Modest Opening for ABC's The Unusuals

THE PROGRAMMING INSIDERThursday, April 9, 2009 Prime-Time Metered Market Wednesday Ratings:Fox Dominates; The Unusuals Builds Out of Lost on ABC Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest TV Trivia Time: A Colorful Question ______________________________________________________________________ Prime-Time Metered Market Wednesday Ratings:Fox Dominates; The Unusuals Builds Out of Lost on ABC Wednesday 4/08/09 HH Rtg/Shr Fox 9.1/15CBS 7.1/11ABC 4.3/ 7NBC 3.5/ 6CW 2.2/ 4 ---------- -Percent Change From the Year-Ago Evening (Wednesday, April 9, 2008):CW: +16, CBS: + 4, ABC: - 2, Fox: -17, NBC: -30 ---------- Note: The fast affiliate results for Wednesday will be posted at PIFeedback by 12 p.m. ET. Go to the website, click on Ratings Box (the first category), then Last Night’s Results, and Wednesday, April 8, 2009. ---------- -Yesterday’s Winners:American Idol (Fox), Criminal Minds (CBS), CSI: NY (CBS) -Let’s Wait and See What the Adult 18-49 Demo Looks Like:Lie To Me (Fox), Lost (ABC), The Unusuals (ABC) -Yesterday’s Losers (Excluding Repeats):Scrubs (ABC), Better Off Ted (ABC), Life (NBC) ---------- -Ratings Breakdown: Fox got over the Wednesday hump in typically winning fashion care of American Idol, which led the night at a 12.9 rating/20 share in the overnights at 9 p.m. So long, Scott! Earlier in the evening, Fox’s Lie To Me won the 8-9 p.m. time period, but it was below-average at a 5.3/ 9. Sad, isn’t it, that a 5.3 overnight rating is actually enough to finish first? CBS got off to a lackluster start last night, with on-the-fence sitcoms The New Adventures of Old Christine (#2: 4.4/ 8) and Gary Unmarried (#2t, 4.3/ 7) failing to impress at a time when every rating point is pivotal. The network got better news, of course, as a result of Criminal Minds at 9 p.m. (#2: 8.8/14). And CSI: NY capped off the evening with a first-place 8.2/14 at 10 p.m. In series-premiere news, ABC dramedy The Unusuals was nothing unusual, with a second-place 5.1/ 9 in the overnights at 10 p.m. But it did build from the second-half of lead-in Lost (4.8/ 7 at 9:30 p.m.) by six percent, and it was an improvement over recent occupant Life on Mars. So, let’s wait and see what the demos look like before drawing any conclusions. Since Lost always scores among adults 18-49, chances are The Unusuals was amply sampled in the demo. Earlier in the evening on ABC was the failing combination of Scrubs (#4: 3.3/ 6) and Better Off Ted (#4: 2.9/ 5) from 8-9 p.m., followed by the full hour of Lost at a third-place 4.8/ 7 in the overnights from 9-10 p.m. Keep in mind that as we delve further into spring, HUT levels continue to diminish (hence the weaker returns). NBC opened the night with a repeat of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, which is nothing more than time period filler, at a third-place 4.1/ 7 from 8-9 p.m. While that may not sound like much, it is a noticeable improvement over recent time period flop The Chopping Block. That led into the season (or series) finale of Life at a typically bland (and fourth-place) 2.9/ 5 at 9 p.m. In other words, chances are we will not be seeing a third season of Life. Capping off Wednesday for NBC was a repeat of Law & Order third at a 3.6/ 6 at 10 p.m. Over at the CW was America’s Next Top Model (#5: 2.9/ 5), followed by a clips edition of Top Model at a last-place 1.7/ 3. Source: Nielsen Media Research data _______________________________________________________________________________________ Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not -National Ratings in Syndication – Week of March 23:What follows are the top 20 rated series in syndication (first-run and off-network) based on households for the week of March 23, followed by any highlights of note. Keep in mind that some shows cleared on the CBS affiliates were pre-empted in numerous markets by the NCAA Basketball Tournament on Thursday and Friday of this week. Wheel of Fortune (CBS Television Distribution): 7.3 rating, Jeopardy (CBS): 5.7, Oprah (CBS): 5.3, Two and a Half Men (Warner Bros.): 4.9, Judge Judy (CBS): 4.4, Entertainment Tonight (CBS): 4.3, Family Guy (Twentieth Television): 4.0, Seinfeld (Sony Pictures Television): 3.7, Dr. Phil (CBS): 3.6, Everybody Loves Raymond (CBS), Law & Order: SVU (NBC Universal) and Seinfeld – Weekend (SPT): 3.0 each, George Lopez (Warner Bros.) and Inside Edition (CBS): 2.9 each, King of the Hill (Twentieth) and Live With Regis & Kelly (Disney-ABC): 2.8 each, Two and a Half Men – Weekend (Warner Bros.): 2.7, King of Queens (SPT): 2.6, CSI: Miami (CBS): 2.4 -Dr. Phil increased 16 percent in households from one week earlier -- the largest weekly gain of any first-run strip. -Entertainment Tonight had the biggest year-to-year rise of any strip in access, with growth of 10 percent in households. -Judge Judy bested the second highest rated court show strip, CBS Television Distribution’s Judge Joe Brown (2.3), by 91 percent. -Including ties, CBS’ The Doctors (1.9) has now topped the first-run freshman class for 10 consecutive weeks. -Two and a Half Men reached 75 straight weeks as the top-rated off-net sitcom in households, with its streak among adults 25-54 now at 79 weeks. -NBCU’s The Steve Wilkos Show (1.2) tied its season-high, with growth of 33 percent from one year earlier in households and as much as 60 percent among women 18-34. Source: Nielsen Media Research data_______________________________________________________________________________ On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options Thursday 4/09/09 ABC: 8:00 p.m. In the Motherhood 8:30 p.m. Samantha Who? 9:00 p.m. Grey’s Anatomy (R)10:00 p.m. Private Practice (R) CBS: 8:00 p.m. Survivor: Tocantins 9:00 p.m. CSI 10:00 p.m. Harper’s Island (premiere) NBC: 8:00 p.m. The Office 8:30 p.m. Parks and Recreation (premiere) 9:00 p.m. The Office 9:30 p.m. 30 Rock10:00 p.m. Southland (premiere) Fox: 8:00 p.m. Bones 9:00 p.m. Hell’s Kitchen CW: 8:00 p.m. Smallville (R) 9:00 p.m. Supernatural (R) MTNV 8:00 p.m. Movie: Sweepers (R) New Program Descriptions Parks and Recreation (NBC) -The Scoop:Former Saturday Night Live star Amy Poehler plays an Indiana based parks and recreation employee who attempts to take on the system to improve her own town in this new sitcom. -The Reality:Had NBC found a better suited vehicle for the past SNL star (how about a harried mother with a few rambunctious kids, a dumbbell husband, smart-mouthed housekeeper and wacky neighbor?), this might have a chance. Poehler does, no doubt, possess solid comedic chops. But casting her as an Indiana based parks and recreation employee sounds a) limited, b) boring and c) more like a public service announcement than a comedy. Who the heck named this show? Since Parks and Recreation is set in Indiana, I have an idea. How about sending over former One Day at a Time janitor Dwayne Schneider for a visit? I bet Pat Harrington, Jr. could use the gig. ---------- Harper’s Island (CBS) -The Scoop:Friends and family attending a wedding in a secluded island off the coast of Seattle are murdered one by one in this Agatha Christy-like murder mystery. -The Reality:Although one look at this show and you might wonder how long it can last, the goal from the get-go is just 13 episodes. If it works, there are plenty of other places where random murders can occur. I can already envision this as a midseason utility player. For years, I have criticized CBS for relying on too many crime dramas. But what I like about Harper’s Island is the Ten Little Indians-like element of mystery. It’s like a scripted reality/competition where you root for your favorite characters to survive and just the opposite for the ones you hate. Out of CSI, which is alive and still well despite the absence of William Petersen, Harper’s Island could be a good fit. But if the initial sampling is limited, the serialized nature of the story-telling will not be beneficial. ---------- Southland (NBC) -The Scoop:The lives of cops, criminals, victims and their families is the focus of this new ensemble crime drama headlined by former The O.C. star Benjamin McKenzie. -The Reality:While the premise certainly sounds happily familiar, the similar appeal Hill Street Blues, which aired in the Thursday 10 p.m. hour from 1981 to 1987, was never a big ratings hit. Even so, NBC is in need of a replacement for ER and it makes sense to go back to the well for something that viewers may be able to relate to. Too bad, though, that lead-in 30 Rock is not a stronger show. Emmys, yes, but a mass appeal audience…no. ________________________________________________________________________ TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest -ABC Announces Summer Schedule:As an addendum to Monday’s item on ABC’s upcoming summer schedule, the network has announced that season two of Here Come the Newlyweds will air Mondays at 10 p.m. ET out of the weekly two-hour edition of The Bachelorette effective on May 25. Season two of game show Wipeout will kick-off on Wednesday, May 27 at 8 p.m. ET, followed by aforementioned new animated sitcom The Goode Family from King of the Hill creator Mike Judge at 9 p.m. ET. New hour The Superstars, based on ABC’s classic Wide World of Sports franchise, will launch on Tuesday, June 23 at 8 p.m. ET. And season two of I Survived a Japanese Game Show will open on Wednesday, July 8 at 9 p.m. ET. In a nutshell: Monday 8:00 p.m.: The Bachelorette (returns on May 18 with a two-hour edition from 9-11 p.m.; regularly scheduled from 8-10 p.m.)10:00 p.m.: Here Come the Newlyweds (season premiere, May 25) Tuesday 8:00 p.m.: The Superstars (premiere, June 23) Wednesday 8:00 p.m.: Wipeout (season premiere, May 27) 9:00 p.m. The Goode Family (premiere, May 27) / I Survived a Japanese Game Show (season premiere, July 8) --------------- -More Eastbound & Down:HBO has renewed comedy Eastbound & Down for a second season, with an unspecified number of new episodes slated for 2010. -That’s a Wrap:Fox’s Prison Break, which returns on April 17, will officially conclude five weeks later with a two-hour installment on May 15. Current on-the-fence Friday 9 p.m. occupant Dollhouse will wrap-up the season (or series) one week earlier. And Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, which airs at 8 p.m., is exiting tomorrow. There is no reason to believe that Sarah Connor will be back for a third season. _________________________________________________________________________ TV Trivia Time:A Colorful Question What was the name of the detective agency on Moonlighting? a) Blue Moonb) Gray Skies c) Green Grass d) Silver Rainbowe) Yellow Rose The answer to yesterday’s question… Which TV character would be the least likely to be leaving early for a Passover Seder tonight? Joel FleishmanEllenor FruttGreg MaxwellHesh RabkinAndrea Zuckerman Is: c) Greg Maxwell, who was the doctor and friend of the Bradfords on Eight is Enough. As for the others: -Joel Fleishman: Northern Exposure-Ellenor Frutt: The Practice -Hesh Rabkin: The Sopranos-Andrea Zuckerman: Beverly Hills, 90210 All together now… There's a magic in the early morning we found, When the sun rise smiles on everything around. It's a portrait of the happiness that we feel and always will, For eight is enough to fill our lives with love. Oh we spend our days like bright and shiny new dimes. If we're ever puzzled by the changing times. There's a plate of homemade wishes on the kitchen window sill, And eight is enough to fill our lives with love. -Current kudos goes to:Gerry Bixenspan, Barri Bronston, John Brooker, Larry Collins, Kristin Conner, Annie Courtney, Adam Giagni, Maureen Goldman, Kerry Hughes, Bob Ingersoll, Synda Kollman, Debbie Mirr, Michael Murphy, Laura Nachman, Alan Perris, Neal Sabin, Ronnie Tallant, Don Webb

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Modest Opening for ABC's The Unusuals

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