| Scoreboard |  |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rating/Share: Adults 18-49 | 6.2/16 | 3.6/10 | 3.2/9 | 2.0/6 | 1.5/4 | 0.9/2 |
| Rating/Share: Adults 18-34 | 4.8/15 | 2.9/9 | 2.1/7 | 1.5/5 | 1.6/5 | 1.1/3 |
| Total Viewers (million) | 16.538 | 9.252 | 14.906 | 7.825 | 3.863 | 1.892 |
Tuesday ratings have become boringly predictable. Fox wins with American Idol and Fringe. NBC finishes a solid second with Law & Order: SVU. CBS is a credible third, while ABC gets crushed. The finale of Better off Ted drew a pitiful 1.2 18-49 demo rating. Call the undertaker.
Fox’s numbers again for the night were nearly identical to the previous Tuesday’s TV ratings, but American Idol was up a few ticks in each demo, while Fringe was nearly identical slipped a few. Let the “Fringe is or isn’t a hit” nitpicking begin! Those involved in the show don’t care about your silly arguments, Fringe has already been renewed for a full season.
Everybody else was very close to last Tuesday’s numbers as well. NBC was down a couple ticks overall, no Hilary Duff on Law & Order: SVU perhaps. CBS was identical overall for the night. ABC was up a tick in 18-34, and wishes TV viewing could just skip directly from Monday night to Wednesday. Their awful Tuesday’s cannot end soon enough. The CW was up a tick in each demo vs. last Tuesday.
It’s likely that the numbers for the first half hours of Fringe and Cupid have a few minutes of viewership from Idol and Dancing in them. Those will be removed in the final numbers.
You can see past Tuesday overnight TV ratings reports here.
Full details:
| 18-49 Rating | 18-49 Share | 18-34 Rating | 18-34 Share | Viewers Live+SD (000) | |||
| 8:00 | FOX | American Idol | 8.1 | 23 | 6.1 | 19 | 22.638 |
| CBS | NCIS | 3.4 | 9 | 2.3 | 7 | 16.276 | |
| NBC | Biggest Loser: Couples | 3.0 | 9 | 2.5 | 8 | 8.053 | |
| ABC | Scrubs | 1.5 | 4 | 1.5 | 5 | 3.830 | |
| UNI | Cuidado con el Angel | 1.4 | 4 | 1.5 | 5 | 3.772 | |
| CW | Reaper | 0.8 | 2 | 0.9 | 3 | 1.900 | |
| 8:00 | ABC | Better Off Ted (finale) | 1.2 | 3 | 1.0 | 3 | 3.217 |
| 9:00 | FOX | Fringe | 4.3 | 11 | 3.5 | 10 | 10.438 |
| NBC | Biggest Loser: Couples | 4.0 | 10 | 3.2 | 9 | 9.912 | |
| CBS | The Mentalist | 3.6 | 9 | 2.5 | 7 | 16.508 | |
| ABC | Dancing With the Stars: Results | 3.1 | 8 | 2.0 | 6 | 14.270 | |
| UNI | Mañana Es Para Siempre | 1.9 | 5 | 2.1 | 6 | 4.665 | |
| CW | 90210 | 1.0 | 2 | 1.4 | 4 | 1.885 | |
| 10:00 | NBC | Law & Order: SVU | 3.7 | 10 | 2.9 | 9 | 9.791 |
| CBS | Without A Trace | 2.6 | 7 | 1.6 | 5 | 11.933 | |
| ABC | Cupid | 1.7 | 5 | 1.3 | 4 | 5.682 | |
| UNI | Aqui y Ahora | 1.3 | 4 | 1.2 | 4 | 3.151 |
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Nielsen TV Ratings: ©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.
Definitions:
Fast Affiliate Ratings: These first national ratings, including demographics, are available at approximately 11 AM (ET) the day after telecast, and are released to subscribing customers daily. These data, from the National People Meter sample, are strictly time-period information, based on the normal broadcast network feed, and include all programming on the affiliated stations, sometimes including network programming, sometimes not. The figures may include stations that did not air the entire network feed, as well as local news breaks or cutaways for local coverage or other programming. Fast Affiliate ratings are not as useful for live programs and are likely to differ significantly from the final results, because the data reflect normal broadcast feed patterns. For example, with a World Series game, Fast Affiliate Ratings would include whatever aired from 8-11PM on affiliates in the Pacific Time Zone, following the live football game, but not game coverage that begins at 5PM PT. The same would be true of Presidential debates as well as live award shows and breaking news reports.
Rating: Estimated percentage of the universe of TV households (or other specified group) tuned to a program in the average minute. Ratings are expressed as a percent.
Share (of Audience): The percent of households (or persons) using television who are tuned to a specific program, station or network in a specific area at a specific time. (See also, Rating, which represents tuning or viewing as a percent of the entire population being measured.)
Time Shifted Viewing – Program ratings for national sources are produced in three streams of data – Live, Live+Same Day (Live+SD) and Live+7 Day. Time shifted figures account for incremental viewing that takes place with DVRs which are currently in approximately 24.4% of all U.S. TV households. Live+Same Day (Live+SD) include viewing during the same broadcast day as the original telecast, with a cut-off of 3:00AM local time when meters transmit daily viewing to Nielsen for processing. Live+7 Day ratings include incremental viewing that takes place during the 7 days following a telecast.
For more information see Numbers 101.
RIP scrubs.
Poor Ted. Saw some potential in that show. Guess it would be a miracle for the 2nd season to happen.
well i watched when Hilary (one L by the way) was on SVU and did not watch this week and i know im not the only one
To be fair to Better Off Ted, it aired on a tuesday after being bumped by Obama’s speech by a week.
looks like Fringe was a 3.8 in the finals.
True. Samantha Who? had it worse though. First week back, it was up against Idol. The second week, it was against an ER finale. By their third week, it was hard for the show to recover in ratings.
Still, Ted had a really unfair timeslot for their finale.
Damn, too bad Better Off Ted is gonna get the Ax. What is it with ABC canceling really funny sitcoms? Scrubs, Better Off Ted, and last year with Carpool (or something along those lines). That carpool show was freakin’ halarious!
Forgive my babbling mood, but it is what it is today. I try if in TV mode to find one show maybe an hour I can stand. Often, Scrubs in syndication has fit the bill. Give it up – w/o it, you may well not have had Arressted Dev, Office, 30 Rock. If the sitcom comes back from the ” dead,” and I think it has a chance, like a positive domino effect, it will be partly because of Scrubs. Oh, yeah, its funny how the mainstream entertainment media hails Mentalist as a big hit, and I suppose it is, but its 18-49 numbers are just in the middle of the pack.
Scrubs will not be brought back at these ratings points…and after watching the finale i am glad…it was a tremendous end to the series
Bravo to Bill Lawrence and crew
I don’t like that final Fringe number, 3.8. That’s a hell of a slip from 4.3! Can that be correct?
Given that this week’s episode was excellent, and the finale is next week, I suspect crappy Neilsen data.
I’d be expecting better figures after all that delay from Nielsen, especially for the Sunday data. I’m glad that Castle figures went up though, even if it was after DWTS.
Why is reaper getting cancelled? It gets better ratings than 90210 despite being up against american idol. But loses alot in the demos to idol. It is also ok in the Renew/Cancel index.
Who are the extra viewers it gets over 90210, are they -18 or 49+
It’s a shame Scrubs was so low. I watched the finale and I really though it was a great way for the show to say goodbye. It’s definitely better than the way NBC bid it farewell!
And yes I know this isn’t the Finale’s ratings but I don’t see the numbers for that being much better
and wednesday????????
RSH, It depends on how much Idol overrun there was. If the early numbers include 3-4 minutes of Idol, than a 0.5 drop isn’t all that odd. That happens to all the 10 pm ABC shows since they plan a 2 minute overrun every night (well, except Friday and Saturday).
Another good program canned no doubt. Better off Ted could of been the best comedy around, but people just don’t get different. They like stupid, but funny as I watch it, comedy’s like Two and a Half Men. These type of shows will never stick around. Surprised Arrested Development last three seasons.
David, I’m not saying I agree with the CW’s exclusive focus on women 18-34, but it is what it is.
By that measure, 90210’s (2.0 rating women 18-34) is kicking Reaper’s ass (0.8 rating women 18-34).
Wednesday ratings will be out on Friday morning this week.
Nath I think NBC is the only network that can pull off something like Better Off Ted. ABC tried it but I don’t think that kind of Comedy fits with ABC’s brand.
Doesn’t Ted have 5 more episodes filmed or something? I heard that they filmed around 12 episodes or something. If the show gets axed, hopefully the remaining episodes will air in the summer. But that’s my wishful thinking.
Still, I hope for a second season. Even if the chances are very very slim.
Bye Better Off Ted, you were really funny while it lasted.
@David Lawn
Because it’s a unique situation and for some reason CW cares more about female viewers 14-34 than anything else. And when it comes to females 14-34 Reaper is performing worse than I think any other show on CW. So even if it’s ratings are great…it just doesn’t draw the right audience.
I think the CW is nuts for targeting the audience that they do. But we are talking about a network that canceled Friday Night Smackdown because it didn’t fit their brand even though it was the highest rated thing they had.
Let’s not forget, Better Off Ted normally airs Wednesdays. This episode got bumped at the last minute for Obama, and got no promotion about its special time.
Scrubs too.
Bill I think that should be noted.
Oh ok fair enough, I don’t think more girls will watch one tree hill because of another female orientated show. But I know guys will stay clear of the channel as a whole.
I suppose they could get better looking blokes and have more sex in the show, but the demons element can’t really change
BOTFan, I don’t see how it would have had much higher ratings on Wednesday night. Maybe .5 higher in the demo but not enough to make a difference in it’s chances for renewal
I was shocked to find out on Tuesday that Scrubs was a new episode. The only reason I knew was because I happened to check out the info on the satellite box. I think that certainly accounts for the extra-low ratings it received. I hope the finale did better.
Maybe I’m looking in the wrong place, but how have Fringe’s numbers slipped from last week?
Talking about CW, I wonder how ANTM performed. After all, ANTM is one of CW’s highest-rated show.
Andrea, last week Fringe had a 4.0 adults 18-49 rating in the finals. this week it looks like it’s a 3.8.
Andrea, no, you were simply witnessing my bad averaging in my head! Fixed.
@Robert, but in fairness to Andrea, the overnight numbers were nearly identical.
Well 3.8 in the finals is excellent Richards. The – 0.5 si after removing idol boost. So it’s still beating 24 and the mentalist demos, wich is a good thing.
i knew better off ted would not do good on a tuesday against Idol. That had to be the worst time slot for it. stupid obama! ABC better not cancel it!
90210 is a big failure, kill it already
BOT got screwed over. Like someone said above Better Off Ted normally airs on Wednesdays. This episode got bumped at the last minute for Obama, and got no promotion about its special time. you can’t possibly go off saying ooohhhh it drew a pitiful demo like if it always aired on that night. thats not fair. many people didn’t even know about the time change. i wouldn’t have even known if i didn’t look at the tv schedule. i’m positive the ratings would have been better if it aired on the normal night. it would have probably been the same ‘not great ratings’ but it would not have been so bad. i know ratings are important ‘yada yada’ but sometimes quality is good too. u guys are missing out on a good show, its obviously too smart for some people…..
Lots of ABC sitcoms got screwed over this season. Poor promotions, poor scheduling change and so forth. I have a feeling Castle will be the only new ABC show to receive renewal from this season (I really hope Castle makes second season). I’m still on the fence about The Unusuals.
kellie, and other BOT fans:
Agreed that Ted didn’t air in its usual timeslot.
Agreed that away from ABC’s Tuesday catastrophe zone it would likely have done better.
Not agreed that it would have made a difference in the future of the show. It’s a goner.
“BOTFan, I don’t see how it would have had much higher ratings on Wednesday night. Maybe .5 higher in the demo but not enough to make a difference in it’s chances for renewal”
People would have known to watch it, and it wouldnt be against Idol.
BOT wasn’t coming back anyway, so I don’t know why people are upset that its changed schedule ruined things for it.
Kellie, please don’t start the too smart for people argument. It’s old and tired. (I do watch BOT and it has improved since the horrible horrible premiere, but it’s definitely not too smart for anyone.)
Robert, NOW do you agree that Better Off Ted is definitely dead?
As much as I like “Better Off Ted” and would be happy to see it back, I have to cast an arched eyebrow at “three” “brand new” posters who seem to be using the same script.
I obviously have bias, but I think it’ll be back. ABC gives its shows a chance normally, and it seems like network brass like it.
@Julia, Did it get a lot better? I tried watching the premiere and had to turn it off.
The inner workings of the CW:
GOSSIP GIRL has a 1.1 average lately in the demo. They kill the spin off idea before the backdoor pilot airs.
90210 has a 1.0 average lately in the demo. They green light the MELROSE PLACE spin off/reboot.
What a smart, smart, smart woman Dawn is. At least it is guaranteed to be her last year. She’s convinced sticking to the 18-34 female demo will turn profit for them next year.
Hey stop laughing people, it’s rude to laugh at the mentally challenged.
actually bill i think ur wrong on that but ABC isnt stupid. they know they put better off ted on at a bad time and there was not all that many promotions about it. i just wanna wait and see how scrubs finale went. i think ABC will base its fate on that instead of how it did on tuesday.
Holly, it’s turned into something that is mildly enjoyable. I wouldn’t rate it as anywhere near my top favorite shows, but it’s entertaining enough to watch while doing dishes.
Sooo.. not worth fighting with the ABC player, then. Thanks
But when it gets to Hulu, go for it.
Nick, how do u know CW is killing GG spin off?
90210 should be cancelled! its a bad show, it started good but it has become in a non-sense teenage drama.
Reaper has more viewers and should keep on air (besides it’s against American Idol!)
Dawn is so crazy!
xx
Sadness. I love Better off Ted.
Ben, because Nikki Findle has updated her blog saying that the spinoff of Gossip Girl is dead
http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/that-gossip-girl-spinoff-dead-at-cw/
Ben, Nikki Finke reported she heard the spinoff was killed:
http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/that-gossip-girl-spinoff-dead-at-cw/
Well thank god for once there was a link somewhere to what I heard. I hate having to type “It’s what I was told!”
Hmm, does that mean Body Politic is dead?
ABC is in troubles… Because they have to many holes to fill!
OK, I’ll accept the final Fringe numbers. I’d just prefer it stay around or north of 4.0 just to keep the retentionistas from getting any more “evidence” that it’s really doomed as soon as it leaves AI.
ABC has Monday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday sorted. Now, they really need to work on Tuesday and Wednesday! They REALLY need to. Maybe promote MORE of Tuesday and Wednesday shows!!
Julia, I think it will be a mid-season pick up. VAMPIRE DIARIES, MELROSE PLACE, and THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE are definite pick ups.
oh, the “older skewing” Mentalist was only .2 behind the “younger skewing” and “behind the #1 show on tv” in the demos.. yes, Fringe is a huge hit
It’ll go up once Leonard Nimoy appears on Fringe. Besides, even with it down to a 3.8, that still beat the Mentalist.
ThePattern, you sound just like Joss’s Biggest Fan, lol.
So that means we’ll be lucky to get 13 episodes of Body Politic. I mean, when was the last time a midseason pick up worked for CW, WB or UPN?
Cool, I’m not sure you know what skewing means. The Mentalist had 80% more viewers than Fringe, but Fringe still beat it in the demo. That means The Mentalist skews older and Fringe skews younger. Skewing old isn’t a bad thing as long as you still get enough demo viewers.
Julia, 2005? Many of the WB’s biggest shows started off as mid-season pickups. I hope it gets picked up it would likely do extremely well. Definitely better than the crap they are green lighting.
2005’s midseason show on WB was Bedford Diaries. If there were any others that year, I don’t recall them.
cool said that Fringe is a hit in the demo. All those viewers that left in the demo were overruns from AI, therefore they had no attention of watching Fringe. 24 had similar ratings 5 years ago when paired with Idol. Same difference.
Hmm, I’ve got my years mixed up I guess. Bedford Diaries was apparently 2006, along with Pepper Dennis. Living with Fran was a midseason show in 2005 that ended up lasting for 20 episodes.
Instead of saying Fringe is a hit (and I love Fringe), how about we call it a solid performer.
The problem with the title of the main post is it says “Same Ol’…” which implies Scrubs and BOT regularly air on Tuesdays, which is not the case.
Sure, Fringe is a solid performer. I got no problem with that. It’s just a hit compared to a lot of other crappy stuff.
“Solid performer” is the new “hit”.
Someone on Berman’s site has the percentages gained and lost for each new show against shows in the same spot a year ago. It’s quite interesting.
American Idol is down just 1%. Fringe is down 27% against Hell’s Kitchen in the slot a year ago. Still, even though I don’t watch Fringe, I’d rather have a drama doing 1/4 less than have anymore reality shows anywhere.
The Mentalist is up a startling 71%
against Shark.
Reaper is up 14% against Beauty and the Geek.
better off ted was on last night? I tough Scrubs was tacking up the hole hour?
I want to know why such a good show in Scrubs was once a massive show on NBC, way back in 2001-2003 it was pulling 10-15m viewers, season 2 has near 16 million viewers, how was that possible and looking at now it has the best part of 4.5million cuz of the crappy time slot!!
What was so different that it lost the best part of 11 million viewers??
I really love scrubs and it was such an emotional send off for JD, i was reduced 2 tears!!…But i really wish all those fans who once loved the show have come back and watched the send off to one of the most under-rated shows ever on tv..The finale was top class!!!
I’m sad to see Better Off Ted go but agree that even on Wednesdays the numbers doomed the show. It was one the better comedies on air and Portia de Rossi was particularly good. Such is the TV world though. BOT on Tuesday is definitely NOT a same ol’ Tuesday Rating. Bad article title.
R Kid, Scrubs was never massive on NBC. It had middling success and hit the right demos. That’s all.
How exactly did network executives come to renewing 90210? Even for the CW those numbers look pretty bad…
Well pretty much business as usual for Tuesday then.
90210’s 18-49 is horrific though, I know that’s not the demo The CW really cares about but still, a 1.0? Really?
BOTFan, on the contrary, in terms of overall network average ratings, the last 3 Tuesdays have all been nearly identical (except for CBS 2 weeks ago with repeats), hence Same Ol’ Tuesday Ratings. And no, my headline writing isn’t going to save or doom BOT.
Richard Steven Hack said…..”Sure, Fringe is a solid performer. I got no problem with that. It’s just a hit compared to a lot of other crappy stuff.”
I think “crappy stuff” is a good category to put FRINGE in. Good idea.
Well, even if Fringe pushed a 4.5 with 14 millions viewers every week, people would still blast and say the show is a failure, will be canceled, or this only beacause of idol bla bla bla… So… whatever
I felt the 1st few episodes were horrible, but they’ve improved since. The episode Ability and Bad Dreams were especially good. It’s become more like Damages (my favorite show by the way) in the sense that you don’t know who is on whose side and you don’t know which side is good except Olivia is good.
Fringe has also become very baroque in that it’s become very complicated like Damages. Especially the storyline about the parallel universe. However, Damages is still the better show.
I completely agree with you, Sam. Most people that I read on other web sites especially the tv critics (For example, TV Guide’s Matt Roush now praises Fringe and so do people who comment on Entrtainment Weekly’s site.), seem to like the show. However, people on this site want to pounce on Fringe for some odd reason. Leonard Nimoy wouldn’t have agreed to guest star if he thought Fringe was bad.
24 had similar ratings to Fringe when it was paired with AI 6 years ago.
FRINGE
About Lily:
Good.
I don’t know who really thought that CW’s targeted 18-34 viewers would have any nostalgia for the 80s. I honestly don’t understand how anyone thought it would succeed.
Fringe is definately a hit when compared to Fox other new shows such as Lie to Me and the very poorly performing Dollhouse. Everyone is pretty much in agreement that The Mentalist is a hit this season and Fringe beat it in the demos so OBJECTIVELY it is a hit.
Yeah, that was my point. Fringe is a hit because it’s new and it’s doing well – and would do well with or without AI.
It’s definitely not crappy. And I don’t think it’s too complicated – yet. We’ll have to see what happens in the finale.
And again, I just hope JJ doesn’t blow it next season by doing some weird complicated “Lost” thing. I mean, an inter-dimensional war is going to be hard to put across sensibly. As long as it remains rooted in the real world like the show has been so far, it will be OK. If it starts going “Doctor Who”, it will jump the shark fast.
And God forbid they bring in time travel!
I’m curious what the 9:30 numbers are for Fringe. If it lost another sizable chunk when the AI fans decided to change the channel.
Another thing with Fringe, the opening scenes are almost too cheesy. This past Tuesday the acting was painfully funny to watch, almost as bad as an entire episode of Dollhouse.
Fringe does “wow” me to an extent, but it generally takes a while each episode.
It’s funny what people consider “good acting”.
I’ve rarely seen anything I consider “bad acting” on Fringe – and although I’ve seen some on Dollhouse, it’s been relatively rare. Even Eliza is believable most of the time – as long as she isn’t playing the Doll role, which by definition isn’t “believable” because there’s no personality there to portray. That’s one of the problems with the show.
Some people dislike the guy who plays FBI agent Ballard on Dollhouse. I find him believable, if not particularly interesting or engaging either as an actor or as the character. I like Harry Lennix better.
I cut actors some slack. I’ve seen some truly bad acting in my day – notable from Racquel Welch who never once delivered a line I thought was believable in her entire career (not that anybody cared!). And there have been some really bad times in Chuck Norris’s early career that made Arnold Schwarzenegger look good.
But most actors are at least adequate. They wouldn’t get hired otherwise. They do have to audition and show some experience to get the roles they get.
Most of the time what people call “bad acting” is actually “bad dialog” – and that’s the writers fault, not the actors. I’ve seen some of that on Fringe and many other shows. Also, bad directing can result in what appears to be bad acting.
Another example is all the people who couldn’t understand Summer Glau as Cameron. She’s playing a ROBOT for Christ’s sakes! Summer explained over and over in her interviews that you can’t play a robot like a normal actress and Carson Daly got it when he said to play this role you almost have to be a bad actress. But a lot of people still babbled about “bad acting”, even after “Allison From Palmdale” which should have gotten Summer an Emmy nomination by playing three different roles in the same show. Even Shirley Manson was entirely believable in her role on TSCC, despite never having acted before she was cast. And that was because she was playing a robot and never had to extend herself – that and the fact that as a rock star she IS a performer.
Not every acting performance has to be Oscar or Emmy quality to be “good”. It just has to not distract you from the show excessively.
Come on! 90210 is a good show now, they are really succeeding at making it like the original now. I hope 90210 and Melrose Place and get good ratings next year!!!
Nah, just referring to the opening scenes on Fringe, not the entirety of the episode. Who knows, it could be intentional, to wrap in the average American Idol viewer. (I can’t resist.)
Hack, oh you’re amazing to watch. Seeing you go off on a tangent and rant is just priceless. Dollhouse wasn’t necessarily bad, I just feel Dushku cannot carry a series.
As for TSCC, the most under appreciated was Dillahunt.
Chad: Thanks for the compliment! LOL
Yeah, Garrett was pretty good. I never really found him that engaging, but he wasn’t bad. I kinda liked Owain Yoeman in the original Cromartie role. He looked more sinister, although not quite as creepy as Garrett could be with his weird half smile. To make a simile, Owain was more Arnold, while Garret was more Robert Patrick.
I think Eliza could carry a series – just not this one.
But to compare to her, Summer Glau could carry a series with one hand. If they want a Terminator show to work, just make her the central character, give her a couple other actors to play the humans needed to make audience connections, let the show be like “The Hulk” or “The Fugitive” – and it would go five seasons if the writers and directors were competent. “Highlander” surprised everybody by doing just that AND spinning off two movies and another series.
R Kid, I think it’s sad that Scrubs lost ratings early on…I wonder if the drop after Season 3 was because of J.D. dumping Elliot (after she broke up with Sean for her). He came off as really callous and mean, so I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of people gave up on the show then. I tried to get a friend to watch the show and that was the first episode she watched…and I think the last.
I’m not saying the writers shouldn’t have done what they felt was best for the show, but making those kind of choices can cost viewers.
As for me, I did watch the show trhough, even when J.D. was mean.
I actually didn’t really care for Season 7’s wacky hijinks, so I was pleasantly surprised by how good Season 8 was. The finale was almost perfect…I loved the probably-happy but bittersweet ending. 
I’m a bit surprised and sorry that its prominence in syndication didn’t translate to higher ratings this season, but my co-worker who says she really likes Scrubs didn’t even know that it was on in prime time..
As for Better Off Ted, I know that it was a longshot regardless, but if the ratings were flat or even went up a tick for the finale, I reckon ABC would have given it a second look. I thought it had more laugh-out-loud funny moments than anything else this season (with the possible exception of 30 Rock)…but if I hadn’t been randomly Googling Better Off Ted ratings I never would have known that the finale was Tuesday (and I also would’ve missed that Tuesday episode of Scrubs). I think viewers are smart enough to follow shows when they make a permanent timeslot shift, but I only watch Scrubs and BOT on ABC, so even if ABC had aired advertisements about the timeslot shift, I wouldn’t have seen them.
I love Summer Glau. By the way, I love Chuck and I want to see that renewed. Why won’t NBC put Heroes out of its misery.
because its one of their highest rated 18-49 show?
3.8 in the 18-49 demo for fringe is not a “hit”, its barely a “solid performer”. Or did you forget that the first couple of episodes after AI got around 4.5 – 4.7 ratings? Heck, I remember episode 13 getting over 5 in the demos!
Fringe is not doing well after AI. It’s now getting the same numbers it got when it was paired with House.
hell, this time last year, Hell’s Kitchen got almost 30% higher ratings in the demo than Fringe. And that show gets around 3 in the demo without AI’s help.
True but that’s the kind of show that appeals to the same viewers as Idol. Remember, what I said, 24 did similar numbers and retention rates as Fringe doing right now after Idol
Nobody cares what some other show did last year in the same time slot even if it aired after the same lead-in.
And 3.8 is one week’s demo number – not the series average. People jumping on one week’s number are people trying to denigrate the show regardless of facts.
It’s not surprising to me that Fringe has lost some viewers along the way. It’s a hard show to both understand and like in the same way some sitcom might be. It’s a complicated show both in individual episodes and in its overall story arc. So I’d expect some bleeding of viewers from its debut. The question will be: as the story arc gets more complicated, will the bleeding continue?
We won’t really know that until season two. Which is why I worry about how JJ will present the continued development of the mythology of the show next season. It’s going to be hard to tell a compelling story about an inter-dimensional war that is easy for the wider audience to understand.
I could see the show possibly bleeding viewers next season and ending up as a two-season show, regardless of how well it’s done, just because of the subject matter.
But by the same token, if it’s done well enough to counter that problem, it could do an X-Files and run five seasons.
It’s way too early to be declaring Fringe a loser.
Again, 24 got similar numbers as Fringe has been getting after American Idol I wish somebody would address that.
24 got over 5 in the demo, stop saying that.
@Richard Steven Hack
ever since Fringe returned in april 7, it’s been getting ratings in the range of 3.7 and 4.1. The average of this run is around 3.9.
“Nobody cares what some other show did last year in the same time slot even if it aired after the same lead-in.”
Erm, fox does. They are wasting the post ai timeslot with Fringe. It’s only barely edging out Mentalist/Biggest Loser, in fact, int he 2nd half hour, BL often beats Fringe. And the overall viewership is low.
“It’s not surprising to me that Fringe has lost some viewers along the way. It’s a hard show to both understand and like in the same way some sitcom might be.”
Oh please, dont be absurd. Fringe is fairly easily to follow. Even the most serialized episodes have episodic elements. Fringe is far from a true high concept show like Lost, Prison Break or even 24.
The show is definitely bleeding viewers. Before the hiatus, it averaged around 4.5 with AI..
it’s now getting almost the same numbers it got when it was paired with House.
I am not really worried for Fringe, because even on it’s own, I think it’s able to get upper 2’s in the demo(2.8-3.0) which should be more than enough for FOX with some budget cuts, plus its a watercooler show, however, saying it’s getting good ratings IS absurd. It’s decent, but nowhere near a hit, or anything like that.
“24 got over 5 in the demo, stop saying that.”
Was Idol itself not pulling bigger numbers back then though?
So you pick the shows since the return to get a “season average”. Interesting, but not germane to my point.
Fox is only “wasting the time slot” if they had something better to put there. Since they haven’t, obviously they don’t. If you’d like a job scheduling Fox programs, I’m sure they have application forms on the Web site.
My point about Fringe being hard to understand is that it’s not a sitcom. I didn’t say it was impossible to understand. I said compared to a sitcom it’s hard. It’s a SERIAL, not a procedural, although JJ does an excellent job of combining those elements so that the serial nature does not overshadow the procedural. My point stands – it’s still harder to get into than a full procedural or a sitcom.
Dropping half a point after a hiatus doesn’t surprise me, although it came back from the hiatus at approximately the same level as before it. It may have lost some viewers but it’s not clear to me either that there is a specific reason, or that it can be considered “bleeding” in the same sense as, for example, TSCC or Dollhouse.
Your notion that “overall viewership is low” is pure bullshit. Fringe is doing 9-11 million viewers (including the last half hour), and barely shedding a couple million after the AI people leave in the second half hour. That’s not “low” these days, especially compared to a lot of other shows on Fox and other networks that are lucky to be getting five million. Just because it doesn’t do AI numbers doesn’t mean the numbers are “low”. THAT’s absurd.
Fringe is getting good enough numbers to be renewed, despite your “bleeding” idea.
And again, a solid performer is the new “hit”. So Fringe qualifies for the term as well as anything else Fox has that was a new show this season. It’s mere semantics to be bitching about whether it’s a “hit” when it’s a new show in its first season and has been renewed with good numbers.
If you just don’t like the show, say so, but don’t fudge around trying to come up with reasons why the show isn’t working when it obviously is working fine enough to be renewed. It’s clear to me from your attitude that you simply dislike the show, like most of the Fringe haters here who BS about retention and other irrelevant matters.
Yes, I really like the show, which is why I watched 19 episodes and simply can’t wait until episode 20, because of how the two cliffhangers E19 ended with.
“It’s not surprising to me that Fringe has lost some viewers along the way. It’s a hard show to both understand and like in the same way some sitcom might be.”
Once again, a year ago, Hell’s Kitchen was doing better. Bones does better too. And House? It would nail Mentalist in the overall viewership too.
“Your notion that “overall viewership is low” is pure bullshit. Fringe is doing 9-11 million viewers (including the last half hour), and barely shedding a couple million after the AI people leave in the second half hour.”
It is low coming off 22-23 million. It’s less than 50%. Once again, other shows are much better at keeping the audience after AI.
“Your notion that “overall viewership is low” is pure bullshit. Fringe is doing 9-11 million viewers (including the last half hour), and barely shedding a couple million after the AI people leave in the second half hour.”
erm, okay.Now you are just trying too hard. I did say it gets decent numbers, especially paired with House. But with AI, not really. Had FOX started Fringe alongside with AI, I’m sure renewing would’ve been a little more… complicated, because based on it’s current performance, it’s anyone’s bet what it could do on it’s own, or with a smaller lead in.
Once again: it delivered literally the same numbers when it was paired with House, which is decent. But it seems to completetly fail the audience of AI, therefore, it’s not a good pairing for it, like it or not.
“BS about retention and other irrelevant matters.”
you call retention BS? Lol, ok. That’s the final nail in the coffin, seriously. MANY, many shows have been axed based on just the retention.
Oh, the return of the “complicated” argument. Actually I think that the second part of Fringe’s season was dumbed down to to tie in with the new lead-in.Now the shows is loosing viewers because the ones following from the beginning are bored, and the new ones coming from AI see nothing remarkable to watch.
You people! FRINGE WAS FRIGGIN RENEWED!! Why are we arguing about it?!?
Jesus-stick, you didn’t add one single point to your original points. It’s all bullshit.
Again, nobody cares how Fringe compares to every other show on TV, which is what you’re comparing it to. Why not compare it to Idol itself if you’re going to do that? What matters is Fringe is doing well against the competition it has.
11 million is low coming off of 20 million? And Idol is low, too. as Alex pointed out. Very few shows sustain 20 million viewers these days. Get serious. 9-11 million are numbers a hell of a lot of shows would kill to be pulling. Just because the show isn’t pulling Idol numbers, you complain. That’s simply stupid.
“Fail the audience of AI”? WTF? Do you have ANY idea how stupid that sounds? Fringe is paired with AI for a lead-in! It’s not expected to keep ALL THE AI VIEWERS! It’s insane to even consider that. Which is why comparing the show to anything else a year ago is even more ridiculous. Again, if you want to complain about when and with whom the show is aired, go to Fox and apply for the job. Otherwise Fox has done what it considers its best pairing – and the result is a renewal. Which means they’re obviously smarter than you.
Many shows axed based on the retention? Right, tell me another. They get axed because their demo numbers are low, not because they didn’t retain some viewers from some lead-in show. Nobody puts a show on the air simply to retain viewers from some other show. That may contribute to WHERE the show is placed, but that’s not the reason the show is bought and it’s not the reason the show is canceled.
You’re just arguing to be arguing at this point. Don’t waste my time.
S: I see absolutely no difference between Fringe’s earlier episodes and the current ones except a slight increase in the mythology vs the procedural aspects, especially in the last few episodes. Hasn’t been dumbed down at all as far as I can see.
Sushiroll: We’re arguing because a bunch of Fringe haters want the show to fail and won’t be happy until it does. They disguise themselves as “liking” the show, but their attitude is quite clearly the opposite. I’ve been accused of that myself (wrongly) with TSCC, so I know the concept. If the show doesn’t pull AI numbers and beats Monday Night Football, they’re ready to write it off as a failure. It’s just BS from people full of themselves.
better off ted = best comedy on television
better off Ted – not even best comedy on ABC (and that’s saying something)
Eastbound and Down- Best comedy on TV IMHO
ABC’s Tuesday 8PM, 8:30PM and 10PM is dreadful! I hope they solve it next fall.
stick, wake up and smell 2009.
Fringe is the number one show of the year (in 18-49), and only ~9 scripted mega-hits top its ratings.
This isn’t 2000, or even 2005 – saying something is a failure because it doesn’t get 5.0+ is preposterous. There’s exactly ONE scripted show that gets a 5.0+ this year (DH) – are you really claiming that all of network TV is a failure because it doesn’t hit the ratings of yesteryear?
Now, you can argue that Fringe’s ratings do not warrant its price tag, or warrant its timeslot, but to say that A) they are a failure in themselves is preposterous, and B)some other scripted show (aside from House) would do better in the slot, depends more on if _any_ new show will ever hit those lofty heights. Are 2009’s ratings the results of a strike-afflicted pilot season, or are they the new reality of broadcast television? We will see in four to five months, but that even The Mentalist can’t get there suggests that 4.0 (or less) hits is the new reality.
err, Fringe is the number one new show. Damnable typos!
sushiroll says:
May 8th, 2009 at 4:57 am
“You people! FRINGE WAS FRIGGIN RENEWED!! Why are we arguing about it?!?”
No one is, we all know it’s been picked up. We just want to talk about the ratings and numbers. Is that ok?
Tom says:
May 8th, 2009 at 7:59 am
“Fringe is the number one show of the year (in 18-49)”
No one is saying it is not. I don’t know why Fringe people have to say that every two minutes. It will not change anything. “Renewed”, “demo hit”…Should we stop talking about everything because of those 2 points? They don’t make the show any more of less in any regard.
Richard Steven Hack says:
May 8th, 2009 at 5:57 am
“We’re arguing because a bunch of Fringe haters want the show to fail and won’t be happy until it does. They disguise themselves as “liking” the show, but their attitude is quite clearly the opposite”
I’ll not pretend to be a fan any longer. Here are my true thoughts. Worst show on TV. Copy of other shows and characters – In my opinion. Bad acting & bad actors (aside from John Nobel), bad scripts and bad effects.
They took Pushing Daisies off for Ted… great move idiots.
No Longer: You’re registered your opinion. No actual reasons provided as to why the acting, actors and effects are bad, but you’ve registered your opinion. Fortunately it’s not shared by nine to eleven million other people.
There isn’t much I can say to tell you why I think any of those things are bad, it’s just how I feel when I watch the show. It’s a personal thing as you know. You obviously see something different. Put it like this. It takes me OUT of the show and back to my sofa, out of the world they have created for us the viewers to believe is real. Then one might remark:
“Gee, that looked totally fake”…
“Must be reading from the phone book just there, or maybe a cue card”…
“My god, she only has one expression…and it’s the one we saw in the promo”…
You’re right that about 9 million others who don’t agree. But there about 12-14 million though who do as shown by them turning off the TV after Idol.
And yes, this still is “No Longer…” just on another PC.
More people will tune in next week to see Leonard Nimoy as big name actors usually draw in more viewers for tv shows!
No longer pretending to like Fringe wrote,
“I’ll not pretend to be a fan any longer. Here are my true thoughts. Worst show on TV. Copy of other shows and characters – In my opinion. Bad acting & bad actors (aside from John Nobel), bad scripts and bad effects.”
No longer pretending to like Fringe, name specific instances where you see bad writing and bad effects and how you would do them better. Also, who would you try to get to play Olivia and Peter? I’d like to know! Seriously! Joshua Jackson reminds me of William Shatner a little bit. Just a little.
I like Hack – he refuses to reduce his thoughts to one-liner web-speak. His observation about ” what exactly IS good TV acting ” is worth an essay in … some other forum. The truth is, to make it even to being a bit player in a sitcom, you probably have the same general level of talent and experience, if not more, as a computer-enhanced megaplex megastar like Keanu, Shia, Leonardo or Cameron.
In fact, Jason Hughes over at TV Squad says that Fringe could be one of the best series ever and he might have a point!
http://www.tvsquad.com/2009/05/07/is-fringe-about-to-give-lost-a-run-for-its-money/
In the article, “Is Fringe about to give Lost a run for its money?” Hughes wrote, “Fringe is one of the best hours on television right now, and it could well be poised to
to be one of the all-time greats!
Oh, and this might turn into a headed debate (I don’t really care!) but Hughes said Fringe reminded him of the 1st season of Lost. “hings are coming to a head and it reminds me of that feeling I had toward the end of the first season of Lost.”
ThePattern says:
May 8th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
“…name specific instances where you see bad writing and bad effects and how you would do them better. Also, who would you try to get to play Olivia and Peter? I’d like to know! Seriously! …”
Ok, let me just go back through the season on my DVR and check…..Ummmm…..NO, I’m not going to do that, sorry.
Hahaha! That’s because you can’t think of any!
I agree with those who liked Dillahunt in the Cromartie role. He was suitably intriguing. If you want to see what an intense actor he is, check out The Last House on the Left remake in which he plays a truly evil character brilliantly.