TV Ratings: ‘Voice,’ ‘NCIS’ lead Tuesday, as The CW’s ‘Dr. Horrible’ hits a low note

Fast National ratings for Tuesday, October 9, 2012.

After last week’s clip show, “The Voice” made a strong return to Tuesday and boosted NBC’s full lineup to a narrow win among young viewers. CBS, however, had no trouble sweeping primetime overall, with “NCIS” leading the way.

Meanwhile, FOX’s comedies were stable week-to-week and ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” saw some improvement overall, if not among young viewers.

Facing “The Voice,” The CW’s “Hart of Dixie” took a big second week drop and, despite ample enthusiasm on Twitter, Joss Whedon’s “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog” failed to generate any tangible interest in its TV premiere.

Now, on to the numbers…

Among adults 18-49, NBC averaged a 2.9 rating for Tuesday night, topping the 2.7 rating for CBS in the key demographic. FOX was third with a 2.0 key demo rating, beating ABC’s 1.7 rating and the 0.3 key demo rating for The CW.

Overall, though, CBS averaged an estimated 14.93 million viewers and a 9.6 rating/15 share, comfortably ahead of the 6.4/10 and 9.16 million viewers for ABC’s Tuesday primetime lineup. NBC was third with a 4.8/7 and 7.63 million viewers, with FOX’s 2.4/4 and 4 million viewers in fourth. The CW averaged 865,000 viewers and a 0.6/1.

8 p.m. – “NCIS” dominated the 8 p.m. hour overall with 18.1 million viewers and put CBS in second among adults 18-49 with a 3.3 rating. NBC’s “The Voice” won the hour with a 4.4 key demo rating and was second with 11.93 million viewers. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” was third with 8.24 million viewers and fourth with a 1.2 key demo rating. FOX was third in the demo and a distant fourth overall with “Raising Hope” (4.11 million viewers and a 1.8 key demo) and “Ben and Kate” (3.33 million and a 1.5 key demo). On The CW, “Hart of Dixie” averaged 1.16 million viewers and a 0.4 key demo rating.

9 p.m. – CBS’ “NCIS: Los Angeles” averaged 15.1 million viewers and a 2.9 rating among adults 18-49 to win the 9 p.m. hour in both measures. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” was a strong second overall with 13.18 million viewers, but a weak fourth with a 2.1 key demo rating. There was a big drop to NBC’s third place comedy block of “Go On” (6.95 million viewers and a 2.8 key demo rating) and “The New Normal” (4.96 million viewers and a 2.0 key demo), though both comedies were way up from that week. FOX was fourth with “New Girl” (4.99 million viewers and a 2.7 key demo) and “The Mindy Project” (3.57 million and a 1.9 key demo). On The CW, “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog” averaged 566,000 viewers and a 0.2 key demo rating. [For an original, those “Dr. Horrible” numbers would be “L.A. Complex”-esque and even lower than last night’s dismal “Gossip Girl” premiere. For a web-series that’s been available for four years, standards are obviously different, so spin as you choose.]

10 p.m. – “Vegas” completed CBS’ overall sweep with 11.78 million viewers and tied for first with a 2.0 rating among adults 18-49. ABC’s “Private Practice” was second with 6.05 million viewers and third with a 1.6 key demo rating. NBC’s “Parenthood” averaged 4.99 million viewers and tied for the hour lead with a 2.0 key demo rating.