Big slip for NBC's Studio 60 -- down to a 7.2/11 in the overnights at 10 p.m. But solid Heroes at a 9.4/14 at 9 p.m. ABC's The Bachelor: Rome, meanwhile, was bland at a 5.4/ 8 and week two of the CW's Runaway dipped to a 1.6/ 2.

I'll post the overall results by 12 p.m. when the fast nationals are in.

Heroes and Studio 60 are a poor match on Mondays. They are both very good shows, but Heroes is so much more younger skewing than Studio 60. I actually feel that Kidnapped would work better in this time slot than Studio 60, because it is very dark, like Heroes

Really shocked by the increasingly poor performance of The Class. The pilot was laugh-out-loud funny, and last night's installment had a number of big laughs.

I'm on the fence with Studio 60. It's good, but not all that compelling. Heroes, on the other hand, sucked me in last night after a ho-hum first week. They pulled off a huge surprise and made me eager to find out what happens next!

Here are the results from last night:

Prime-Time Monday Ratings:
CBS Wins; Heroes Strong by Studio 60 Tumbles on NBC

Monday 10/02/06
Metered Market Ratings

HH
Rtg/Shr
CBS 9.6/15
NBC 8.3/13
ABC 5.4/ 8
Fox 5.4/ 8
CW 2.5/ 4

-Percent Change From the Comparable Year-Ago Evening (Monday 10/03/05):
Fox” +17, CBS: - 3, NBC: - 6, CW*: -32, ABC: -48

*compared to the WB’s combination of 7th Heaven and Just Legal

---------------

Fast National Ratings

-Total Viewers:
CBS: 13.63 million, NBC: 11.56, ABC: 8.53, Fox: 7.66, CW: 3.13

-Adults 18-49:
CBS: 4.6 rating/12 share, NBC: 4.2/11, ABC: 3.3/ 8, Fox: 3.0/ 8, CW: 1.2/ 3

---------------

-Yesterday’s Winners:
Deal or No Deal (NBC), Two and a Half Men (CBS), Heroes (NBC), CSI: Miami (CBS)

-Time to Put This to Rest Already:
The Bachelor: Rome (ABC)

-Yesterday’s Losers:
The Class (CBS), Runaway (CW), Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (NBC)

---------------

-Ratings Breakdown:
CBS led this third Monday of the 2006-07 season, with a first-place finish in the overnights, total viewers and adults 18-49. NBC was second in all three categories despite a fading Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, followed by ABC, Fox and the CW.

Unfortunately, week three of CBS sitcom The Class remained a weak link, with a 6.0/ 9 in the overnights (#2), 8.00 million viewers (#3) and a 2.8/ 8 among adults 18-49 (#3). Former occupant The King of Queens averaged a considerably more potent 7.6/12 in the overnights, 10.31 million viewers and a 3.5/10 among adults 18-49 on the year-ago evening. The Class led into How I Met Your Mother, which built by 10 percent in the overnights (6.0/ 9 to 6.6/10), 1.44 million viewers (8.00 to 9.44) and 29 percent among adults 18-49 (2.8/ 8 to 3.6/ 9) at 8:30 p.m.

First in the 8 p.m. hour was NBC’s Deal or No Deal at an 8.5/13 in the overnights, 13.04 million viewers and a 3.7/10 among adults 18-49 (tied with Fox’s Prison Break in the demo). Prison Break (Overnights: #3, 6.1/ 9; Viewers: #2, 8.93 million; A18-49: #1t, 3.7/10) and ABC’s Wife Swap (Overnights: #4, 5.5/ 8; Viewers: #4, 7.70 million; A18-49: #4, 3.0/ 8) were at typical early fall levels, while the CW’s 7th Heaven (Overnights: #5, 3.4/ 5; Viewers: #5, 4.30 million; A18-49: #5, 1.6/ 4) built by 110,000 viewers, 7 percent in adults 18-49 and as much as 9 percent among women 18-49 from its season-premiere one week earlier. Although 7th Heaven remains down by double-digit percentages year-to-year, comparatively it’s still an improvement of UPN comedies One On One and All of Us.

As a reminder, total viewers and adults 18-49 from last night are based on the fast nationals. Any prior results are based on the final nationals.

CBS sitcoms Two and a Half Men (Overnights: #1, 10.9/16; Viewers: #1, 15.93 million; A18-49: #1, 5.2/13) and The New Adventures of Old Christine (Overnights: #1, 9.4/14; Viewers: #1, 13.71 million; A18-49: #2, 4.5/11) showed growth from one week earlier in the 9 p.m. hour, while week two of NBC’s competing Heroes lived up to its title. Heroes averaged a comfortable 9.4/14 in the overnights (#2), 12.57 million viewers (#2) and a first-place 5.3/13 among adults 18-49, building from lead-in Deal or No Deal by a hefty 43 percent among adults 18-49. Retention for Heroes from its week-ago premiere (Overnights: #1, 9.7/14; Viewers: #1, 14.10 million; A18-49: 31, 5.9/14 on Sept. 25) was a solid 97 percent in the overnights, 89 percent in total viewers and 90 percent among adults 18-49. Retention for The New Adventures of Old Christine out of Two and a Half Men was, meanwhile, also solid at 86 percent in the overnights and total viewers, and 87 percent among adults 18-49.

In season-premiere news, a two-hour edition of ABC’s The Bachelor: Rome opened with a third-place 5.4/ 8 in the overnights, 8.95 million viewers and a 3.5/ 9 among adults 18-49 from 9-11 p.m. Comparably, that was an improvement of 2 percent in the overnights, 2.71 million viewers and 30 percent among adults 18-49 from its most recent opening levels on Monday, Jan. 9, 2006 (Overnights: 5.3/ 8; Viewers: 6.24 million; A18-49: 2.7/ 7).


Also at 9 p.m. was Fox drama Vanished at a so-so (and fourth-place) 4.6/ 7 in the overnights, 6.39 million viewers and a 2.3/ 5 among adults 18-49; and week two of CW drama Runaway at an almost invisible (and, of course, last place) 1.6/ 2 in the overnights, 1.95 million viewers and a 0.8/ 2 among adults 18-49. Compared to former failed time period occupant Just Legal on the year-ago evening (Overnights: 2.6/ 4; Viewers: 2.88 million; A18-49: 0.9/ 2 on Oct. 3, 2005), that was a decrease of 38 percent in the overnights, 930,000 viewers and 11 percent among adults 18-49. Runaway opened last Monday with a 1.8/ 3 in the overnights, 2.18 million viewers and a 0.7/ 2 among adults 18-49. Did anyone ever think Runaway would make Just Legal look like a hit?

As for Vanished, retention out of Prison Break of just 62 percent among adults 18-49 lands it in the loser’s column.

At 10 p.m., CBS’ CSI: Miami continues to own the hour, with a 12.4/19 in the overnights, 17.35 million viewers and a 5.7/15 among adults 18-49. Week three of NBC’s competing Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip took another significant hit, dipping to a 7.2/11 in the overnights, 9.05 million viewers and a 3.5/ 9 among adults 18-49. Retention for Studio 60 out of Heroes was just 77 percent in the overnights, 72 percent in total viewers and 66 percent among adults 18-49. Take a look at Studio 60’s three-week track:

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip – Mon. 10 p.m.
9/18/06 - Overnights: 10.3/16; Viewers: 13.41 million; A18-49: 5.0/13
9/25/06 - Overnights: 8.7/14; Viewers: 10.83 million; A18-49: 4.2/11
10/02/06 – Overnights: 7.2/11; Viewers: 9.05 million; A18-49: 3.5/ 9

And, to make matters worse, erosion in the second half of Studio 60 continued, with a loss of 8 percent in the overnights (7.5/11 to 6.9/11), 650,000 viewers (9.38 to 8.73 million) and 5 percent among adults 18-49 (3.6/ 9 to 3.4/ 9). Both CSI: Miami and The Bachelor: Rome did not lose steam at 10:30 p.m.

Source: Nielsen Media Research data

Marc, I had a question about your ratings info, I usually check out zap2it.com for ratings news, they gave Heroes a 7.6 for last night and Studio 60 6.0. and Bachler a 6.0 too, I was wondering why their numbers are different. Assuming they all come from the same place.

Also I agree with Dave about Heroes, last night was amazing, really stepped it up from last week!

Any predictions for tonight? abc has won the last two Tuesday's. Will baseball have any impact?

Quality-wise, I actually disagree that Heroes was better last night. I feel like the show has an idea where it's going, some cool aspects, but very little idea about how it's getting where it's going. The disparate character stories can't last too long without some convalensence. But, some pretty cool cliffhangers and act breaks...

Studio 60 is really great TV. I didn't think I'd like it as much as I do, but I'm positively hooked. The problem I think it faces is that people have no clue what to make of it... mostly because it's such a serious show about something that, frankly, is trivial (versus politics). Last night was the strongest episode of the series thus far. Any idea WHY it's bleeding viewers?

Oh, since Marc was off yesterday... how about those CW Sunday numbers? This is some atrocious combination of bad programming decision and viewers not knowing where to find their shows... I live in Los Angeles, and you can't go two feet without seeing an advertisement for Top Model. There's nothing else for The CW shows, though (there were plenty of Free To Be billboards over the summer, but they're gone now, and they didn't say when the premieres were). It's no wonder most of the launches are failing.

Marc,

How does "Studio 60" stack up against former time period occupant "Medium?" What's your gut on this show? Is it facing cancellation, or will the network try a new time slot before swinging the ax? In your opinion, is there a spot in NBC's schedule where it might work better?

It looks like no matter where The CW puts "Runaway," the show will not do well. How about moving "Everybody Hates Chris" out of that ugly Sunday night time slot and place it in the post-7th Heaven slot? They could still "replay" the same episode on Sunday night. Nothing's worked for The WB on Sunday, and it looks like the same holds true with The CW.

or how about they just merge the CW with CBS?

Yeah, they could air Veronica Mars after Cold Case and Gilmore Girls could get the post-CSI-slot...

There would be very little room on CBS for the CW programming. But the one show that I could see there is Everybody Hates Chris leading off Monday. That show is a slice of feel-good nostalgia!

quote:

Originally posted by Marc Berman:
There would be very little room on CBS for the CW programming. But the one show that I could see there is Everybody Hates Chris leading off Monday. That show is a slice of feel-good nostalgia!

I agree completely. EHC is one of television's best comedies and I think it would do wonders on CBS. Too bad it can't be paired with the returning (sad to see it ending) King of Queens which would make for a compatible and funny combination. I do think Chris will be shifted to CW's Monday line up following 7th Heaven though. It's totally being wasted in its current Sunday deathslot and the future definitely isn't bright for Runaway currently airing Mondays at 9pm.

exactly my point....keep the decent show(s) and move on..

Hey Cory, in answer to your question yesterday's results for Studio 60 came in below former occupant Medium. And I don't think there is a better time period for it. Remember, it was originally supposed to air Thursday at 9 p.m. I think NBC will be patient, though. It has a lot invested in it and cannot jump ship this early.