overnights

Brooklyn Nine-Nine strengthened its case for renewal with a big ratings jump last night. The new comedy averaged a 1.9 adults 18-49 rating at 8:30 p.m., up 36% from a 1.4 last week. It marked the show’s best rating since its September premiere, when it posted a 2.6 before the season officially kicked off and it faced tougher competition.

The season finale of Fox’s first-year show Sleepy Hollow grew from last week to tie NBC’s The Blacklist as the No. 1 drama on Monday night. Hollow posted a 2.3 adults 18-49 rating for a special two-hour episode at 8 p.m., up 5% from a 2.2 last week, when it aired only at 9 p.m. Blacklist was off 8% from last week, to a 2.3, a series low for the new show. This was only its second outing without The Voice as a lead-in, and so some decline was expected as it finds its footing.

The Fox drama returns with an ideal lead-in, jumping 38% from its series premiere a year ago, while the rest of the broadcast competition shrinks against football.

American Idol took another ratings hit last night, sliding not just from last year’s second episode but also falling markedly from its Wednesday premiere. Nonetheless the show was still easily the No. 1 program of the night on broadcast and lifted Fox to a dominant Thursday night win. Idol averaged a 3.8 from 8 to 10 p.m., down 32% from last year’s Thursday night bow, which posted a 5.6. The singing show slid 19 percent from Wednesday night’s debut, when it posted a 4.7.

There will be a lot of headlines today about how American Idol posted its lowest-ever premiere rating last night (there’s one right above this story) and how it dropped a lot from last year (23%). But that was not unexpected, either. Idol still dominated the night for Fox and actually showed improvement over the end of last season, when the show had seemingly become an afterthought for many viewers. Idol posted a 4.6 adults 18-49 rating for its two-hour 13th season premiere last night from 8 to 10 p.m.

Tuesdays at 10 p.m. are turning into a killer timeslot for ABC. The network’s new drama, Killer Women, fell from last week’s already-low debut rating in its second outing last night, and it may not last much longer with those numbers. Women averaged a 0.7 adults 18-49 rating last night, off 22% from a 0.9 last week. It finished fourth in the slot, just 0.2 ahead of Telemundo.

The Blacklist held up OK without a big lead-in from The Voice. The show posted a 2.5 adults 18-49 rating at 10 p.m. last night, down 22% from its most recent episode in December, when it aired behind the finale of Voice. That’s a good number for any show in the timeslot; Blacklist won the hour and finished 32% ahead of the No. 2 show in the slot, ABC’s Castle, which drew a 1.9.

A huge lead-in audience from the NFL lifted two CBS shows to season highs on Sunday despite airing opposite NBC’s highly rated Golden Globes. The final hour of the San Diego Chargers-Denver Broncos playoff game averaged an 11.8 adults 18-49 rating at 7 p.m.That was easily the top-rated hour of the night on broadcast, and it boosted lead-out 60 Minutes at 8 p.m. to a season-high 4.2 rating, including a 4.9 in its first half hour.

CBS’s entire lineup surged on Thursday night, carrying it to a huge win against light competition. The 8 p.m. comedy The Big Bang Theory led all shows on the night with a 5.6 adults 18-49 rating, its best since posting a 6.1 for the second of two episodes on premiere night in September. That helped lift lead-out The Millers, a new sitcom, to its best performance since its debut as well. The show posted a 3.3, holding 59% of Bang’s audience.

NBC’s new drama Chicago P.D. debuted to just the sort of numbers you’d expect for a show spun off of an okay-but-not-spectacular source. P.D. posted a 2.0 adults 18-49 rating at 10 p.m. last night, second in the timeslot behind CBS’s People’s Choice Awards. It fell slightly from its first half hour to its second, from a 2.1 to a 1.9. The show held an impressive 95 percent of lead-in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit’s 2.1 rating, its best since its September premiere.

Intelligence got off to a good start last night on CBS, but the real test for the new drama will come next week, when it moves into its regular Monday 10 p.m. timeslot. A special premiere of the program last night drew the biggest audience for any new show this season, airing behind TV’s most-watched drama, NCIS. Intelligence averaged 16.6 million total viewers at 9 p.m., holding a respectable 80% of the 20.6 million who watched NCIS at 8 p.m. Intelligence drew more viewers than the other Big Five networks combined in the hour.

ABC’s The Bachelor picked up where it left off last spring, with some hot numbers. The show posted its best season premiere in three years, averaging a 2.7 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 10 p.m. That was up 17% from last year’s 1.7 as single dad Juan Pablo, a castoff from Desiree’s season of The Bachelorette, began his search for love.

A huge lead-in audience from Sunday’s final NFL playoff game lifted two Fox animated shows to season highs last night. The Simpsons posted a 5.2 adults 18-49 rating at 8 p.m., jumping 49% from its most recent original episode, which drew a 3.5 on Dec. 15. Lead-out Bob’s Burgers drew a 3.2 at 8:30 p.m., up a third over its previous original episode. They got a big assist from football. The final hour of the game averaged a 12.7 from 7 to 8 p.m., including a 13.3 from 7 to 7:30.

ABC just can’t catch a break this season. After its new fall drama Lucky 7 tied NBC’s Ironside for the lowest-rated series debut this season with a 1.2 in adults 18-49, the network’s new limited series The Assets opened with a 0.7 at 10 p.m. last night. That would be the lowest rated in-season drama series debut on the Big 4, eclipsing NBC’s Do No Harm (0.9) and is a ratings threshold that normally triggers cancellation, as was the case with Lucky 7. However, maybe in anticipation of calamity, ABC reclassified the eight-part Cold War series to a miniseries in the run-up to the premiere.

The new year opened with nary a new English language telecast, as CBS and Univision tied atop a night of repeats. CBS and Univision tied for first in ratings, each with a 1.1 rating/3 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic. CBS was first in viewers with 6.6 million, Univision was fourth with 2.8 million. ABC was third in ratings with a 1.0/3 and second in total viewers with 4 million.

CBS topped an especially sleepy Monday night, which saw the entire Big Four airing entirely repeats. Averaging a 1.2 rating with adults 18-49 and 5.2 million viewers, CBS saw its best performance in an encore of Mike & Molly (1.5 adults) at 9 p.m. The comedy was the night’s top demo performer across the board. NBC and ABC shared second-place status among adults 18-49 with a 0.9.

The Eagles-Cowboys matchup scores big week-to-week gains for Sunday Night Football, while CBS’s annual airing of the Washington, D.C., Kennedy Center Honors gala slides.

Another mild holiday-week evening for the broadcast networks saw CBS take victories in both adults 18-49 (1.4 rating) and total viewers (6.5 million), thanks to Thursday’s strongest performer: an encore of The Big Bang Theory.

As expected, Wednesday’s ratings race was not a particularly exciting one. With plenty of television sets tuned off, or otherwise occupied, for the Christmas holiday — none of the broadcast networks programmed anything original. Encores of The Middle and Modern Family edge out Christmas specials and other modest broadcast efforts.

With ESPN’s coverage of Monday Night Football airing on affiliates in Atlanta (ABC) and San Francisco (CBS), both networks are subject to adjustments in final returns. But as it stands, ABC topped the night with holiday specials Shrek the Halls, A Chipmunk Christmas and the finale of The Great Christmas Light Fight (1.4 rating adults 18-49). The latter, up 40% from its last showing, gave the network a 1.3 adults rating and 5.1 million viewers for the night.

The latest installment of Sunday Night Football may have been a nonstarter for the Chicago Bears — the Philadelphia Eagles toppled them 54-11 — but the most one-sided victory in the NFL this season still topped Sunday primetime. NBC’s airing of the game averaged a 5.5 rating among adults 18-49, up 12% from last week. Ahead of time zone adjustments, the network averaged a 4.4 rating with adults 18-49 and 13.1 million viewers for the night.

CBS dug into its vaults on Friday night and drew more than 8 million viewers for the I Love Lucy Christmas Special. The hour-long special, featuring colorized versions of two episodes from the classic B&W series from the ’50s, averaged a 1.4 rating/5 share in adults 18-49, making it the top show of the night in this demo — even if none of these viewers were around to see any of I Love Lucy’s original run on the network.

A rough season for The X Factor finished on an uptick Thursday, though the Fox music contest came in well below its conclusion of a year ago. On a night when it faced mostly repeat competition, the third-season finale of X Factor averaged a 1.7 rating/5 share in adults 18-49 and 6.2 million viewers overall from 8 to 10 p.m. It was the 18-49 leader with its final two half-hours Thursday, and Fox edged out its rivals to win the night in the demo.

Fox’s The X Factor posted its lowest part one finale rating yet last night. Factor drew a 1.3 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 10 p.m., down from a 2.8 for the same show last year. In fact, Factor declined a tenth from last week’s penultimate performance show. Little wonder people are buzzing over whether the third-year show will be back next season. Its ratings fell sharply during the second half of the season, after its schedule was shifted during Fox’s coverage of the Major League Baseball playoffs.

The season finale of NBC’s The Voice led the network to a comfortable first-place finish among viewers 18-49 on Tuesday night. The two-hour season ender averaged a 3.9 rating among 18-49s, No. 1 for the night and up 26% from a 3.1 last week. It was also the best rating for any Big Four program on a Tuesday since Oct. 22. That said, The Voice was down 9% from the 4.3 overnight rating the season-four finale averaged on June 18 and it was down 20% from the 4.9 rating for last fall’s third season finale.

NBC kept up its Monday winning streak with part one of the season finale of The Voice. Voice was easily the night’s top show on broadcast with a 3.3 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 10 p.m. That was 43% ahead of the No. 2 network in the timeslot, CBS, whose comedies averaged a 2.3. But it did mark the lowest-rated part one finale of the hit singing show yet, and it was off 11% from last spring’s part one finale.

Fans have been calling for the resurrection of Brian the dog ever since he was killed off on Family Guy a few weeks ago, and they tuned in last night to see if their Christmas wish would come true. Guy surged to a 3.0 adults 18-49 rating at 9 p.m., up 15% from a 2.6 for last week’s episode. The animators did indeed have a surprise in store for viewers (no spoilers here on what it was), in a plot arc that worked very well for the show’s ratings. Last week’s episode was up 18 percent from the previous one.

The parade of fall finales, or final episodes before the holiday hiatus, continued on broadcast last night with several CBS and ABC shows seeing their ratings spike over the previous week. CBS’s The Big Bang Theory finished as the night’s top show, as usual, posting a 5.3 adults 18-49 rating. That was up 10% over last week. And lead-out The Millers drew a 2.9, jumping 21 percent from last week’s 2.4. Note, though, that two CBS affiliates preempted the regularly scheduled lineup to air an NFL game last night, which may have inflated the network’s ratings.

A Christmas-themed episode of ABC’s Modern Family hit a four-week high last night, finishing as the No. 1 show on broadcast. Family averaged a 3.5 adults 18-49 rating, up 11% over the previous week. It also gave lead-out Super Fun Night a bump from last week. Fun, which has yet to receive a full-season order, drew a 1.8, growing 13% over last week.

The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show drew its third-largest audience ever, averaging 9.71 million total viewers, up 2% from last year. It did fall among adults 18-49, from a 3.6 last year to a 3.4 last night in the 10 p.m. timeslot. But the show was still the No. 1 program of the night in the demo on broadcast. Airing in the same timeslot, NBC’s second-year drama Chicago Fire set a new series record, posting 9.3 million total viewers and finishing just behind Victoria’s in the hour.

New program, same result for NBC. The network kept up its Monday winning streak by once again finishing first in six of six half hours among adults 18-49 last night, even with a different lineup than last week. The Sing-Off took over the 9 to 11 p.m. timeslot, with the 10 p.m. drama The Blacklist going on hiatus and The Voice contracting to a single hour at 8 p.m. NBC finished with a 2.8 18-49 rating and 7 share in primetime, 40% ahead of No. 2 Fox with a 2.0/5.

A big lead-in from the NFL boosted Fox’s animation domination block to a nearly one-year high last night. The network’s four cartoons drew a 2.5 rating among adults 18-49, its best since Jan. 13 of this year. The Simpsons, which aired at 8, right after the 5.1 for NFL overrun at 7 p.m., provided the spark, finishing as the night’s No. 1 scripted show with a 3.0 rating. It was even to its most recent original two weeks ago.

NBC’s pricey remake of The Sound of Music was a big ratings hit last night. Music trilled a huge crowd of 18.47 million total viewers, and posted a 4.6 adults 18-49 rating. That marked NBC’s best Thursday night rating in the demo since 2009, when the finale of ER aired. The total viewers were the largest audience for any broadcast network on a Thursday since March 2011. And it was NBC’s best non-sports night in total viewers since the 2007 Golden Globes.

NBC’s annual Christmas in Rockefeller Center special, which includes musical performances and the lighting of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, soared to a seven-year high last night among adults 18-49. The show averaged a 2.3 18-49 rating at 8 p.m., up 10% over last year and the best rating for the show since it posted a 2.6 in 2006.

The CW’s Tuesday night is in a groove. For the second straight week, the network posted a five-year high on the night among total viewers, with new drama The Originals hitting a new series high. Originals and Supernatural combined to average 2.446 million total viewers in primetime, the best for the CW on a Tuesday since Nov. 4, 2008. Originals averaged 2.443 million total viewers at 8 p.m., a new best, while lead-out Supernatural posted 2.45 million.

A huge lead-in from football plus lots of opportunity to promote 60 Minutes during yesterday’s NFL and Saturday’s college football games led to a strong night for CBS’s long-running newsmagazine. 60 Minutes averaged a 3.4 adults 18-49 rating in the 8 to 9 p.m. timeslot. CBS’s entire Sunday schedule was delayed by nearly an hour because of football overrun into the 7 p.m. hour, which pushed the rest of the network’s shows back.

ABC’s Dancing with the Stars posted its lowest-ever rating for a season finale last night. But even a diminished Stars still managed to lift the network to its best Tuesday among adults 18-49 since premiere week. Stars averaged a 2.4 18-49 rating from 9 to 11 p.m., down 20% from a 3.0 last fall. It was also off 11% from last spring’s ender, which drew a 2.7. That was a big improvement, however, on what ABC usually draws in the Tuesday timeslot.

Fox’s Almost Human continued to slide in its third outing last night. The new drama averaged a 1.9 adults 18-49 rating, off 17% from last week’s 2.3. The show premiered to a 3.1 on Sunday, Nov. 17, before moving into its regular Monday timeslot the next night. The lower lead-in appeared to hurt Fox’s other new Monday night drama, Sleepy Hollow, which slipped 12% to a 2.2 at 9 p.m.

Against one of the highest-rated Sunday Night Football games of the season, ABC’s American Music Awards surged to a four-year high. The program averaged a 4.5 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 11 p.m., up 32% from last year. It marked the highest-rated ceremony since 2009 in the demo, and it drew 12.9 million total viewers, the second-biggest audience for the show in 11 years. The AMAs also jumped to a nine-year high among teens 12-17, up 86% from last year, to a 5.4 rating.

With both new comedies seeing gains over last week, CBS won the final Thursday of the November sweeps. The 8:30 p.m. sitcom The Millers grew 8% over last week, to a 2.8 in adults 18-49. The growth is impressive considering lead-in The Big Bang Theory, the night’s top show with a 5.2 at 8 p.m., was flat to last week. The bump continued into the 9 p.m. slot, with CBS’s other new comedy on the night, The Crazy Ones, growing 4% over last week to a 2.2.