Last week, week 3, CBS won the week in HH/viewers and 18-49, while ABC was second in HH/total viewers, but fourth in 18-49 (though only .1 behind Fox for second). NBC was third in HH/viewers, with Fox fourth. NBC was tied for second in 18-49 with Fox.
On Monday ABC, Fox and CBS did well again. A two-hour Dancing with the Stars won the total viewer race with 16.79 million for ABC, up some from the previous week. An all-new Castle followed with a solid 9.77 million, up again from the previous week! Very consistent. Next up was CBS with its comedies and CSI: Miami. How I Met Your Mother started it off with 8.56 million, up some from the previous week and Accidentally on Purpose followed doing 7.73 million and a 3.0 18-49 rating, both up a tad from the previous week. Two and a Half Men followed with 14.17 million which was also up from the previous week, and The Big Bang Theory followed and continues to impress and did a nice 13.07 million, up from the previous week. The show also did a 5.0 18-49 rating, its second highest ever. A new episode of CSI: Miami did 13.27 million, down a bit from the previous week...the only program on CBS to go down on the night. Fox had a new episode of House and it did 13.5 million, which was down a bit from previous week... the show did a 5.2 A18-49 rating, down from the 5.4 the previous week. NBC followed with the free-falling Heroes doing 5.55 million, up a tad from the previous week. A new episode of Trauma followed and did only 5.49 million and only a 1.8 A18-49 rating, both up a tick the previous week though. The Jay Leno Show followed with only 5.1 million, but actually up some from previous week. The CW on Mondays has been a struggle so far, with One Tree Hill doing only 2.55 million and Gossip Girl at an even worse 2.36 million...but up some week-to-week.
On Tuesday, CBS was in control. CBS had the always reliable NCIS opening the night off with 21.04 million, up from the previous week. Another series high. A new episode of NCIS: Los Angeles was next and did 15.38 million, down a million again from the previous week despite the lead-in going up. And finally CBS aired The Good Wife and did 12.98 million, down from the previous week. ABC was a distant second with a new episode of Shark Tank doing only 5.24 million...but up a bit week-to-week again. At least it goes up, but this is perfect for summer. Then it was Dancing with the Stars: The Results doing 13.96 million, up a lot week-to-week as we said goodbye to Chuck Liddell. ABC followed with a new episode of the forgotten doing 7.43 million, down a bit week-to-week but up a tick in 18-49. NBC was next with The Biggest Loser 2-hour show doing 9.14 million, down a bit from previous week, followed by the The Jay Leno Show at just 5.77 million, which was down from previous week again. Fox aired the two-hour finale of Hell's Kitchen doing 8.04 million and a solid 3.8 18-49 rating, both of course up week-to-week. Fox will miss this show. So You Think You Can Dance can't do this well. The CW aired 90210 with just 2.25 million, followed by dud Melrose Place at an even worse 1.38 million. The latter was down from previous week, while the former was up.
Wednesday again it was CBS with the overall win. CBS started slow with Old Christine doing 6.99 million, which was up a tad from the previous week, followed by Gary Unmarried at 6.91 million, also up a bit from its previous week. Veteran drama Criminal Minds did 13.92 million which was down a bit from the previous week, with CSI: NY doing 13.4 million, up a million from previous week. ABC started the 8pm hour with Hank & The Middle and did OK. Hank did an OK 6.15 million but only a 1.6 18-49 rating again. The Middle did a better 6.77 million and a 2.0 18-49 rating, nice builds from the lead-in in 18-49. New episodes of the hilarious sitcoms Modern Family and Cougar Town both did well again with 9.35 and 8.0 million, but up from previous week. The A18-49 ratings for both were more telling doing 3.6 and 3.3. Shelley Long and the entire Modern Family episode was SO funny this week! Loved the song! At 10pm Eastwick did only 5.08 million, on par really from previous week, wish it was doing better because it is a nice guilty pleasure. NBC opened the night with Mercy doing 7.37 million, down a tad from the previous week. Law & Order: SVU followed and did 8.77 million, up some from previous week. Slowly going up, while Criminal Minds is slowly going down. At 10pm NBC aired The Jay Leno Show of course at just 6.15 million, up week-to-week and best showing of the week. Fox was fourth, with So You Think You Can Dance at 7.21 million...up a million from previous week, and then Glee followed to a decent 7.65 million and a 3.4 A18-49 rating, both up from previous week. The CW had its usual showing of Top Model at 3.0 million, down a tad from previous week and a repeat of Melrose Place followed with just 800,000 viewers. This is a dud!
Thursday it was ABC on top in 18-49 and CBS overall again. ABC opened the night with FLASHFORWARD doing 9.07 million and a 3.1 18-49 rating, both up some from previous week. Dominc Monaghan joins the cast officially this week. A new Grey's Anatomy followed with 13.79 million and a great 5.0 A18-49 rating, but both down from previous week. And a new episode of Private Practice did a solid 10.36 million and a first place at 10pm 3.8 A18-49 rating, both up week-to-week. Dr. Bailey was great, could we see Dr. Sam Bennett go to Seattle Grace as the "cardio god?" Hmm... CBS opened with Survivor: Samoa at 11.78 million and a 3. A18-49 rating, both up a tick week-to-week. A new episode of CSI followed with 15.38 million, up some week-to-week, while The Mentalist was also up week-to-week with 15.08 million. Fox started off well with Bones at a solid 9.59 million...down from previous week, and Fringe followed and only did 5.78 million and a 2.2 18-49 rating, both basically the same as previous week. NBC was next with Community at 8pm doing 5.01 million up some from previous week, followed by sitcom dud Parks & Recreation at only 4.53 million, down week-to-week. At 9pm, The Office did 8.03 million and a solid 4.1 18-49 rating, both down week-to-week when the special one-hour episode aired. Season premiere of 30 Rock did only 6.39 million, down big from Palin infected last fall. The Jay Leno Show closed the night with only 5.37 million, but up week-to-week. The CW's only consistent player so far is Vampire Diaries doing 3.88 million, up week-to-week, followed by Supernatural at a could-be-better 2.58 million, but up some from previous week.
Now, final numbers for Friday and Saturday are not available, but CBS won Friday with their dramas overall but Fox won the 18-49 rating crown with MLB ALCS Game 1. Much better than the regular Brothers, 'Til Death & Dollhouse while ABC did OK with Ugly Betty's premiere.
Saturday numbers were not available, but look for Fox to win big with MLB ALCS Game 2, as the Yankees won a long thriller!
Tonight the full ABC Sunday line-up is airing (AFV, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Desperate Housewives, and Brothers & Sisters), look for solid numbers as usual. NBC should have something to tout about with the NFL game, but could be down from previous week due to MLB Playoffs on TBS. CBS has its usual players, but Three Rivers will be slaughtered again, as the cancelation click is ticking. Fox has its animation block from 8-10pm, including rookie The Cleveland Show. A new Brothers also airs again tonight at 7 on a special night and time.
As for week three, CBS will win in HH, viewers and but Fox will win 18-49 thanks to MLB ALCS games. Look for ABC in second in HH/viewers, but likely third in 18-49. NBC will be fourth in all categories, as Fox will over take them in HH/viewers this week.

Week 4 How the Sitcoms Did

Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for week 3-- October 5-11)

  • Brothers (Fox) - A special new episode at 7pm did only 1.7 million, but it was preempted in 20% of the country for NFL. Everyone came on board at 7:23pm and still only did 2.47 million.
  • The Simpsons (Fox) - 7.6 million and a 3.7 18-49 rating...both down a lot from the previous week as no direct NFL lead-in this week.
  • The Cleveland Show (Fox) 2 episodes - 7.87 million and a 3.9 18-49 rating. Both down a lot from the week prior, but still very good to build on the lead-in. A special repeat of the pilot at 7:30pm did 3.7 million.
  • Family Guy (Fox) - 8.97 million and a 4.6 18-49 rating. Both down from the previous week, again no direct NFL lead-in this week.
  • American Dad (Fox) - 6.75 million and a 3.5 18-49 rating...both down just some from previous week.

Monday Sitcoms

  • How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - New episode did 8.56 million, higher than the previous week, and back to a 3.6 A18-49 rating after dropping a bit the previous week.
  • Accidentally on Purpose (CBS) - 7.73 million and a 3.0 18-49 rating, both up from the previous week. Bleeding stopped a bit, as it went up some.
  • Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 14.17 million...up from the previous week. Sitcom leader overall.
  • The Big Bang Theory (CBS) - 13.07 million...up from the previous week and still built from the lead-in's 18-49 rating from a 4.8 to a 5.0, though not as high of a build than the past few weeks. Still sitcom leader in 18-49.


Tuesday Sitcoms

  • None.

Wednesday Sitcoms
  • Old Christine (CBS) - New episode did 6.99 million, up a bit from previous week. 18-49 rating of a 2.1 was also up.
  • Gary Unmarried (CBS) - Like the lead-in, 6.91 million, up a bit from previous week, but built from the lead-in a bit in 18-49 to a 2.3 rating.
  • Hank (ABC) - Down a bit from previous week's 6.45 million to 6.15 million...not good, but not totally bad either. 18-49 rating was even from previous week at 1.6...needs to do better.
  • The Middle (ABC) - 6.77 million, basically on par from previous week and it built nicely from the lead-in in 18-49 from a 1.6 to a 2.0.
  • Modern Family (ABC) - A hilarious episode did 9.35 million and a nice 3.6 18-49 rating, both up week-to-week. Shelley Long deserves an Emmy here. Single camera sitcom leader overall now.
  • Cougar Town (ABC) - A great episode did 8.0 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating, both also up some from previous week.

Thursday Sitcoms

  • Community (NBC) - New episode did 5.01 million and a 2.0 18-49 rating ... both up a tad from previous week.
  • Parks & Recreation (NBC) - This show did terrible doing only 4.53 million and just a 2.0 A18-49 rating, down some from previous week.
  • The Office (NBC) - 8.03 million for a new episode, down from the special one-hour episode the previous week, but better than the previous weeks. In 18-49 it did a 4.1 rating.
  • 30 Rock (NBC) - Season premiere only mustered 6.39 million and a 3.0 18-49 rating. Dropped over a point in 18-49 from the lead-in...not good.

Friday Sitcoms

  • Brothers (Fox) - preempted for baseball.
  • 'Til Death (Fox) - preempted for baseball.

Saturday Sitcoms

  • None.

Airing tonight (Sunday) are new episodes of Fox's animated comedies from 8-10PM, along with Brothers at 7.

Summing it up. Two and a Half Men, Modern Family, Cougar Town, The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, The Office were impressive for the week. Everything else was OK (such as The Middle, 30 Rock) or just plain old terrible (such as Hank, Parks & Recreation).


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Friday, April 19

none scheduled

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of April 15)

Friday, April 19

  • Joey King (Bent) - Watch Joey on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Esther Povitsky (Dollface/Alone Together) and Haley Joel Osment (Future Man/Alpha House/The Jeff Foxworthy Show/Thunder Alley) - Esther and Haley Joel are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Christine Taylor (Search Party/Arrested Development/Hey Dude and David Lascher (Sabrina the Teenage Witch/Blossom/Hey Dude) - Drew is handing the show over to Hey Dude…The 90s Called! Podcast Hosts Christine Taylor and David Lascher to interview her show for a special Drew's Download edition of the show. Christine and Drew reminisce on filming The Wedding Singer together and reveals which role she auditioned for but Drew got instead. Plus, they have a big surprise in store when they reunite Drew with a former castmate on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
  • Michaela Watkins (Dinner with the Parents/Search Party/The Unicorn/Casual/Trophy Wife) and Daniel Thrasher (Dinner with the Parents) - Michaela and Daniel talk about Amazon Freevee's Dinner with the Parents on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
  • Lauren Ash (Not Dead Yet/Superstore/Super Fun Night) - Lauren talks about ABC's Not Dead Yet on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
  • DulcĂ© Sloan (The Great North) - DulcĂ© shares easy Mother’s Day craft gift ideas on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
  • Alison Brie (Community/GLOW) - Alison is a guest on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.


New on DVD/Blu-ray

Father Knows Best - The Complete Series Three's Company - The Official 40th Anniversary Collection Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Too Close for Comfort - The Complete Series Check It Out! - The Complete Series

12/05 - Father Knows Best - The Complete Series
12/05 - The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/12 - The Dick Van Dyke Show - The Complete Series
12/12 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
12/12 - That Girl - The Complete Series
12/15 - Letterkenny - Season 11
12/19 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series
12/22 - Three's Company - The Official 40th Anniversary Collection (includes The Ropers and Three's a Crowd)
01/09 - South Park - Seasons 11-15 (Blu-ray)
01/16 - Ghosts (UK) - Season Five
02/13 - Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/27 - The Really Loud House - Season One
03/12 - Ghosts (UK) - The Complete Series
03/12 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 3 (Blu-ray)
03/12 - Rick and Morty - Season 7 (Blu-ray Steelbook) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
04/03 - Too Close for Comfort - The Complete Series (VEI)
04/08 - Check It Out! - The Complete Series (VEI)

The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) That Girl - The Complete Series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series

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