The Breakdown: ABC Wednesday in 2019-20 (The Goldbergs, Modern Family, Stumptown and more!)

It's time for a journey through the ABC Wednesday schedule in 2019-20...

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 3/25/20

FINALS UPDATE: Survivor (1.7) and The Masked Singer (2.2) adjusted up while LEGO Masters (1.1) adjusted down.

WHAT MATTERS:

• Ratings stayed high but on average were down a bit from last Wednesday. ABC's 8/7c hour took the biggest hit, with The Goldbergs (0.9) and Schooled (0.6) each dropping two tenths. The rest of the night held up, as American Housewife (0.6) and Stumptown (0.5) were even despite a repeat of Modern Family (0.5) at 10/9c.

• Fox's The Masked Singer (2.1) inched down, but LEGO Masters (1.2) was even. The night's lone riser was Chicago Med (1.4), while the other two Chicago dramas (1.3/1.2) matched last week. CBS was flat with Survivor (1.6) and SEAL Team (0.7) but down a notch with S.W.A.T. (0.5).

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 3/18/20

FINALS UPDATE: Survivor (1.6) adjusted up while SEAL Team (0.7) adjusted down.

WHAT MATTERS:

• The coronavirus-fueled TV ratings upswing continued, led by Fox with a three-tenth uptick for The Masked Singer (2.2) and two tenths for LEGO Masters (1.2). NBC's Chicago Med (1.3), Chicago Fire (1.3) and Chicago PD (1.2) were about two tenths higher than normal.

• The other two networks had more modest increases, as ABC opened with a new season high from The Goldbergs (1.1) and increases for Schooled (0.8) and Modern Family (0.9), but American Housewife (0.6) had a rather quiet return to Wednesday night. At 10/9c, Stumptown was back up to 0.5 for the first time since early January.

• CBS looked only about a tenth higher than normal with Survivor (1.5), SEAL Team (0.8) and S.W.A.T. (0.6).

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 3/4/20

FINALS UPDATE: LEGO Masters (0.9) adjusted down.

WHAT MATTERS:

• On ABC, a two-hour Nik Wallenda special (0.7) produced about the same average ratings as the usual comedy block, and Stumptown (0.4) was unchanged at 10/9c.

• NBC's Chicago trio (1.0/1.1/1.0) came back to earth somewhat after last week's big return. Fox (1.8/1.0), the CW (0.2/0.1) and CBS (1.4/0.6/0.5) all matched last week's hourly averages, with S.W.A.T. returning in the 10/9c hour for the eye.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 2/19/20

FINALS UPDATE: Democratic Presidential Debate (2.1, +0.3) and The Masked Singer (2.0) adjusted up while Chicago Med (R) (0.7) adjusted down.

WHAT MATTERS:

• Criminal Minds wrapped up its 15-season run with a two-hour finale averaging 0.8 in both hour, up by two tenths from last week and the second-highest rating of the season. It had help from a strong week two for Survivor (1.4), which built on last week's premiere.
  

• Fox also grew in the 8/7c hour with The Masked Singer (1.9), but the erosion continued at 9/8c for week three of LEGO Masters (1.0). On ABC (0.8/0.6/0.7/0.6/0.4), Modern Family had a brutal night, falling to a new series low the week after its Paris uptick.

• The 9/8c shows may have suffered a bit due to NBC's Democratic presidential debate (1.7/1.8), which dominated the last two hours. It did roughly as well as the biggest debates of the cycle back in the summer (1.6/1.9 prelims for two nights in June which adjusted up to 1.8/2.2, then a 1.9 prelim in September which adjusted up to a 2.1).

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 2/12/20

FINALS UPDATE: No adjustments.

WHAT MATTERS:

• Week two of the Fox unscripted lineup saw a two-tenth decline for The Masked Singer (1.8) and a steep-ish 25% decline for newbie LEGO Masters (1.2).

• Fox had another tough unscripted competitor as Survivor (1.3) returned for its two-hour 40th season premiere. The show took a roughly league-average decline vs. its spring 2019 premiere (1.6).  

• ABC got upticks from Modern Family (0.9) and Single Parents (0.6) on the night of Modern's Paris episode, but The Goldbergs (0.8) inched down to lead off the night. NBC's Chicago trio (1.1/1.1/1.0) looked normal, as did the CW's Riverdale (0.2).

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 2/5/20

FINALS UPDATE: No adjustments.

WHAT MATTERS:

• Three days after the Super Bowl, The Masked Singer (2.0) returned diminished; it was down a third from the year-ago winter premiere, and 20% off from the fall premiere. But Fox got a major consolation prize in the 9/8c hour with an outstanding start for unscripted lead-out LEGO Masters (1.6), more than doubling the premiere of fall TMS lead-out Almost Family which had the same 2.0 lead-in.

• Fox had a lot of competition, not just from NBC's Chicago trio (1.1/1.1/1.1) but also from a special Wednesday edition of The Bachelor (1.4/1.3). Bachelor, however, was no help to the usual 10/9c occupant Stumptown (0.4).

• CBS had a Survivor retrospective special (0.6) a week before the 40th season premiere, leading into a double-dose of Criminal Minds (0.6/0.5). The CW (0.2/0.1) was even.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 1/22/20

FINALS UPDATE: No adjustments.

WHAT MATTERS:

• ABC's 8/7c hour of The Goldbergs (0.8) and Schooled (0.7) bounced back, but Modern Family (0.8) lost a tenth and Single Parents (0.6) and Stumptown (0.4) were even.

• NBC's Chicago trio (1.1/1.1/1.0) was all down a tenth, as was S.W.A.T. (0.5) for CBS. Fox killed time before The Masked Singer's comeback with repeats of 9-1-1: Lone Star (0.4/0.4) while the return of Riverdale (0.2) could not bring Nancy Drew up from its 0.1.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 1/15/20

FINALS UPDATE: No adjustments.

WHAT MATTERS:

• It was a rough return for the regular ABC lineup as The Goldbergs (0.7) and 10/9c drama Stumptown (0.4) each fell to new series lows. The 9/8c comedies Modern Family (0.9) and Single Parents (0.6) gave back all of their Jeopardy! bounces from a week ago.

• NBC's Chicago trio (1.2/1.2/1.1) dominated, with all three shows up a tenth from last week, while CBS' Undercover Boss (0.7) and Criminal Minds (0.7) matched last week's premieres and S.W.A.T. (0.6) returned even at 10/9c.

• Fox's Flirty Dancing (0.4) and Almost Family (0.3) had their last regularly-scheduled episodes before finishing their runs on Saturday, while the CW's Nancy Drew could only muster up a 0.1 for its return, leading out of The CW Dog Honors (0.1) rather than its usual Riverdale.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 1/8/20

FINALS UPDATE: Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time (2.4) adjusted up.

WHAT MATTERS:

• Night two of Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time (2.3) held up swimmingly, dropping just a tenth from its Tuesday premiere. And it had an even more profound impact on the Wednesday comedy hour, vaulting Modern Family (1.5) and Single Parents (0.9) to new season highs and their best raw ratings since 2018. But Stumptown (0.5) couldn't pick up any steam at 10/9c.

• CBS brought in a couple veterans to help bridge the Survivor seasons on Wednesday, with the season premieres of Undercover Boss (0.7) and Criminal Minds (0.7/0.7). This was the first sighting of the Boss since a celebrity edition in summer 2018, and the first non-celebrity season since spring 2017. Minds was back after almost a full year off, but managed to tie its 0.7 premiere in fall 2018.

• NBC's Chicago Med (1.1), Chicago Fire (1.1) and Chicago PD (1.0) all returned down a notch from their fall finales. And the Fox duo of Flirty Dancing (0.3) and Almost Family (0.3) somehow got even more invisible.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 12/11/19

FINALS UPDATE: Nancy Drew (0.1) adjusted down.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 12/4/19

FINALS UPDATE: No adjustments.

WHAT MATTERS:

• Leading out of The Masked Singer (1.8), Fox's event comedy series The Moodys (0.7) opened with a performance that would be poor by most standards but managed to outperform what the network has been getting out of Almost Family lately. (Though it was not really any better than the Almost Family premiere, which had a 0.75 out of a 2.0 TMS.)

• NBC special Christmas in Rockefeller Center (1.1) was down two tenths year-to-year, but provided another The Voice-esque lead-in for night three of Making It (0.5).

• ABC had a soft return in the 8/7c hour, with The Goldbergs (0.8) and Schooled (0.6) returning to new lows, but Modern Family (0.9) and Single Parents (0.6) and Stumptown (0.5) were even. CBS' Survivor (1.2), SEAL Team (0.7) and S.W.A.T. (0.5) were back to normal after their odd Thanksgiving Eve showings and matched two weeks ago. The CW (0.2/0.2) was also even with two weeks ago.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 11/20/19

FINALS UPDATE: No adjustments.

WHAT MATTERS:

• The Masked Singer (1.9) got a post-CMAs rebound, making Almost Family (even at 0.5) look even more dire by comparison. NBC's Chicago trio (1.2/1.2/1.1) and CBS' Survivor (1.2) and SEAL Team (0.7) were also up vs. their last originals.
  

• Everything on ABC (0.9/0.7/0.9/0.6/0.5) matched two weeks ago, before the CMA break, and S.W.A.T. (0.5) was also even. The CW's Riverdale (0.2) edged down, but Nancy Drew clung to 0.2 at 9/8c.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 11/6/19

FINALS UPDATE: Chicago Fire (1.1) adjusted up while Nancy Drew (0.1) adjusted down.

WHAT MATTERS:

• Fox's The Masked Singer (2.0/2.0) returned with a double dose following two Wednesdays off due to the World Series, declining from its last original and matching its low from weeks two and three.

• Following some huge showings against the Series, it was a down night for Chicago Med (1.1), Chicago Fire (1.0) and Chicago PD (1.0). ABC's Modern Family (0.9) also dropped a tick while the 8/7c comedies (0.9/0.7), Single Parents (0.6) and Stumptown (0.5) matched last week.

• The only two shows to uptick on broadcast were CBS' Survivor (1.3 while its lead-out dramas (0.6/0.5) were even) and the CW's Nancy Drew (0.2, matching Riverdale (0.2) in the demo but trailing by more than 20% in total viewers).

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 10/30/19

FINALS UPDATE: Survivor (1.2), Chicago Fire (1.2) and World Series (6.1, +0.5) adjusted up while Single Parents (0.6) and SEAL Team (0.6) adjusted down.

WHAT MATTERS:

• Game 7 of the World Series (5.6), as Game 7's do, went massively ahead of the rest of the series: more than 50% ahead of the Game 6 prelim, and close to double the game on Wednesday of last week.

• With another dose of Halloween help, ABC's comedies held up; The Goldbergs (0.9) and Schooled (0.7) matched last week, while Modern Family (1.0) and Single Parents (0.7) matched two weeks ago when they were last together. The net's only decliner was Stumptown, falling to its first 0.5 at 10/9c.

• NBC's Chicago trio (1.2/1.1/1.1) also hung in there impressively; Fire at 9/8c was the only week-to-week decliner, while Med and PD were even. 

• CBS' Survivor (1.1) took a hit, but the dramas SEAL Team (0.7) and S.W.A.T. (0.5) looked pretty normal. And the CW's Riverdale (0.2) and Nancy Drew (0.1) were both down, putting Nancy at her first 0.1.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 10/16/19

FINALS UPDATE: Chicago Med (1.5) and The Masked Singer (2.2) adjusted up while SEAL Team (0.6), Chicago PD (1.3) and Almost Family (0.6) adjusted down.

WHAT MATTERS:

• A crossover event lifted NBC's Chicago lineup in a huge way, with Chicago Fire (1.3), Chicago Med (1.4) and Chicago PD (1.4) all notching new season highs by multiple tenths. These will likely be new series highs for all three shows in Plus.

• With the baseball playoffs rained out, there was some upward momentum elsewhere on the big four as well. Survivor (1.4) hit a new season high, but the momentum did not really continue with dramas SEAL Team (0.7) and S.W.A.T. (0.5). Fox also had an unscripted uptick with The Masked Singer (2.1), but its lead-out Almost Family (0.7) won't even have to wait till finals to get its 0.7 this time. And ABC was up a notch with comedies Schooled (0.8) and Modern Family (1.0) and even with everything else.

• The CW's saw post-premiere dips from Riverdale (0.2) and Nancy Drew (0.2), a particularly striking drop for Riverdale since it was at a 0.42 last week.

Renewology Week 3: The CW's Premiere Week, and the Newbie Mean Reversion

Here's a look at the big Renewology developments in week three.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 10/9/19

FINALS UPDATE: Survivor (1.2) and S.W.A.T. (0.6) adjusted up while SEAL Team (0.6) and Almost Family (0.7) adjusted down.

WHAT MATTERS:

• The CW's second newbie premiere of the year was Nancy Drew (0.3), down a tenth from its Riverdale lead-in (0.4). That may not seem like much, but it was a tenth bigger than last year's All American premiere in this timeslot. As for Riverdale, it was down a tenth from last year's premiere, and bounced back from a rough spring that saw a string of 0.2's and ended with a 0.3.

• NBC was steady to up with One Chicago (1.1/1.2/1.0), including a new season high for Fire at 9/8c, while Fox was even with The Masked Singer (2.0) and will hope that Almost Family (0.8) can hold in finals this time after adjusting down to 0.7 last week.

• The other two networks were not so steady; ABC was even with The Goldbergs (1.0) but down with Schooled (0.7), Modern Family (0.9) and Stumptown (0.6). CBS' Survivor (1.1) and SWAT (0.5) were also down.

Renewology Week 2: Stumptown and Prodigal Son Become Renewal Favorites

Here's a look at the big Renewology developments in week two.

Spotted Ratings, Wednesday 10/2/19

FINALS UPDATE: Chicago Med (1.1) and The Masked Singer (2.0) adjusted up while Single Parents (0.7) and Almost Family (0.7) adjusted down.

WHAT MATTERS:

• Fox unveiled its first scripted lead-out to The Masked Singer (1.9), but new drama Almost Family (0.8) was pretty soundly rejected by that show's audience.

• CBS featured the returns of third-year dramas SEAL Team (0.7) and S.W.A.T. (0.6). SEAL was off a tenth from the year-ago premiere, while S.W.A.T. was down a tenth from Criminal Minds in this timeslot a year ago. At 8/7c, Survivor (1.2) inched down from last week's premiere.

• The second Wednesday was much steadier than the second Tuesday on ABC, as the comedies (1.0/0.8/1.1/0.8) were even (and up a tenth in Single Parents' case), while week two of Stumptown followed up last week's crazy DVR growth by maintaining its 0.7.

• One Chicago was also close to even in week two, as Chicago PD (1.0) shed a tenth but Chicago Med (1.0) and Chicago Fire (1.1) were even.