Comments on: TV Ratings Tuesday: NCIS Pair Dominates; Sing-Off Up; Scrubs, Ted Plunge

By: Justin

Justin — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 05:00:29 +0000

Shows I can’t wait to come back: Chuck, 24, LOST

By: Justin

Justin — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 04:57:11 +0000

I dunno, the worst time to read into would be the week or two after series finales and the week of Christmas.

The real numbers to pay attention to will be 2nd – 3rd week of Jan when people are back to their usual schedule.

By: A.M.

A.M. — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 19:02:23 +0000

For heaven’s sake, let “Scrubs” die and move “Ted” to the Wednesday-night comedy lineup. That’s the biggest, and most welcome, surprise of the season: real TV on Wednesdays.

By: Julia

Julia — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 18:40:58 +0000

tl;dr

By: Gary A

Gary A — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 18:37:15 +0000

Okay, let me get this straight. Because some people on this site defend programs like “The Good Wife” or “Castle” ( as examples ), pointing out valid reasons why the shows seem likely to be renewed for next season based on total viewers and other criteria such as being in house productions, they are irrational fans and need to lighten up as this site is devoted to the 18 – 49 demographics only and the info shared by the webmasters is just their take on the matter, don’t shoot the messenger, as it were.
However, the continuing inane babble over series like “Ugly Betty”, “Dollhouse”, “Heroes” & “V” is from intelligent informed members of this site and not from rabid fans who are defending their favorite programs. Is this some sort of double standard/ If your a fan of a show that seems destined to be a cult series and never a huge mass hit, then all things must be done to preserve those shows because the other shows ( the ones doing better in overall ratings and in many cases the 18 -49 demo range as well but maybe not as high as would be desired ) are all crap, junk and should be cancelled to save the “chosen ones”, which ironically, are chosen by their fans.
How about some reality thrown in the mix? “The Good Wife” may be slightly on the bubble because of lower 18 -49 demos but in all likelihood will be renewed because CBS isn’t likely to cancel a top 20 series in it’s first season with good reviews and a solid albeit less desirable fan base.
“Without a Trace” last season was cancelled more due to it’s cost than it’s ratings, which were down in the important demos but still high overall. Same thing is true this year for “Cold Case” which is aging and ratings are soft for the cost to air new episodes.
“Judging Amy” lasted three seasons before being cancelled.
“Shark” tanked ( sorry for the pun ) because of it’s scheduling. Sundays at 10 in it’s second season meant it was rarely seen before 10:30 during the football season which hurt it with total viewers and the 18 – 49 crowd.
“Eleventh Hour” was not critically as well received as “TGW” and ratings overall were sluggish for the series, even up against a fading “ER” on NBC.
“Castle” fits well on ABC’s schedule and does okay but not great in the 18 – 49 demos but decently in overall ratings. It is an inhouse production and more than likely will be renewed by ABC ( unless ratings drop dramatically both in 18 – 49 and overall ) for next season as it is is a good utility player and can be scheduled many places to fill gaps ( 8:00 or another 10:00 slot ). They also have other bigger problems to worry about and that should make “Castle” safe for another season.
“Ugly Betty” was shifted from Thursdays to Fridays this season because it’s ratings were dropping. ABC wanted to get one more season out of it for syndication purposes. It’s shift to Wednesdays is due more to lack of good backup series than ABc having any desire to “save” the show. It fits well with the comedies airing before it and barring a sharp increase in ratings ( doubtful ), this is the final season of “Ugly Betty”.
“Dollhouse” wasn’t well received last season except by it’s fan base of Joss Whedonites. Fox renewed it becaus ethey wanted to test it’s potential and because of the desire to work with Whedon. It failed – big time. But fans are still pissing and moaning that the show should have been saved and Fox could have done more to promote it, protect it, etc. The majority of people watching tv didn’t like it or care to watch it. Show cancelled and even if Fox put it on after “AI” or “House”, the outcome would be the same.
“Heroes” had potential in it’s first season and did well in overall ratings and the 18 – 49 demo. But like many other shows on NBC, they took the sign that the show was creating a buzz and getting some interest that they could do anyhting they wanted and the second season was a bust. That it still exisits on a major network has more to do with NBC’s poor programming choices and a still loyal ( but declining ) fan base.
“V” was reconceived from a miniseries that was a hit for NBC back in the early 1980′s. NBC also tried to make it a regualr series in the 1984-1985 season. It failed. There is a chance that “V” may make the cut and survive for another year because it’s on ABC and they will likely be more willing to let it play longer to see what might happen. Particularly with the loss of “Lost” and the likelihood “FlashForward” will be canceled at the end of the year. But even it’s most rabid fans, will have to concede the show has dropped in it’s 4 week run and is not a slam dunk for longevity.
I am not speaking as a fan of any particular show ( although I do have favorites as do most people ) but as someone who I think gets what this site is supposed to represent ( the numbers ) and a logical discussion, critique, etc. of information regarding the state of network television today.

By: Howard Beale

Howard Beale — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 06:54:04 +0000

The wheelchair bound viewers of CBS need to take a moment to reflect during this holiday season, with its holiday trees and holiday spirit that all Muslims are good people.

Yes, Preacher Shane Brennan brings us a pre-holiday day NCIS doubleheader of innocent Muslims being castigated by horrible people of some other indeterminent faith.

This is what we celebrate Holiday for a week from Friday. Good lessons learned, Shane, you’ve opened this eager viewer’s eyes. I really hated all of those people prior to last Tuesday, until you did us all a solid, I never figured out to see people as individuals and as they actually are.

Kind of reminiscent of “A Christmas Carol,” don’t you think?

By: Kate

Kate — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:26:52 +0000

Yay for NCIS anf The Good Wife!

By: David

David — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 07:41:08 +0000

I love NCIS but last night’s show was to politically correct. Made me want to throw up.

By: Jackie

Jackie — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 06:25:12 +0000

And OLT, The Sing-Off was really good!!Those singers were so good and it was facinating to watch………judges were cool and no cheap shots……….they are really very nice.(comparatively):-)

By: Jackie

Jackie — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 06:15:59 +0000

I think that TGW picked up in the ratings because SOA had its season finale.I know SOA is a cable show but between that and the GG Nod I think both helped.Just a thought………..LOL!!

By: Holly

Holly — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 03:43:06 +0000

@Jon K,

I think that was just because they needed to make room for Harper’s Island.

By: Jon K

Jon K — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 03:41:14 +0000

Fwiw, CBS seems to be more supportive of The Good Wife this year than Eleventh Hour last year. EH was only given an additional 5 episode order. Good Wife was given an extra 9 for a full season, and then an extra one for a total of 23.

By: bruce

bruce — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 03:06:30 +0000

Holly wrote: I know, total viewers are meaningless, but that’s still kind of impressive.

Total viewers is meaningless only to advertisers and TV execs. To the public, they mean a lot.

By: Pat

Pat — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 02:48:21 +0000

If The Forgotten was a first run episode it’s enough to knock Leno down to a sub 1.5, probably a 1.3 or 1.4. There are people a lot smarter than me who think the last Jay Leno Show will air the Wednesday before New Year’s. I tend to think it’ll last slightly longer, maybe even one full year!

By: Tego Livi

Tego Livi — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 01:20:19 +0000

Judging Amy got cancelled in the same timeslot The Good Wife is in because of poor performance in the 18-49s, but it was also being beaten by SVU. The Good Wife is slaughtering its major network competition, but presumably more people are watching cable or independent stations (I know here the FOX stations newscast does very well at that time). I’m not sure what TGW could do to attract younger demos, unless Alicia’s kids were a tad older (and hotter). Nothing wrong with them, but they aren’t played as “magnet characters” expected to draw their own audience; they’re just the main character’s children.

By: J.R. Herbaugh

J.R. Herbaugh — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 01:14:18 +0000

tom, do you understand what “Entertainment Weekly” does?

Julianna Margulies doesn’t look for jobs; people offer her jobs.

This is the ONLY Place that talks about the Good Wife Being cancelled. Do you understand what this site does? (hint: it’s the slogan)

By: forg

forg — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:47:47 +0000

The Eleventh Hour pulled good total viewer numbers last season but it was still canceled because the demos are not good enough. Same with Shark a few years ago but that show did last for two seasons. With that said, you can’t blame why some people like me are worried that The Good Wife might not get a renewal. It’s not on the brink of cancellation but it is not a shoo-in for renewal unlike NCIS LA at this point of the season. I love that show and I hope CBS sticks with it.

By: Sue Maple

Sue Maple — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:34:32 +0000

Jay Leno last night was an ad for other NBC shows and NBC personalities. Our local NBC newscast in turn advertised what was on Leno. It seems as if NBC programming is turning into a mobius strip of NBC programming. No actual content!

By: Theoacme

Theoacme — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:24:44 +0000

If audience numbers alone were enough, tom, Worst Week would still be on the air, and NBC and Warner Brothers would have paid up the wazoo to renew ER for Sundays at 9 Central (and at least the demos would have supported the latter)…

…I miss Neela and Gates (how do you cry on this site?!)

By: Tommy

Tommy — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:24:10 +0000

tom if you hate the rational Bill and Robert use on this site, why don’t you just stop coming here?

They have never said that TGW is 100% gone, they only point out that the show is on the bubble. People need to stop taking this stuff so personally, we get it you are a fan, but that shouldn’t cloud you judgment.

Maybe you should read this before acting all high and mighty when you condemn them for using 18-49 demos:

http://tvbythenumbers.com/demystifying-the-s

By: tom

tom — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:10:59 +0000

The Good Wife received over 14 million viewers last night. was number one in its time slot.

I find this above comment so sad “If only The Good Wife could climb back to 3.0, then the worry that it may get canceled would go away”..

Uh The only worry that the Good Wife is going to be cancelled only seems to be on this website. Entertainment Weekly recentley ran an article talking about thr huge success of The Good Wife and how other networks were clamoring to make shows like it.

This is the ONLY Place that talks about the Good Wife Being cancelled. CBS knows it is coming back next season, the producers know it is coming back next season. Julienne Margulies isnt looking for another job for next season because she knows it is coming back

Sometimes the chatters in this room just have no sense of reality

By: ljo

ljo — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:10:49 +0000

I think if The Good Wife has the potential to increase its ratings, it should have done it last night when its competition was Leno and a repeat of a very lowly rated ABC show.

By: Theoacme

Theoacme — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:05:21 +0000

If CBS can keep that ratio up, it may matter one day…

…then again, they brought back Judge Wapner for a day recently, so maybe not

Two words to goose The Good Wife’s ratings…Doug Ross

By: forg

forg — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:01:13 +0000

If only The Good Wife could climb back to 3.0, then the worry that it may get canceled would go away but a flat 2.8 is not bad, the potential to go back to 3.0 is very likely. But I think CBS is satisfied with how the show is performing for now plus it gets good critical reviews which is something not common these days for CBS dramas and Julianna would likely get an Emmy nod next year, I hope CBS won’t waste the opportunity and since the show is semi-procedural it has potential to grow more in the demo. I hope they’ll be patient

Ah poor Ted but expected. I hope Scrubs climbs back to 2.0 next week. At least Scrubs beat the Fox special for what its worth unlike Ted.

Impressive numbers for Sing Off

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Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:00:16 +0000

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By: vsaint

vsaint — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 23:21:01 +0000

NCIS has never had the name recognition that other shows have like CSI, HOUSE, GREY’S, LOST or even HEROES.

NCIS:LA is a decent show, and i enjoy it.
But i’m getting alittle turned off with too much Police Shows. Now CBS is planning a Criminal Minds spinoff and maybe a Hawaii 5-0 remake.

I really hope IDOL/GLEE and LOST pounds NCIS:LA into the ground.
It’s already guaranteed for 2nd season. But it needs to be brought back down to earth alittle.

By: Marlene

Marlene — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 23:19:23 +0000

Better Off Ted is a good show! Last week’s ep was funnier than last night’s. Portia is ALWAYS HILARIOUS!!!!

By: Charles G. Ferrell, Beaumont CA.

Charles G. Ferrell, Beaumont CA. — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 22:50:49 +0000

What happened to NCIS?

I only discovered NCIS about three years ago with its rerun evening package but was soon hooked. The show was solid, top-notch entertainment from the beginning, but somehow over the past couple of seasons, especially this season, all of them there have kicked it up another notch. How can a show, with basically the same cast, just keep getting better, fresher, etc.

What really amazes me, however, with my track record of enjoying shows that do OK but not great in the ratings, is that the entire nation keeps discovering NCIS in greater numbers.

There have been very, very few average episodes in NCIS six-plus years on the air and certainly none this year.

This week’s was brilliant, great Christmas theme, funny, touching and just very interesting TV drama.

Good job to everybody at NCIS.

By: fringe fan

fringe fan — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:54:01 +0000

i’m surprised more people didn’t watch chef ramsey it was definitely better than anything else on tv it was funny and informative and the food came out delicious

By: Tommy

Tommy — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:52:54 +0000

Ouch for BoT, and Scrubs. I don’t see how ABC can justify ordering anymore episodes for either show at this point. I didn’t see how either got renewed after last year so who knows what ABC will do with them.

I think the predictions that Scrubs will get additional episodes ordered and moved to Wednesdays at 8 are pretty much out of the question with these kind of ratings. I can’t remember what Hank’s ratings were, but Scrubs ratings last night aren’t far from what Hank did. I think ABC would be better served by launching Romantically Challenged even if it’s a short run.

By: JR

JR — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:20:23 +0000

Not a good situation for TV if “The Sing-Off” is the best thing going. The show didn’t do as well as “The Biggest Loser” on Tuesdays- then gain, NBC is so short on hits outside of football, as it is, that it probably doesn’t matter all that much.

By: luke

luke — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 21:16:48 +0000

ncis la has gotten better .This last 4 episodes were great

By: Tumbleweeds

Tumbleweeds — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:41:22 +0000

Don J, thanks, never watched those shows. Sorry for my ignorance.

By: Fennerbender

Fennerbender — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:01:06 +0000

Scrubs is not holding my interest and I loved the original. If not for Bones, Castle and House I would have nothing to watch. Save me Chuck!!!! I need you back in the #1 slot to give me that fourth option.

By: usedtolovecoco

usedtolovecoco — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:55:39 +0000

That’s too bad about Scrubs– this season really is good, not anything like the disaster that was seasons 6-7.

By: X-R.G.

X-R.G. — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:49:10 +0000

Check that – it’s worse – TIL DEATH MARATHON ON C-MAS DAY… ??

By: Cdiddy

Cdiddy — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:49:00 +0000

Big Daddy, although you may not have enjoyed last night’s selection, my PVR was humming. SYTYCD, The Sing Off, Scrubs, BoTed, Charlie Brown Christmas and Cookalong were all recorded – that’s six hours of programming. The nice thing about living on the west coast of Canada is that we also have access to the Eastern network feeds so Cookalong worked perfectly at 6:00pm!

By: X-R.G.

X-R.G. — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:46:50 +0000

Just saw FOX’s Christmas Eve programming line-up – A MArathon of “TIL DEATH”? ???? – What ever happened to Christmas Movies – and then “Cops” on Christmas Day?!?!?! FOX – you have your moments and then other times you just Don’t have ANYTHING…I’m disapointed…

By: Don J

Don J — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:35:40 +0000

tumbleweeds:
Ramsay is a British celebrity chef who has his own reality shows here in the States (Hell’s Kitchen) and (Kitchen Nightmares) which are spinoffs of his UK versions.

The Cookalong Chef last night was holiday filler that FOX greenlighted during the summer.

By: Don J

Don J — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:33:35 +0000

Solid numbers for The Good Wife. I really hope the nonsense discussion that it’s doomed or as good as cancelled as many of the posters on this site continually predict dies off.

I like Better off Ted, but yeah it’s DOA.

NCIS LA is fun. I enjoyed last night’s holiday themed episode.

By: Ren

Ren — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:31:03 +0000

Thanks Julia!

By: X-R.G.

X-R.G. — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:30:33 +0000

I like Gordon Ramsey’s shows…though I don’t think FOX promoted it well nor were they too concerned about the ratings…it’s a holiday filler…though I thought last night’s special was cluttered with guests and video feeds…Bring back Kitchen Nightmares and Hells Kitchen when more episodes are ready…I hear KN may be on fridays…as long as it’s not up against Smallville – then game on!

By: Tumbleweeds

Tumbleweeds — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:28:34 +0000

Excuse my ignorance but who or what is Gordon Ramsay?

By: Stacy

Stacy — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:27:52 +0000

Can Mr. Gorman make it any more obvious he is a fan of Leno? He is incredibly biased toward him. Leno only got a 1.8 because The Forgotten was a repeat. And that series doesn’t get good ratings with new episodes. Mr. Gorman forgot to mention the fact that Leno only got 5.4 viewers overall, and normally gets about 6/6.5 million when The Biggest Loser comes before. It is not a matter of Leno being good, but others shows doing badly.

I am getting sick of Gorman’s comments about Leno haters “fuming” when he gets supposedly good ratings. Gee, Gorman never says anything about Leno fans “fuming” when Leno gets crap ratings, which is often…..

By: C.J.

C.J. — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:26:45 +0000

I wanted to watch The Sing-Off’s second night, but it was preempted in Portland for Trail Blazers basketball, so I watched Ted, and much as I love the show, that episode just didn’t make me laugh. That and the fact that it’s almost the holiday season may explain its’ low rating.

Let’s just hope ABC and the show get it straightened out by New Year’s Day – that should be Ted’s make-or-break moment.

By: evie

evie — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:23:47 +0000

Glad the “Good Wife” is doing well….but could care less of NCIS Los Angeles. Just wish they would have given the lead roles to some other actors. No comparison with NCIS.

By: Julia

Julia — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:23:42 +0000

Ren, upfronts are the presentations each network gives to announce their new season schedule. They invite big advertisers to attend and it’s all basically a sales pitch to sell advertising at supposedly reduced rates by buying “upfront” rather than waiting to pay for scatter prices during the season. The networks show previews of their new shows (in some cases they will show an entire pilot) and there are speeches from the execs talking about what a great network they are and why you should buy air time on that network. That’s basically it.

By: thirdsaint

thirdsaint — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:15:51 +0000

With ABC struggling on quite a few shows here maybe it won’t take AS much to get FlashForward or V renewed (assuming they don’t bomb when they come back).

By: Ren

Ren — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:14:34 +0000

Bill could you explain exactly what are the upfront meetings in May, and what happens at these meetings?

By: Joe Jackson

Joe Jackson — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:08:44 +0000

NCIS 2 has gotten better, it was horrible when the season started