Fast National ratings for Monday, September 23, 2013.
Welcome to the 2013-2014 TV season!
There was plenty to report on the Nielsen-approved opening night of the new season.
On the positive side, “The Voice” returned above last fall’s Monday premiere, building with each half-hour, beating “Dancing with the Stars” overall and prompting a strong premiere for “Blacklist,” even if “Blacklist” came in below last September’s “Revolution” premiere.
Speaking of positives, FOX’s “Sleepy Hollow” held up very well in its second airing, especially among young viewers, even against far tougher competition.
Also positive, CBS got good numbers for the hour-long premiere of the final season of “How I Met Your Mother,” which was a competitive second to “The Voice” among young viewers and equalled last fall’s premiere.
That’s where the good news stops for CBS, though, as “Mom” had a soft launch after “2 Broke Girls,” which was down nearly a quarter from last year’s premiere. “Mom,” in turn, led into a very underwhelming premiere for the new drama “Hostages,” which started weak and limped to a third place finish for the hour, certainly below CBS’ hopes for the heavily promoted limited series, which may find itself even more limited if it doesn’t perk up.
On to the numbers…
Among adults 18-49, NBC averaged a 4.6 rating for Monday night, dominating the key demographic. CBS was still second with a 2.7 rating in the key demo, just ahead of FOX’s 2.5 key demo rating and the 2.3 key demo rating for ABC. The CW averaged a 0.2 key demo rating.
Overall, NBC averaged an estimated 13.98 million viewers and an 8.3 rating/13 share for Monday, ahead of the 12.74 million viewers averaged by ABC, which also did an 8.3/13. CBS was a distant third with 8.34 million viewers and a 5.3/8, topping FOX’s 7.61 million viewers and 4.7/7. The CW averaged 726,000 viewers and a 0.5/1 for the night.
8 p.m. – “The Voice” put NBC in first to start primetime with 13.67 million viewers and a 4.5 rating among adults 18-49 in the 8 p.m. hour. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” averaged 12.92 million viewers for second, finishing third with a 2.3 key demo rating, declining over a quarter from last week’s encouraging premiere. “How I Met Your Mother” averaged 9.19 million viewers and a 3.6 key demo rating in its premiere, easily topping the 6.66 million viewers and 1.9 key demo rating for “Bones,” which was down from last week’s return. The CW’s repeat of “Hart of Dixie” averaged 762,000 viewers and a 0.2 key demo rating.
9 p.m. – The second hour of “The Voice” rose to 15.66 million viewers and a 5.4 rating among adults 18-49 for NBC. Also rising in its second hour was “Dancing with the Stars,” which averaged 13.8 million viewers and a 2.3 key demo rating. FOX’s “Sleepy Hollow” was third overall with 8.56 million viewers and second in the key demo with a 3.1 rating. [“Sleepy Hollow” averaged 10.05 million viewers and a 3.4 key demo rating in Fast Nationals last week, before rising slightly in Final figures and then getting a bit Live+3 bump, going all the way to a 5.0 key demo rating in that measurement.] CBS was fourth overall and third in the key demo with “2 Broke Girls” (8.76 million viewers and a 2.8 key demo) and “Mom” (7.92 million and a 2.5 key demo rating). [Last year’s “2 Broke Girls” premiere drew over 10 million viewers and a 3.7 key demo rating despite having the DOA “Partners” as its lead-in.] The CW’s “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” repeats averaged 691,000 viewers and a 0.3 key demo rating.
10 p.m. – The premiere of “The Blacklist” averaged 12.62 million viewers and a 3.8 rating among adults 18-49 for NBC in the 10 p.m. hour, boosted slightly be a little “Voice” overrun. [NBC is somewhat amusingly comparing the “Blacklist” premiere numbers to the Week 2 numbers for “Revolution,” which launched a week early, so that’s why we know that “Blacklist” was up 37 percent overall from what “Revolution” did in a not-comparable airing, but only eight percent overall above the “Revolution” premiere (and down seven percent in the key demo).] ABC’s “Castle” was second with 11.485 million viewers and a 2.2 key demo rating. CBS’ “Hostages” averaged only 7.49 million viewers and a 1.8 key demo rating for its premiere, lower than last year’s “Hawaii Five-0” premiere.
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.