Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 5/5/15

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: The Voice (2.0) adjusted up while iZombie (0.6) was down a tenth.

• Even with a fast-hemorrhaging lead-in from The Voice (1.9), a one-hour live episode of NBC's Undateable (1.3) noticeably improved the 9/8c hour week-to-week, up two tenths at 9:00 (1.4) vs. last week's 1.2 Undateable and up four tenths at 9:30 (1.2) vs. last week's One Big Happy. Chicago Fire stayed at its usual 1.6.

• On CBS, though NCIS (2.0) was even at 8/7c, things completely fell apart from there with NCIS: New Orleans (1.6) tying its series low and Person of Interest (1.1) somehow having a complete meltdown on finale night. That was two tenths behind PoI's previous low!

• On ABC, Agents of SHIELD posted another relatively normal 1.5 the week after the new Avengers movie, though this one may grade a little better since Dancing with the Stars (1.4) was lower at 8/7c. Forever (1.1) went out with a high-end rating by second half of the season standards.

• Fox's Hell's Kitchen (1.2) and finale of New Girl (1.1) each ticked up.

• The CW had another stellar late-season showing from The Flash (1.4) and another 0.7 from iZombie.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 4/21/15

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: The Voice, Agents of SHIELD, Undateable, Hell's Kitchen and The Flash gained a tenth. iZombie (0.6) lost a tenth to hit a new low.

• Fresh Off the Boat ended season one with its second straight 1.5, a promising finish after getting as low as 1.3 a few weeks ago. The Repeat After Me (1.1) finale and Forever (1.0) ticked up, while Agents of SHIELD (1.5) inched down in prelims (but with a 1.6 -> 1.5 breakdown, should be pretty close to adjusting up).

• Undateable (1.3) had its worst showing yet despite The Voice (2.5) staying at least even. One Big Happy (1.1) was even, while Chicago Fire (1.6) looked good at 10/9c, growing huge on its comedy lead-in for the first time since About a Boy was still around.

• CBS gave an original CSI: Cyber (1.2) a Tuesday whirl. With a repeat NCIS: New Orleans lead-in (1.1), it was two tenths below its post-Criminal Minds low on Wednesday, which is not really surprising. Though it may get some comparisons to a similar CSI tryout in January, the situation was not nearly as favorable; New Orleans was a half-point bigger then, and there were no original drama competitors.

• After big nights last week, a little air came out of CW's The Flash (1.2) and iZombie (0.7), but they still avoided new lows.

• And another post-New Girl repeat (0.6) episode of Weird Loners joined American Odyssey at 0.5, while Hell's Kitchen (1.1) also hit a season low.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 4/7/15

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: The only adjustment was to NCIS: New Orleans (1.7), up a tenth.

• NBC sat out its Tuesday comedies for another two-hour edition of The Voice (2.7), which as usual significantly boosted 10/9c occupant Chicago Fire (2.0). Preliminarily, this was very close to Fire's post-Voice ratings in early March when The Voice was much stronger.

• Like the last time The Voice was two hours, this had a major effect on CBS' NCIS: New Orleans (1.6). Its NCIS (2.1) lead-in inched down to a new low and Person of Interest (1.3) was also on the low end.

• ABC got some much-welcome relief for its sinking Tuesday lineup as Fresh Off the Boat (1.4) and Agents of SHIELD (1.5) both reclaimed the tenth lost last week. A repeat of Fresh at 8:30 (1.0) was also a one-tenth improvement on last week's Repeat After Me. Only Forever (0.9) was down as both of its drama competitors were back in action.

• For Fox, at least it didn't get any worse at 9:30 as Weird Loners (0.7) was even in week two. But since that show's already dead, the far more pressing issue is New Girl (0.9), which has plummeted into disaster territory since Loners came around. It did face The Voice this week, but it was down another tenth from an already horrible result last week.

• If it holds in finals, this was definitely the most encouraging result yet for iZombie, which held its 0.7 from the last two weeks despite following a repeat of The Flash (0.5). It'd be pretty good even if it doesn't hold in finals!

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 3/24/15

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: The finale of The Mindy Project (0.9) dodged a new low and ended up on par with the last couple airings after repeats. The Voice (2.8) and The Flash (1.2) were also up. NCIS: New Orleans (1.8) lost a tick, making this the show's outright second-lowest episode.
  

• NBC's Tuesday comedy block looked less promising in week two, as Undateable (1.5) dropped about 20% and One Big Happy (1.2) about 25% to put the hour pretty much on par with typical ratings for The Night Shift after The Voice. However, they had little help from The Voice itself (2.7), which shed 15%ish for the second straight week. NBC also got some info on what The Night Shift (1.0) would be like without a The Voice lead-in by airing an original in the 10/9c hour after One Big Happy. It doesn't seem like a very surprising result in either direction.

• The CW had somewhat better newbie news as iZombie (0.7) was down just a tenth in week two. Its lead-in The Flash (1.1) could very well adjust up (it had a 1.2 in the 8:00 half-hour), but even getting to 1.2 would still mark a new low.

• ABC's 8:00 block didn't fare well after a week off, with Fresh Off the Boat (1.4) down two tenths and Repeat After Me (1.0) also hitting yet another new low. FotB has looked utterly safe, but it would certainly do well to stop the bleeding from this point forward. Agents of SHIELD (1.5) and Forever (0.9) also inched down for ABC.

• CBS saw NCIS: New Orleans (1.9) get back to normal after its disastrous 1.6 against The Voice two weeks ago. Lead-in NCIS (2.2) and lead-out Person of Interest (1.5) were even.

• And Fox's The Mindy Project (0.8) ended its season on a new low, leading out of a repeat New Girl (0.7) for the third straight week.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 2/10/15

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: Everything on CBS plus The Flash (1.5), the 8:00 Parks (1.1) and About a Boy (0.9) adjusted up.

• ABC's Fresh Off the Boat made a promising transition to Tuesday, posting a 1.7 demo at 8:00 and rising to a 1.8 at 8:30. This hour was down 27% from the 2.4 average for the Wednesday episodes, but that's good retention given the more difficult timeslot. And it was about 30% better than the launches of Selfie and Manhattan Love Story. It will still have to deal with The Voice in a couple weeks, but this has given it a real shot at holding onto a number ABC can work with. ABC's dramas Agent Carter (1.4) and Forever (1.1) also benefited a bit.

• Fresh might have even had something of a Death Star effect on some competitors, as NBC's two episodes of Parks and Recreation (1.0/1.0) and even Fox's MasterChef Junior (1.4) did much worse than usual. NBC's struggles continued into the 9/8c hour with Marry Me (0.8) and About a Boy (0.8) and culminated with a new season low for Chicago Fire (1.4). Fox didn't fare much better with below-average New Girl (1.3) and The Mindy Project (1.0).

• CBS fared much better in the 8/7c hour as NCIS (2.8) rose, but NCIS: New Orleans (2.2) and Person of Interest (1.5) were pretty normal.

• And the CW's The Flash (1.4) ticked back in the positive direction. 

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 2/3/15

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: The Mindy Project (1.0), About a Boy (0.9), Supernatural (0.8), Marry Me (0.8) and the Parks repeat (0.7) adjusted down.

• On ABC, Agent Carter (1.3) steadied in week four, but it had help from an original episode of Shark Tank (1.9) at 8/7c. Forever (0.9) dropped to a new series low at 10/9c.

• The return of CBS' regular original lineup produced slightly lower ratings than the shows saw in their early January airings. NCIS (2.6) and NCIS: New Orleans (2.2) still dominated their respective hours, but the drop to Person of Interest (1.4) was noticeable, and it also fell behind Chicago Fire for the lead at 10/9c.

• Parks and Recreation (1.2) inched down again at 8/7c, and NBC squeezed in the one Parks repeat (0.8) necessary to get through the 13 episodes in 7 weeks. Despite the weak 8:30 lead-in, Marry Me (0.9), About a Boy (1.0) and Chicago Fire (1.6) were up a touch.

• On the CW, Supernatural (0.9) bounced back from last week's off night, but The Flash (1.3) remained at last week's low point.

• Fox saw MasterChef Junior (1.6) inch down against added competition from Shark Tank but was otherwise steady.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 1/6/15

WHAT MATTERS:

• The two-hour premiere of Marvel's Agent Carter scored a middling 2.0 rating at 8:00 and a 1.8 at 9:00. This was an improvement on what ABC usually gets out of Agents of SHIELD, but not a particularly significant one, and it will need to hold up pretty well to be a SHIELD-sized player for the rest of the season. Unfortunately, the fact that this couldn't even beat Sunday's Galavant premiere would seem to suggest that SHIELD has created a certain limitation on what the Marvel brand can do on TV. And the change in lead-in didn't do anything for Forever (1.1).

• Like on Monday, CBS and Fox thrived against lessened competition from NBC. NCIS (2.8) and NCIS: New Orleans (2.5) each hit their highest ratings since the opening week of the season, while Person of Interest (1.7) was also on the high end. Fox's MasterChef Junior (1.8) tied its premiere from the late fall, while New Girl (1.5) was also a bit above average, but The Mindy Project (1.0) was very weak.

•  As for NBC, Marry Me (0.8) completely tanked in its first episode without The Voice support, only tying its lead-in from a Parks and Recreation repeat (0.8), and About a Boy joined them at a new low 0.8. Given those ratings, it's something of a miracle that Chicago Fire (1.7) managed to pull into a tie for first at 10/9c.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 12/9/14

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show adjusted up to 3.4, putting it even year-to-year. It also edged out the series finale of FX's Sons of Anarchy (3.3) for top series of the night. Sons joined recent finales like Breaking Bad and How I Met Your Mother in ending on a new series high, just barely beating the 3.2 from this season's premiere. Elsewhere, The Voice (2.3) adjusted up to avoid a new low, while Supernatural (1.0) and The Mindy Project (1.1) both went down.

• CBS ruled Tuesday with the always reliably stout Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (2.8) and The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show (3.3) sandwiching a repeat of NCIS (1.7). Both these specials were just barely down from last year (3.0/3.4 respectively) when CBS aired them on separate nights (putting Rudolph a couple weeks earlier and Secret following original episodes of the NCIS twins).

• The superhero shows preliminarily inched down from last week, but The Flash (1.5) was still above its usual level before the Arrow cross-over (and Supernatural (1.1) had a particularly strong night). ABC's fall finales of Agents of SHIELD (1.7) and Forever (1.1) also declined by 0.1 with less lead-in support at 8/7c from Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (1.1), but these shows were still ahead of some previous episodes (when they had more drama competition).

• NBC's struggles continued with another new low for The Voice (2.2) leading to more declines from Marry Me (1.2) and About a Boy (0.9) and a modest Angelina Jolie news special at 10/9c (1.0). Fox's New Girl (1.5) and The Mindy Project (1.2) each picked up a tenth.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 12/2/14

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: The Flash (1.6) adjusted up, now up 0.2 week-to-week and hitting its best rating since week two. Chicago Fire (1.7) adjusted up to round out a full night of week-to-week upticks for NBC, while Marry Me (1.3) dropped 0.1 in finals.
  

• ABC got some of its best numbers of the season in the Tuesday 8/7c hour with new holiday special Toy Story That Time Forgot (1.9) leading into classic special A Charlie Brown Christmas (2.1). This was well behind the new Halloween-themed Toy Story special in 2013 (3.1), but Charlie Brown was up two tenths year-to-year. That added lead-in support plus perhaps some audience fleeing CBS repeats produced a positive night for the ABC dramas; Agents of SHIELD (1.8) had its best rating since the season premiere and Forever (1.2) snagged its best rating since late October.

• A good night for superheroes continued on the CW as the first half of a crossover between The Flash and Arrow saw a small uptick for The Flash (1.5). Often it's the second show that benefits more in these situations, so we'll see what happens with Arrow, though last night's story on Flash was largely self-contained.

• With CBS and ABC way down from last week (when CBS had originals and ABC a DWTS finale), there were also some minor upticks on the other original networks. The Voice (2.6), Marry Me (1.4) and About a Boy (1.1) all bounced back from last week's truly egregious numbers, but Chicago Fire (1.6) had no such luck (at least in the demo). MasterChef Junior (1.6) and New Girl (1.4) were up a tenth for Fox.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 11/11/14

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: The Voice (3.0) and The Mindy Project (1.1) each upticked.

• NBC's big cross-over week began with a two-hour The Voice (2.9) leading into Chicago Fire (2.2), which did about what would be expected from that kind of lead-in injection and not much more. As usual with these multi-night cross-overs, the bigger bounce tends to come on the second night when the first show's audience follows along, so let's see what happens with Law and Order: SVU and Chicago PD tonight.

• On Fox, MasterChef Junior (1.8) actually held its entire premiere rating, a truly massive win for the network given the considerable influx of competition at 8/7c. But New Girl (1.3) and The Mindy Project (1.0) fell back to their normal post-Utopia levels, likely taking a hit from The Voice's presence at 9/8c.

• The Voice at 9/8c also didn't help CBS, where NCIS: New Orleans (2.0) and Person of Interest (1.3) took distressingly large steps down. 

• ABC's Agents of SHIELD (1.5) will once again hope for a finals uptick to avoid a new low. Forever (1.0) also inched down again, while the installation of a repeat Modern Family (0.9) at 8:30 matched last week's Selfie result (but at least was better than Manhattan Love Story).

• A solid week for the CW continued as The Flash (1.4) had its first non-drop in week five, while the 200th Supernatural (0.9) was up a tenth.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 10/28/14

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: CBS got some more help for NCIS (2.6) and Person of Interest (1.7), each now up two tenths from last week. The Flash (1.4) cut its week-to-week drop to 0.1, but Agents of SHIELD (1.7) didn't get its usual finals uptick. On NBC, The Voice (2.9) was up but Marry Me (1.5) lost another precious tenth.
• The World Series got a 3.5, a series high but a simply miserable number for a Game 6 historically speaking. (Recent Game 6's, even one that didn't end the series like in 2011, took well over a point jump from Game 5. This was up 0.2...)

• ABC pre-empted its low-rated comedy hour in favor of special The Great Halloween Fright Fight (1.1), presumably a spin-off of its The Great Christmas Light Fight series. It was an improvement on the usual comedy ratings, especially at 8:30 vs. Manhattan Love Story. And that may have helped Agents of SHIELD (1.7), which bounced back by a tick and may even be up two after finals. Forever (1.1) was down a tenth.

• NBC had a brutal Tuesday as The Voice (2.8) took a half-point drop at 8/7c. That helped further derail Marry Me (1.6), About a Boy (1.2) and even Chicago Fire (1.7), all two tenths behind last week.

• On a second World Series Tuesday, the CW had a third straight two-tenth drop for The Flash (1.3) and a third straight one-tenth drop for Supernatural (0.8). CBS was steady as NCIS (2.5) increased for the first time all season and Person of Interest (1.6) also inched up.

• As for Fox, its 6th game of the World Series was a massive blowout and is thus only barely ahead of the Tuesday rating a week ago in prelims. But Fox at least got the winner they wanted; namely, the team down 3-2 survived, setting up a decisive Game 7 and a likely significant spike tonight.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 10/21/14

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: The World Series had its lowest Game 1 ever in adults 18-49 (3.4) and was down 19% from last year's opener (and two tenths behind the previous low from 2012). The superhero shows got some finals help, as Agents of SHIELD (1.6) avoided a new low and The Flash (1.5) ended up down just two tenths. The finals were not so kind to Marry Me (1.8), now 22% behind the premiere. And its The Voice lead-in (3.3) got a two-tenth boost, making Marry Me look even worse by comparison.

• NBC's comedies Marry Me (1.9) and About a Boy (1.4) were each down nearly 20% in week two. Marry Me probably shouldn't be counted out, as this is still just a touch behind the pace AaB set last spring. But it's not a good development for AaB, which dropped to the low end of what NBC got from Growing Up Fisher. Again, Chicago Fire (1.9) looked like a big winner in all this, even week-to-week despite the drops in the 9/8c hour.

•  The CW's The Flash (1.4) took a bigger drop in week three than it did in week two, but apparently it was even in 18-34. So maybe Fox's older-skewing World Series had the same kind of bizarrely large effect that it's always had with Arrow.

• On ABC, the bookend shows that dropped big last week each bounced back by a tenth: Selfie (1.1) and Forever (1.2). However, Agents of SHIELD (1.5) could be headed for another new low at 9/8c. This may be another World Series thing, but it can also at least partly thank a truly horrendous showing from Manhattan Love Story (0.7). The comedies are pre-empted next week anyway, but it's pretty hard to see Manhattan coming back on the other side of that.

• CBS saw the NCIS mothership (2.4) continue its kinda worrying downward trickle but got a promising hold from NCIS: New Orleans (2.4).

• And Fox had Game 1 of the World Series, moving Game 1 to Tuesday after it opened on Wednesday for the last seven years. (Presumably this is a move to help it avoid the NFL as much as possible.) The overnights indicate it was down double digits from last year's opener, not a stunner given the smaller-market matchup. More after finals!

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 10/14/14

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: NBC avoided a drop for Marry Me, but About a Boy (1.7) and Chicago Fire (1.9) looked a little worse. The superhero shows remained tied as The Flash (1.7) and Agents of SHIELD (1.7) each added a tenth. That means Flash had an above-average week two hold of an incredible premiere number.

• NBC had a pretty "meh" start to its latest post-The Voice (3.3) comedy effort. Marry Me (2.3) began a couple tenths below About a Boy's first original in the hour in March, and it may adjust down. And the season two premiere of About a Boy (1.8) was just kind of there at 9:30, down a half point from Marry Me but bouncing back a bit from its late-spring episodes after The Voice. It wasn't an awful hour for NBC, especially since The Voice was kinda soft, but it's not a great base to start from since The Voice tends to drop later in the season. The show that looked best in all this was the 10/9c occupant Chicago Fire (2.0), which grew from About a Boy as it did from Growing Up Fisher in the spring.

• Tuesday's big winner was again The Flash (1.6) on the CW, down a perfectly typical 16% in week two. When you're starting from a premiere as huge as last week's, a typical week two drop is a very good thing. And it could adjust up again.

• Nobody in the 9/8c hour seemed to benefit from NBC no longer airing two-hour The Voice episodes. NCIS: New Orleans (2.2) was down a tenth (just like the other two CBS shows), while New Girl (1.2) may have been more affected by having to compete with a comedy. ABC's Tuesday problems intensified as Selfie (1.0) and Forever (1.1) each shed a couple more tenths.

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 10/7/14

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: ABC was not quite as fortunate as usual in finals but still got upticks for Selfie (1.2, still down 25% from last week) and Agents of SHIELD (1.7, still a new low). The CW saw The Flash (1.9) get even bigger but Supernatural (1.1) drop below last year's premiere.

• The CW's highest-stakes night of the season zoomed past "great for CW" numbers and into "potential network game-changer" territory. The Flash (1.8) got the highest raw rating for a CW scripted series since season one of The Vampire Diaries back in 2009-10, and its premiere was almost certainly more impressive than that of TVD (2.1) given the five years that have elapsed since then. It's still very early, but it's hard to see this show not being the CW's biggest series this season, and it may even stack up very high on the historical spectrum. This was a massive, massive win for the network.

• I had never really bought into the idea that the network might move Supernatural (1.2) within this season to launch something post-Flash, but tonight's ratings would seem to open that door. It was another really good rating for SPN, but only even with last year's premiere and a tenth above the May finale. The CW may see its optimum midseason schedule including Supernatural on another night, as its ratings would probably not completely crater elsewhere. But we're still a long way from knowing just how big a launch-pad The Flash will be.

• After a not-completely-DOA start last week, ABC's new comedies are officially on death watch. Compared with last week's finals, Selfie (1.1) was down 31% and Manhattan Love Story (0.9) down a massive 40%. These shows both adjusted up two tenths last week, so the drops may not end up that ugly, but they're still going to be bad. Agents of SHIELD (1.6) and Forever (1.3) also hit new lows again, which (as I said last week) could inspire speedier action by the network in the 8:00 hour.

• CBS and Fox were mostly steady, as a repeat of Family Guy (0.9) provided only a teeny improvement on last week's Utopia. NBC aired a two-hour The Voice clip show (2.4), and Chicago Fire (2.1) held on pretty strong. (It tied last year's rating in this same situation.)

First Two Weeks, Forever

WEEK ZERO (Monday 10/9c preview)
Rating: 1.7
Lead-in: Dancing with the Stars (2.2 overall, 2.5 at 9:30)
Competition: Under the Dome (1.8), The Blacklist (3.4).

Spotted Ratings, Tuesday 9/30/14

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: ABC had another big day at the adjustment bureau as Selfie (1.6) and Manhattan Love Story (1.5) took two-tenth leaps that might buy them more short-term time than originally thought (but the long-term prospects still look dim). Agents of SHIELD (1.8), Forever (1.4), The Voice (4.1) and New Girl (1.3) also upticked, while Chicago Fire (2.3) dropped.

• ABC's nearly week-long streak of good luck came to a decisive halt on Tuesday #2 as new comedies Selfie (1.4) and Manhattan Love Story (1.3) bombed. It's a particularly devastating blow for the much heavier-promoted Selfie, which was not able to display any separation from even its much-hated lead-out Manhattan. ABC could spring into action pretty quickly on this night because of how things went in the subsequent two hours. Agents of SHIELD (1.7) plummeted to a new low (though it tends to adjust up, so it may not end up being an outright low), while the premiere week underdog story that was Forever (1.3) came to a crashing halt with a whooping 28% drop. Forever remained a big improvement in a historically awful timeslot for ABC, but the long-term prospects look much darker now.

• CBS and NBC had another night of good week two holds as NCIS (2.6) dropped about 10%, newbie NCIS: New Orleans (2.3) was promisingly down just two tenths from last week and Person of Interest (1.8) actually inched up. NBC's The Voice (4.0) held up again and Chicago Fire (2.4) was down two tenths (maybe three after finals).

• Fox's New Girl (1.2) lost another tenth, but The Mindy Project (1.1) gained one back.

Spotted Ratings, Premiere Tuesday 9/23/14

WHAT MATTERS:

• FINALS UPDATE: ABC had another really favorable set of adjustments, as Agents of SHIELD (2.1) went from the low end of its spring results to the high end, while Forever (1.8) actually went above the Monday preview. (That 1.5 Monday prelim really feels like a long time ago!) That shockingly put Forever ahead of a downward-adjusting Person of Interest (1.7). And Chicago Fire (2.6) dropped a tenth behind last year's series high.

• A new spin-off didn't particularly charge up CBS' lineup. NCIS (2.9) improved somewhat on its spring ratings but was still nearly 20% behind last year's big premiere, and NCIS: New Orleans (2.5) had nearly full viewership retention but was down almost 15% from its lead-in among the demo. Throw in the return of Person of Interest (1.8), down a significant 22% year-to-year and the network was off by 19% from last year's premiere Tuesday.

• That left NBC's The Voice (4.0) and Chicago Fire (2.7) free to win Premiere Tuesday in runaway fashion. After dropping much more on Monday, The Voice was down just 15% vs. last year's first Tuesday episode against far more manageable competition. And the NBC drama department keeps looking better; Chicago Fire preliminarily tied the series high 2.7 set on this night last year. NBC was down 11% year-to-year as a whole.

• ABC was a mixed bag with little interest in a second Dancing with the Stars results show (1.6), and Agents of SHIELD (1.9) was only able to get back to its normal delivery from the spring (even if it gets its usual finals uptick). However, the network was very much on the 10/9c map with the timeslot premiere of Forever (1.7). It took a viewership hit from the change in lead-ins but impressively held 100% of its Monday demo rating, and it looks like a potentially massive improvement on all the bombs ABC aired in the hour last season. Despite Forever's 31% gain at 10/9c, the network was still down 40% vs. last year's Premiere Tuesday (which featured SHIELD's 4.7 premiere).

• Fox's New Girl (1.3) and The Mindy Project (1.0) took almost the same week two drops as last year when all the competition arrived, and Utopia (0.8) was off by a similar percent. Fox was down 43% vs. last year's premiere Tuesday (with Utopia down over 50% and the comedies about -35%).

• So the big four as a whole were down by 25% in preliminaries. If Big Bang inflated the Monday number (-3%), SHIELD obviously deflated the Tuesday one.

Spotted Ratings, Premiere Monday 9/22/14

WHAT MATTERS: 

• FINALS UPDATE: By far the most significant finals changes were two-tenth upticks for both of the ABC series, which seems to meaningfully change the feel for both. Dancing with the Stars (2.2) now finds itself just a single tenth behind last year's premiere Monday rating. And it's just two tenths behind last Monday's premiere, which is a pretty fantastic hold against this influx of competition. And Forever (1.7) seems at least somewhat more hopeful for its move to Tuesday than it did this morning. Also, Gotham and Scorpion finished in a tie at 3.2, and the big four finished just 3% behind last year's premiere Monday (or just 2% including the CW).

• If there was one network for whom the premiere Monday news was pretty much all positive, it was definitely CBS, as The Big Bang Theory (5.3 at 8:00, 5.4 at 8:30) made a major splash in its return to Monday at 8/7c. Considering it was a new night, more competition than the show has faced in years, and there had been some concerning repeat ratings late in the summer, to be within 10% of last year's premiere hour (5.5/6.1) is a big win for Big Bang. That helped vault Scorpion (3.3) to a very good premiere sampling, and it didn't even drop that much at the half (prelim 3.4/3.1). CBS then wrapped up with an hour of Under the Dome (1.8) at that series' biggest rating in over two months. CBS was about 30% ahead of premiere Monday last year, though obviously Big Bang distorts that comparison somewhat.

• The other networks were mostly good news/bad news. Fox had a fine debut from Gotham (3.2), which they will probably fairly OK with given their current plight, though it was a bit below last year's pre-premiere Sleepy Hollow launch (3.5). As for season two of Hollow (2.0), the limited series sophomore slump trend seems to be alive and well; the show opened at a new series low despite its biggest lead-in ever. This was 43% behind last year's series premiere and 35% behind the premiere week episode.  Overall, Gotham's gains and Hollow's big losses cancelled out, putting Fox just above even vs. premiere Monday 2013.

SpotVault - Forever (ABC) - 2014-15 Ratings

Forever

Tuesdays, 10/9c, ABC

Fall 2014 Best Case/Worst Case, Tuesday 10/9c

Best Case/Worst Case moves to the Tuesday 10/9c hour. CBS and NBC both made significant improvements in the hour by importing returning dramas last year; can the badly troubled ABC make inroads with a newbie in 2014-15?