The Question, Sunday 10/12/14: Will Another Record Audience Consume The Walking Dead?

The great TV ratings anomaly of this decade is back on the air tonight as The Walking Dead opens its fifth season. The show has left all of today's entertainment series in the dust, and season four had same-day averages that would've been really big even ten years ago. Maybe this is the year the growth slows or stops, or maybe even more mind-blowing viewership levels are on the way. You just never know with this one. Will another record audience consume The Walking Dead? That's The Question for Sunday, October 12, 2014.

The Walking Dead Last Season

8.2 (fall 2013 premiere, +42% year-to-year) 6.62 (fall 2013 average, +24% y2y) 6.92 (spring 2014 average, +20% y2y) 8.0 (spring 2014 finale, +25% y2y)

The "I just can't see a scripted series going any higher in this day and age" argument hasn't worked with this show in four years, but there were some quantifiable reasons to think the growth might be slowing down in season four. Much of the late fall and spring parts of the season were only up in the 10% area year-to-year, and the spring finale was Dead's first ever season premiere or finale not to set a new series high. Still, it was very close, so I think the show has got one more (maybe one last?) series high in it.

Over/Under: 8.85.

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