Week 2 TV Ratings and Analysis; How the Sitcoms Did

Sunday, October 02, 2011

Week 2 TV Ratings and Analysis; How the Sitcoms Did

2011-12 Week 2 TV Ratings (first four nights, Mon-Thu):

Households: N/A.
Total Viewers: N/A.
Adults 18-49: N/A.

Week 2 (Sept. 26-Oct. 2) Analysis: Week 2 is nearly over! It looks like another TV season is just going to fly by. We don't have final network first four nights averages, but we can project CBS first in HH/viewers, followed by ABC and Fox, and NBC way behind in fourth. Among 18-49, it looks like CBS or Fox could be first place with ABC in third. NBC looks to be way back here as well. I expect CBS to take the week in everything, especially with an NFL overrun tonight. More on my prediction later on. As for last week, week 1, Fox went by CBS in 18-49 thanks to the NFL overrun on Sunday night. CBS prevailed in HH/total viewers. ABC was second in HH/viewers, with Fox third and ABC third in 18-49. NBC was fourth across the board even with an NFL primetime game being included to boost its numbers.

Monday has CBS on top in 18-49 and ABC in total viewers for the second straight week. Starting with ABC, Dancing with the Stars won the total viewer race with 16.23 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating, down a lot from previous week. Hopefully this will be the lowest it goes on Monday nights. Things were better for Castle at 10pm with a first place 11.67 million and a 3.1 18-49 rating, down only a tenth from previous week. For CBS, it was part of the season premiere with Ashton Kutcher on Two and a Half Men, but first How I Met Your Mother started it off with 10.5 million and a 4.5 18-49 rating, down some from previous week. This is up a good amount from last season. It'll be interesting to see if it can keep this up. 2 Broke Girls followed at its normal time with 11.75 million and a 4.7 18-49 rating, down from previous week's Mother in the time period and obviously from its series premiere at 9:30. Then it was part two of the season premiere of Two and a Half Men, with new star Ashton Kutcher, doing 20.52 million and a 7.4 18-49 rating, down nearly 8 million from previous week but still very good. I predict it will be below 17 million and a 6.0 18-49 rating this week, which is back to normal and still great. The season premiere of Mike & Molly certainly benefited from the huge lead-in and did a great 13.86 million and a 4.8 18-49 rating, for a series high. An all-new Hawaii Five-0 was next doing 11.26 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating, down a tad from previous week. Fox was next with the two-hour series premiere of Terra Nova doing 9.22 million and a 3.1 18-49 rating, which is up from previous week's Hell's Kitchen, finale but a bit of a disappointment given the promotion and cost. House will premiere tomorrow night at a new time of 9pm. NBC followed with the two-hour The Sing-Off doing only 4.45 million and a 1.7 18-49 rating, down from previous week and like I thought being lost in the competitive mix when there is actually competition, unlike when it airs in December. The second episode of The Playboy Club was next at 10pm and was lost doing only 3.97 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating, as I predict tomorrow will be its last airing ever. The CW had the season premiere of Gossip Girl doing just 1.37 million and a 0.7 18-49 rating, ouch, followed by the series premiere of Hart of Dixie doing only 1.88 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating. Bad night for The CW, like NBC.

On Tuesday, once again Fox nipped by CBS in 18-49, while CBS took care of total viewers. CBS had the always reliable NCIS opening the night off with 19.51 million and a 4.2 18-49 rating, down a tad from previous week's premiere. Then NCIS: Los Angeles was next and did 16.26 million and 3.6 18-49 rating, on par with previous week's premiere. And finally week two of new series Unforgettable did 12.43 million and a 2.5 18-49 rating, down from previous week's launch but still solid. ABC was next with the a special Dancing with the Stars: The Encore Performance leading the night off doing 9.49 million and a 1.9 18-49 rating, off some from previous week's special. The regular live Results Show followed at 9pm and did 14.39 million and a 2.9 18-49 rating, on par with previous week as we shockingly said goodbye Elisabetta Canalis. An all-new Body of Proof followed and did a decent 9.19 million and a 1.8 18-49 rating, but off from its season premiere the previous week. I think this series will go up and down for a while until it finds it groove like Castle did. Fox started off slower than usual with Glee doing 8.6 million and a 3.7 18-49 rating, down some from previous week's premiere. Quietly this show is not what it used to be and it has happened quickly. At 9pm, week two of new comedy New Girl did a high 9.28 million and a 4.5 18-49 rating, down some from its premiere and it still built on its lead-in. This is a hit! An all-new Raising Hope at its new time did 6.14 million and a 2.9 18-49 rating, down some from previous week. I guess this show will never become a big hit. NBC was next with the two-hour The Biggest Loser doing 5.87 million and a 2.3 18-49 rating, on par with its season premiere the previous week, followed by an all-new Parenthood at just 5.53 million but a better 2.2 18-49 rating, up some from previous week. This series goes up and down it seems. The CW aired a new 90210 with just 1.58 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating, up some from previous week. Then an all-new episode of the Sarah Michelle Gellar drama Ringer did 1.98 million and a 0.9 18-49 rating, on par with previous week.

Wednesday again it was a face-off between Fox and ABC, with CBS in the total viewers race. CBS started the night off on top with week three of Survivor: South Pacific at 10.71 million and a 3.2 18-49 rating, on par with previous week. Veteran drama Criminal Minds did 12.58 million and a solid 3.6 A18-49 rating, down from previous week's premiere. At 10pm, CSI did a decent 11.76 million and a 3.1 18-49 rating, off a tenth from its premiere the previous week. ABC started off with its Laugh On comedy block with The Middle doing 8.68 million and solid 2.6 18-49 rating. The series premiere of new sitcom Suburgatory followed with a great 9.81 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating. At 9pm, the mega hit Modern Family did 13.45 million and a 5.7 18-49 rating, off some from the series highs the previous week. The season premiere of Happy Endings was next with 7.25 million and a series high 3.1 18-49 rating. This series deserves to be sampled! At 10pm week two of my favorite fall series Revenge did a solid 8.54 million and a 2.7 18-49 rating, down some from previous week but still a vast improvement over The Whole Truth and anything in recent years. Hopefully some growth this week. Addicting and payback has never been prettier! Fox aired a two-hour The X Factor with Simon Cowell to solid numbers doing 11.86 million and a 4.1 18-49 rating, but down some from previous week's premiere. It certainly helped Fox over last year's Wednesday, but I'm sure Fox still expected more from this series. NBC opened the night with week three of Up All Night dropping to 5.32 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating, which good for an NBC comedy. At 8:30pm, the news wasn't as good, with week three of new comedy Free Agents doing only 3.07 million and an embarrassing 1.0 18-49 rating. One more week and it's gone I think. At 9pm, Harry's Law did nothing, doing just a 1.2 18-49 rating again and 7.63 million viewers. An all-new Law & Order: SVU at 10pm did only 7.24 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating for last place. The CW had a new H8R at 1.37 million and a 0.6 18-49 rating, up from previous week actually followed by the declining fast America's Next Top Model with 1.76 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating, up a tenth from previous week.

Thursday it was Fox with the win, but ABC and CBS were close behind. ABC opened the night with week two of Charlie's Angels doing 7.11 million but only a 1.5 18-49 rating, both still up from My Generation last year...but down from previous week. Total viewers is still OK, but 18-49 needs to go up. At 9pm, Grey's Anatomy followed with 10.2 million and a 3.6 A18-49 rating, down some from previous week's two-hour premiere. The season premiere of Private Practice, with Benjamin Bratt joining the cast, opened with a solid 7.79 million and a first place 2.8 18-49 rating. CBS opened with The Big Bang Theory at 14.74 million and a 4.9 A18-49 rating, on par with previous week. The series premiere of How To Be A Gentleman did 8.98 million and a 2.7 18-49 rating, which could have been better. Week two of Person of Interest followed with 12.51 million and a 2.7 18-49 rating, down from its premiere the previous week and skewing older than anyone thought. That is not encouraging for CBS. A new episode of The Mentalist followed and did 12.92 million and a 2.6 18-49 rating, down some from previous week. Fox aired another two-hour The X Factor doing a solid 12.17 million and a 3.9 18-49 rating, down some from previous week. It has gone down some on both nights in week two from the already disappointing week one. NBC was in the familiar fourth place with the should-be-not leading-off Community doing 3.98 million and a 1.8 18-49 rating only, but actually up a tenth from previous week, followed by Parks and Recreation at only 4.33 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating, on par with previous week. At 9pm The Office jumped to 6.7 million and a 3.5 18-49 rating, but down from previous week's premiere. Week two of Whitney closed the comedy block with 5.4 million and a 2.5 18-49 rating, this looks like it is headed towards being a bust. NBC has another drama bust with a new episode Prime Suspect closing the night with only 5.69 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, down from the premiere the previous week. The CW's big gun Vampire Diaries did 2.74 million, and a 1.3 18-49 rating, up some from previous week, followed by a new The Secret Circle at 2.12 million and a 1.0 18-49 rating, up a tenth from previous week.

Now, final numbers for Friday and Saturday are not available, but CBS won Friday with their dramas but the new A Gifted Man dropped and so did Blue Bloods, but still was the highest rated series of the night. ABC was in repeats again from 8-10pm and NBC's Dateline again did solid from 9-11pm. Fox had a good showing from Kitchen Nightmares but Fringe dropped the ball. The latter was third in its time period though but fourth in total viewers, losing to an encore of the Pan Am pilot on ABC.
Saturday numbers had CBS win the night with SEC in Primetime winning over ABC Saturday Night Football. Encores on Fox and NBC did nothing.

Tonight ABC Sunday is all-new (with the season premiere of AFV followed by all-new, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Desperate Housewives, and Pan Am). Pan Am should continue to do well. NBC will win the night with the NFL with the Jets vs. Ravens. CBS has an NFL overrun, so expect delays for 60 Minutes, Amazing Race, The Good Wife and CSI: Miami, which were all off to slow starts in week one. Fox is all-new with its animation block from 8-10pm, with repeats from 7-8pm.

As for the week (week 2), CBS will win in HH, viewers and 18-49. They have the NFL overrun and they also did big with SEC Primetime on Saturday. Look for ABC to remain second in HH/viewers and Fox in 18-49. NBC will likely be fourth across the board unless NFL can carry them to third. As for the coming week (week 3), there are no series premieres this week, but it will be interesting how the season premiere of House does and week two of Terra Nova. Look for Suburgatory to do well in week 2 and How To Be A Gentleman to fall. I'm betting Revenge goes up from week two. It's off to a good start.

Week 2 How the Sitcoms Did

Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for Week 1 -- Sept. 19-25)

The Simpsons (Fox) - The season premiere delivered 8.09 million viewers and a 3.9 18-49 rating following NFL action.
The Cleveland Show (Fox) - 6.13 million and a 3.1 18-49 rating for the season premiere.
Family Guy (Fox) - 7.69 million and a 4.1 18-49 rating, for best of the block, for the season premiere.
American Dad! (Fox) - The season premiere did 5.83 million and a 3.0 18-49 rating. Solid, but could be better.

Monday Sitcoms

How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - An all-new episode did 10.5 million and a 4.5 18-49 rating, only down slightly from previous week's season premiere at 8pm. So far so good.
2 Broke Girls (CBS) - The time period premiere did 11.75 million a 4.6 18-49 rating, down a lot from the huge premiere with the huge lead-in...but this is still excellent ratings. I expect it to go under a 4 eventually though, but that is still great.
Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 20.52 million and a 7.4 18-49 rating is excellent, but down big from previous week's huge sampling. We still won't be able to tell for another few weeks, but tomorrow night will another big drop. I guessed high 6s for week 2, so I wasn't too far off from the 7.4. I'm guessing high 5's for tomorrow night, which is still very good and about what it has done in recent seasons.
Mike & Molly (CBS) - The season launcher did 13.86 million and a 4.8 18-49 rating for series highs. Higher lead-in helps, but still good numbers.

Tuesday Sitcoms

New Girl (Fox) - An all-new episode aired after Glee, which did a 3.7 18-49 rating, did very well again. Week 2 did 9.28 million and a 4.5 18-49 rating, building on its lead-in again and down just some from previous week. Like I said last week, I think this series is more of a success than 2 Broke Girls, because that show had a huge lead-in while this series built from its lead-in! Fox renewed the series for a full season plus more (24 total episodes).
Raising Hope (Fox) - A new episode of this comedy did 6.14 million and a 2.9 18-49 rating, a decent showing but down from its season premiere.

Wednesday Sitcoms

The Middle (ABC) - A new episode did 8.68 million and a 2.6 18-49 rating, very solid!
Suburgatory (ABC) - The series premiere did a very good 9.81 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating. If it can stay in the 2.6+ range, ABC has a hit. My fave fall comedy!
Up All Night (NBC) - Three weeks, three drops, now 5.32 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating. But still decent for NBC. Will it drop again this week?
Free Agents (NBC) - Week three of this comedy did terrible with only 3.07 million and a 1.0 18-49 rating. Must be really bad to keep dropping big from its lead-in.
Modern Family (ABC) - An all-new episode did 13.45 million and second all-time best 5.7 18-49 rating. This show gets better and better.
Happy Endings (ABC) - The season premiere of this sitcom did 7.25 million and a series high 3.1 18-49 rating. Let's hope viewers now discover this gem after launching at 10pm last April.

Thursday Sitcoms

The Big Bang Theory (CBS) - A new episode did 14.74 million and a 4.9 18-49 rating, on par with previous week's 8pm premiere.
How To Be A Gentleman (CBS) - The series premiere was not well-liked and did 8.98 million and a 2.7 18-49 rating making $#*! My Dad Says a big hit. OK start but will it go down more?
Community (NBC) - A new showing did 3.98 million and a 1.8 18-49 rating, up a tenth actually from the premiere the previous week.
Parks and Recreation (NBC) - A new episode did 4.33 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating, on par with previous week's premiere.
The Office (NBC) - A new episode did 6.7 million and a 3.5 18-49 rating, down from previous week's premiere. Another drop this week? That's the pattern for this show now.
Whitney (NBC) - Week two did 5.4 million and a 2.5 18-49 rating, dropping almost a full point in 18-49 from its premiere. Not good.

Friday Sitcoms

Modern Family (ABC) - A repeat did OK with a prelim 3.84 million and a prelim 1.1 18-49 rating, basically on par with previous week.
Suburgatory (ABC) - A special repeat of the pilot did a prelim 3.44 million and a prelim 1.0 18-49 rating. More sampling.
Up All Night (NBC) - A repeat did a prelim 2.93 million and a prelim 0.8 A18-49 rating at 8:30. This series will repeat in this slot through mid-October.
Whitney (NBC) - An instant repeat of the episode from the night before did a prelim 2.81 million and a 0.9 18-49 rating. Look for Friday encores through Oct. 14, if you miss it on Thursdays.

Saturday Sitcoms

None

Airing tonight (Sunday) are Fox's animated comedies from 7-10PM, with new airings from 8-10.

Summing it up. Two and a Half Men, Modern Family, The Big Bang Theory, New Girl, 2 Broke Girls, How I Met Your Mother, Suburgatory, The Office, The Middle were impressive for the week. Everything else was OK (such as Raising Hope, Parks & Recreation, Whitney) or just plain old terrible (such as Free Agents, Community).

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Sunday, December 22

Bob's Burgers - "The Nightmare 2 Days Before Christmas" (Fox, 7:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When the power goes out two days before Christmas, The Belchers must spend the holiday at Mr. Fischoeder's family's old hunting lodge.

Krapopolis - "Krapocalypse" (Fox, 7:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Tyrannis is stuck in a time loop trying to save the city.

The Simpsons - "The Man Who Flew Too Much" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
The new and improved Pin Pals travel to Capital City for their first ever state bowling championship.

Universal Basic Guys - "The Devil You Know" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Mark insists on teaching his son Darren how to throw a handmade boomerang that was gifted to Darren by his father; the two soon find themselves on a trek deep into the Jersey woods; David is the recipient of a sex doll that he swears he didn't order.

The Great North - "The Lies Aquatic Adventure" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
While Beef is away, the Tobin fishing boat goes missing; the Tobin siblings wildly speculate on what could have happened.

Krapopolis - "National Lampoon's The Odyssey!" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
The family takes a vacation to Storgos for Shlub's mother's birthday.

Bob Hearts Abishola - "Full-Frontal Dottie" (The CW, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Excited by her physical therapy progress, Dottie insists she is ready to return to MaxDot, much to Bob, Douglas and Christina's dismay.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 16)

Friday, December 20

Jason Bateman (Arrested Development/George and Leo/Chicago Sons/Simon/The Hogan Family/It's Your Move/Silver Spoons) - Watch Jason on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Sharon Horgan (Bad Sisters/HouseBroken/Catastrophe) - Sharon is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Dwayne Johnson (Young Rock) - Dwayne appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Colton Dunn (Superstore) and Diona Reasonover (Clipped) - Colton and Diona are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Zachary Quinto (Big Mouth/So Notorious) - NBC's Today catches up with Zachary in the 9am hour.
Billy Eichner (Friends from College/Difficult People/Parks and Recreation) - Billy talks about Mufasa: The Lion King on NBC's Today in the 10am hour. He can also be heard on The Morning Mash Up on SiriusXM.
Kerry Washington (UnPrisoned) - Kerry talks about The Six Triple Eight on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am and on Sherri, so check your local listings.
James Marsden (30 Rock) and Ben Schwartz (The Afterparty/Space Force/Parks and Recreation) - James and Ben talk about Sonic the Hedgehog 3 on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Jamie Lee Curtis (The Sticky/Anything But Love/Operation Petticoat) - Jamie Lee chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Whitney Cummings (Whitney) - Whitney talks about Max's Fast Friends on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Henry Winkler (Barry/Arrested Development/Out of Practice/Monty/Happy Days) - Access Daily with Mario & Kit has the best of Henry and Kit Hoover, so check your local listings.
Howie Mandel (Good Grief) - The Talk celebrates 15 seasons with a special finale episode; friend of the show Howie Mandel makes his 21st appearance on the show when he stops by one last time with a surprise for the hosts on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.