NBC - We all knew that the Super Bowl (111.35m/40.5) was going to be huge. The big question was whether or not it would again set records. It did. Looking at the last four years, the show continues to grow every year.
2009 – 98.73m/36.7
2010 – 101.43m/38.2
2011 – 111.01m/39.9
2012 – 111.35m/40.5
That’s pretty damn consistent, making it not nearly as interesting as the spot after the Super Bowl. That one varies wildly, depending on the programming. And in that regard, The Voice (37.61m/16.3) looked very good. That split the measures with 2010’s Undercover Boss (38.65m/16.2), and was well ahead of 2009’s The Office (22.9m/11) and 2011’s Glee (26.8m/11.1).
How much the post-Super Bowl slot had to do with the Monday premiere of The Voice (17.84m/6.7) remains to be seen, but that is a great start for the season, putting it ahead of both Idol outings in the demo. It also made for a solid debut for Smash (11.44m/3.8). That makes Ivy and Karen #1 at 10 on Monday, but we’ll have to wait and see how that all shakes out. NBC has a bit of recent history with debuting things on Monday that do more sinking than swimming. The crazy number for the week is NBC gaining nearly 10 million viewers and 4 points in the demo for Monday night.
Unfortunately for the network, the highs of Sunday and Monday gave way to a rather rough Tuesday through Friday. The Biggest Loser (6.41m/2.3) and Parenthood (4.63m/1.6) both landed in last place. They were joined there by Rock Center (5.1m/1.1), SVU (6.55m/2), 30 Rock (3.88m/1.6), and Up All Night (3.65m/1.7). Whitney (4.06m/1.5) and Chelsea (3.63m/1.5) only dodged the last place designation thanks to CBS airing Person To Person instead of just premiering the new Survivor. The Office (5.19m/2.5) did manage to best The Finder in the demo, but even that once reliable standby is not looking very good at this point. Friday finished with Who Do You Think You Are (5.54m/1.2), Grimm (5.24m/1.6), and Dateline (5.18m/1.5).
CBS - With the huge gains NBC saw on Monday, losses at the other networks were to be expected. The CBS Monday was down, but only slightly, with How I Met Your Mother (9.98m/4), 2 Broke Girls (11.47m/4.3), and Two And A Half Men (13m/4.3) all still in the 4s. Mike & Molly (10.95m/3.4) and Hawaii Five-O (9.97m/2.7) looked solid as well.
The good news continued Tuesday, where the 200th NCIS (20.98m/4.2) also brought big numbers. NCIS LA (16.27m/3.1) and Unforgettable (11.86m/2.2) followed with expected results. The same could be said for Criminal Minds (13.31m/3.3) and CSI (10.88m/2.5). They came on the tail end of the only disappointment for the week, Person To Person (5.9m/1). Thursday was strong across the board, with Big Bang Theory (16.21m/5.6), Rob (10.74m/3.3), Person Of Interest (15.14m/3.3), and The Mentalist (14.68m/3). And Friday brought another winning night thanks to A Gifted Man (8.81m/1.2), CSI NY (10.34m/1.7), and Blue Bloods (11.7m/1.8).
ABC - While it didn’t have the hoopla of The Voice or Smash premieres, ABC had a premiere of their own last week, The River (7.59m/2.4). That’s not horrible. It did put the show ahead of Castle (8.7m/2) and Private Practice (6.52m/2.2) in the demo. However, given the tendency for shows to drop after the premiere, it doesn’t exactly bode well for the future. Earlier in the week, The Bachelor (8.35m/2.6) actually made small gains, despite the new competition from The Voice, and a double-shot of Last Man Standing (7.78m/2.3 – 8.02m/2.5) was okay.
The best news of the week came from Modern Family (12.9m/5.5). It remains the standout anchor of what is a successful Wednesday including The Middle (8.44m/2.6), Suburgatory (7.27m/2.6), Happy Endings (6.7m/2.9), and Revenge (7.7m/2.5). Thursday, Grey’s Anatomy (10.27m/4) was on top in the demo at 9, but Private Practice is down and Wipeout (5.22m/1.5) seems to be burning out.
FOX - The biggest hit from The Voice was probably delivered to House (7.09m/2.5), and Alcatraz (6.91m/2.3). Now that it has been announced that this is the last season of House, that number probably doesn’t really matter. Alcatraz, on the other hand, is still very much in play. This latest drop puts in on approximately the same level as Terra Nova. On the brighter side, that also puts Alcatraz ahead of The Finder (6.22m/2.2), despite the cushy post-Idol spot. American Idol (18.48m/6 – 18.13m/5.8) remains down, but still a huge hit for the network. Elsewhere, Glee (7.81m/3.3) came back to earth after the Michael episode, while New Girl (6.83m/3.5) and Raising Hope (4.47m/2.1) were at normal levels. The week finished with Kitchen Nightmares (3.56m/1.5) and Fringe (3.0/1.1).
CW - It was a full week of programming that included Gossip Girl (1.25m/.6), Hart Of Dixie (1.52m/.6), 90210 (1.34m/.7), Ringer (1.18m/.5), One Tree Hill (1.35m/.7), Remodeled (.62m/.3), Vampire Diaries (3.08m/1.3), Secret Circle (1.82m/.8), Nikita (1.45m/.5), and Supernatural (1.86m/.7). The interesting bit in all of that for me is Ringer. The CW bar is already set incredibly low. Coming in at the bottom of that particular heap doesn’t signal good things.
CABLE
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Clacked by Brett Love 
on Feb 13, 2012 @ 10:00 EST5EDT
I’m number #1 at 10??? Sweet!
*POST AUTHOR*
No. Although I’m fond of you, I’m Team Ivy, not Team Ivey.
No reason you can’t be both.
Though I’m not sure if I’m pulling for Ivy or Karen yet. Need a couple more episodes to play out.
Eeee… those Luck numbers are pretty bad, looking more like a Treme than a Boardwalk Empire, eh?
*POST AUTHOR*
If you would like your glass to be half full… Luck is nearly doubling the ratings for In Treatment!
Shrug.
It’s HBO so it doesn’t REALLY matter. Luck already has a second season, Treme is going on season three, and In Treatment had 3 seasons too.
Still upset they canceled Bored to Death, though.
Would be interesting to know how many people watch the show during the additional airings and on demand….
Cable is so different. Initial airings probably are a minority of episode views for shows like Luck.