TV Ratings for week of November 3-9

First number is the 18-49 demo; second number is total viewers.

1 Sun NBC Sunday Night Football (8:30-11PM)           6.3   17.04
2 Thu CBS   The Big Bang Theory                                  4.9   16.89
3 Wed ABC The 47th Annual CMA Awards (8-11PM) 4.7 16.76
4 Mon NBC The Voice (8-10PM)                                 3.6   11.75
5 Tue NBC The Voice (9-11PM)                                 3.4   11.3
6 Sun NBC Football Night in America/ Pre-Kick          3.4 9.42
7 Mon CBS   How I Met Your Mother                            3.4   8.67
8 Sun CBS  60 Minutes                                                3.2 15.81
9 Tue CBS  NCIS                                                         2.9   19.18
10 Mon NBC The Blacklist                                              2.9   10.34
11 Thu ABC Scandal                                                        2.8   8.66
12 Thu ABC Grey's Anatomy                                           2.7 8.68
13 Thu CBS  The Millers                                                 2.6   10.38
14 Mon CBS  Mike & Molly -P                               2.6   9.22
15 Mon CBS  2 Broke Girls                                             2.6   8.12
16 Thu NBC  The Voice (8-9PM) -R                                2.5  9.74
17 Wed CBS  Survivor Blood vs Water                            2.5 9.29
18 Tue ABC Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.                 2.5   7.15
19 Mon FOX Sleepy Hollow                                            2.5   7.08
20 Sun FOX Family Guy                                                 2.5 4.87
21 Tue CBS  NCIS: LA                                                 2.4 14.76
22 Sun FOX The Simpsons                                              2.4 5.43
23 Wed CBS  Criminal Minds                                             2.3 9.7
24 Sun ABC Once Upon A Time                                        2.3 7.55
25 Mon ABC Castle                                                         2.2 10.87
26 Sun CBS  The Amazing Race                                         2.1 9.38
27 Thu CBS  The Crazy Ones                                         2.1 8
28 Tue NBC The Biggest Loser                                         2.1 6.82
29 Mon ABC Dancing with the Stars (8-10PM)                 2 13.72
30 Thu CBS  Two and a Half Men                                   2 8.27
31 Mon CBS  Mom                                                         2 7.38
32 Fri ABC Shark Tank                                                 2 7.25
33 Mon FOX Bones                                                         2 6.97
34 Tue FOX New Girl                                                         2 3.85
35 Tue CBS  Person Of Interest                                         1.9 11.79
36 Sun FOX American Dad                                                 1.9 3.75
37 Fri CBS  Undercover Boss                                         1.8 9.34
38 Wed CBS  CSI                                                                 1.8 9.08
39 Thu CBS  Elementary                                                 1.8 8.89
40 Sun FOX Bob's Burgers                                                 1.8 3.75
41 Sun ABC Revenge                                                         1.7 6.33
42 Sun CBS  The Good Wife                                           1.6 10.22
43 Tue FOX Brooklyn Nine-Nine                                         1.6 3.84
44 Wed NBC Law And Order: SVU                                 1.5 5.65
45 Tue ABC The Goldbergs                                                 1.5 4.89
46 Wed FOX The X Factor (8-10PM)                                 1.5 4.54
47 Fri FOX MasterChef Jr                                              1.5 4.21
48 Thu FOX Glee                                                                 1.5 4.01
49 Tue FOX The Mindy Project                                         1.5 2.88
50 Fri CBS  Hawaii Five-0                                             1.4 9.39
51 Fri ABC Last Man Standing                                         1.4 6.18
52 Fri ABC 20/20                                                         1.4 5.98
53 Wed NBC Revolution                                                  1.4 5.21
54 Thu NBC Sean Saves the World                                 1.4 4.55
55 Tue FOX Dads                                                         1.4 3.65
56 Fri CBS  Blue Bloods                                                 1.3 10.98
57 Fri NBC Grimm                                                         1.3 4.94
58 Thu NBC Parenthood                                                 1.3 3.88
59 Thu CW   The Vampire Diaries                                         1.3 2.59
60 Thu FOX The X Factor                                                 1.2 3.67
61 Mon CBS  Hostages                                                         1.1 4.79
62 Fri ABC The Neighbors                                               1.1 4.55
63 Wed NBC Dateline NBC                                                 1.1 4.4
64 Tue ABC Trophy Wife                                                 1.1 3.66
65 Fri NBC Dateline                                                         1 5.6
66 Thu NBC The Michael J Fox Show                            1 3.45
67 Sun ABC Betrayal                                                      1 3.44
68 Fri NBC Dracula                                                      1 2.99
69 Wed CW   Arrow                                                         1 2.8
70 Thu ABC Once Upon A Time in Wonderland                 0.9 3.55
71 Tue CW   Supernatural                                                 0.9 2.15
72 Tue CW   The Originals                                                 0.9 2.03
73 Tue ABC Spotlight With Robin Roberts: CMA Awards 0.7 3.39
74 Fri FOX Sleepy Hollow -R                                         0.6 1.86
75 Thu CW   Reign                                                         0.6 1.64
76 Wed CW   The Tomorrow People                                 0.6 1.56
77 Fri CW   America's Next Top Model                         0.4 1.05
78 Mon CW   Hart Of Dixie                                                 0.4 1
79 Fri CW   The Carrie Diaries                                         0.3 0.8
80 Mon CW   Beauty And The Beast                                 0.3 0.68

NBC

What works for them?  

Football, The Voice, The Blacklist, The Biggest Loser

What doesn't? Sitcoms, non-Spader dramas, Dateline

Dateline's dirt cheap to produce so NBC is okay plugging it in here and there. Dracula and The Michael J. Fox are guarantees to be cancelled, and this should be the last year for Parenthood and Revolution.  Sean Saves the World just might last because NBC has no other choice.

ABC

What works for them?  Award shows, dramas.

What doesn't?  Sitcoms. Modern Family is a hit and anything that gravitates near it does okay, but their Tuesday bloc of comedy is failing.

Guarantees for cancellation:  Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, Trophy Wife, Betrayal, The Neighbors.

CBS

What works for them?  Just about everything.

What doesn't? Luring in younger viewers. If the networks cared mostly about total viewers, CBS would be the undisputed king.  Person of Interest may have triple New Girl's viewers on Tuesday, but New Girl has the 18-49 edge.

Guarantees for cancellation:  Hostages. And The Mentalist shouldn't stay comfortable.

FOX

What works for them?  Sleepy Hollow and cartoons.

What doesn't? The X Factor. The Simon Cowell competition show is just one too many. The Voice is more fun, and American Idol is more of a staple when it returns in the spring. Glee has also had a big drop in viewers since the Cory Monteith curiosity factor has faded.

Guaranteed to be cancelled: Dads, and maybe The X Factor.

CW

They're in last.

New TV Show Reviews Part 3

ABC's MARVEL'S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. - I've watched three episodes now, and ... it has issues. Mainly it falls into Whedonverse snark before I've learned to like any of the characters.  Agent Colson (Clark Gregg) is the character we recognize, and then Ming-Na is a TV vet, and then the rest of the cast are so far bland, pretty people. Hacktivist Skye (Chloe Bennet) is our POV character, but she's more obnoxious than sympathetic. This may take a full season to iron out the kinks. Grade: C+

FOX's SLEEPY HOLLOW - Fox has found their own Grimm. The pilot was pretty entertaining, and a new star may be born in the form of Tom Bison as Ichabod Crane, a 1776 soldier who wakes up in 2013.  There's mystical magic involved in such a feat, and so Crane teams up with a Sleepy Hollow cop to fight the Headless Horseman and other paranormal baddies.  Grade: B+

NBC's WELCOME TO THE FAMILY - A show where I was okay with the half-hour I watched, but wouldn't want to visit it again, which is good since it got cancelled today.  Grade: C

ABC's THE GOLDBERGS - Loud Jewish family in the 1980's. Amusing, if not enter-the-DVR-rotation worthy. Grade: B-

ABC's TROPHY WIFE - Also amusing, and I might have watched a second episode if its ratings weren't so weak, as I really like its cast (Malin Akerman, Marcia Gay Harden, Michaela Watkins, Bradley Whitford). Grade: B-

NBC's SEAN SAVES THE WORLD - Sean Hayes is back on a sitcom, playing a gay single dad raising his daughter while dealing with a crazy work environment thanks to his new horrible boss (Thomas Lennon). This Sean isn't as crazed as Jack, but the physical humor feels dated and the folks in the live-studio sound like they're straining to nail their laughs.  Grade: C-

I had NBC's IRONSIDE on my DVR, but that got cancelled today too, so I deleted it without watching.

Fall TV Preview 2013

James Spader will star in NBC's The Blacklist

Last year the networks debuted 19 new shows. 7 of those shows have made it to a second season. None of the new mid-season replacement series were renewed.

This year there are 25 new shows.  The networks seem to be putting more new stuff in fall and holding back established series (like Mike & Molly and Suburgatory) to replace what doesn't work down the road.

Let's say 9 of them survive.  I will guess Mom, Sleepy Hollow, The Blacklist, Marvel's Agents of SHIELD, The Goldbergs, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Originals, The Michael J. Fox Show and Reign.


=SUNDAY=

ABC
Once Upon A Time
Revenge
Betrayal

CBS
The Amazing Race
The Good Wife
The Mentalist

FOX
The Simpsons
Bob's Burgers
Family Guy
American Dad

NBC
Sunday Night Football

New Shows:

Betrayal (ABC) - The dully-titled soap is about a married lawyer (Stuart Townsend) who begins an affair with a married woman (Boss's Hannah Ware) only to learn afterward her husband in opposing counsel in a high-profile trial he's working.  Sounds like an ideal sudser to follow Revenge, but reviews have been poor.

=MONDAY=

ABC
Dancing with the Stars
Castle

CBS
How I Met Your Mother
We Are Men
2 Broke Girls
Mom
Hostages

FOX
Bones
Sleepy Hollow

NBC
The Voice
The Blacklist

THE CW
Hart of Dixie
Beauty & the Beast

New Shows:

We Are Men (CBS) - Another fall, another Jerry O'Connell series that will likely die an ignominious death.  This co-stars Kal Penn and Tony Shalhoub as a bunch of idiotic stereotypes of "men."  This is getting worse reviews than Partners.

Mom (CBS) - Chuck Lorre is one of the last living kings of the multi-camera sitcom, and here he's provided a vehicle for Anna Faris as a woefully irresponsible mother trying to put her life back together when her that-much-more-irresponsible mother (Allison Janney) re-enters her life. Buzz has been positive.

Hostages (CBS) - CBS may rule the procedural, but with Under the Dome, they showed they're still willing to try cliffhanger dramas.  Hostages will have a limited 15-episode run, and it's about a surgeon (Toni Collette) whose family is being held hostage by a rogue FBI agent (Dylan McDermott) who wants her to kill the US President, on whom she's scheduled to operate. Jerry Bruckheimer (24) will executive-produce.  Sounds more like a cable show, which is a compliment.

Sleepy Hollow (Fox) - Supernatural elements have been trending lately, so Fox tries to get into the Grimm business with this update on Ichabod Crane. He and the Headless Horseman show up in modern times. Could be goofy fun. It scored 10 million viewers on its debut.

The Blacklist (NBC) - James Spader is suddenly using his real hairline and chewing the scenery as  a career criminal who turns himself in in order to help the FBI hunt down his enemies. NBC really needs a success on its scripted slate.

=TUESDAY=

ABC
Marvel's Agents of SHIELD
The Goldbergs
Trophy Wife
Lucky 7

CBS
NCIS
NCIS: Los Angeles
Person of Interest

FOX
Dads
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
New Girl
The Mindy Project

NBC
The Biggest Loser
The Voice
Chicago Fire

THE CW
The Originals
Supernatural

New Shows:

Marvel's Agents of SHIELD (ABC) - Agent Coulson lives! And rumor has it they'll explain how in one of the episodes down the road. Expectations are high for this series about the regular non-superhero people who keep SHIELD running.

The Goldbergs (ABC) - 1980's nostalgia for this sitcom that makes Jeff Garlin (Curb Your Enthusiasm) and Wendi McLendon-Covey (Bridesmaids) as the parents. Sounds like it would've fit in perfectly on Wednesdays. Oh well.

Trophy Wife (ABC) - Malin Akerman is the young third wife to West Wing's Bradley Whitford, and she has to juggle stepkids and her husband's two ex-wives (Marcia Gay Harden, Michaela Watkins). Interesting cast, but reviews have been meh.

Lucky 7 (ABC) - Seven people win the lottery. This very special dramedy follows their stories, and I don't see this lasting longer than Six Degrees.

Dads (FOX) - "From the creator of Family Guy" comes a likeable cast (Seth Green, Giovanni Ribisi, Peter Reigert, Martin Mull) dealing with father-son issues, but reviews have been dreadful (apparently there's a lot of racist Asian jokes.)

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (FOX) - If it can survive its lead-in, Andy Samberg tries for the Barney Miller route in this comedy set at a police station. Andre Braugher, that gravitas-filled actor who can't seem to find a series that'll stay on the air, arrives as the new no-nonsense chief. Hijinks ensue. I'm actually good things about this.

The Originals (CW) - Vampire Diaries spinoff. I don't watch CW. Best of luck, folks.

=WEDNESDAY=

ABC
The Middle
Back in the Game
Modern Family
Super Fun Night
Nashville

CBS
Survivor: Blood & Water
Criminal Minds
CSI

FOX
The X Factor

NBC
Revolution
Law & Order: SVU
Ironside

CW
Arrow
The Tomorrow People

New Shows:

Back in the Game (ABC) - James Caan is a grumpy ex-baseball player who helps his estranged daughter coach a Little League team. Should be a Bad News Bears mix.

Super Fun Night (ABC) - Aussie comedienne Rebel Wilson (Pitch Perfect) plays an awkward lawyer with an American accent.

Ironside (NBC) - Blair Underwood mans the wheelchair in this update of the Raymond Burr classic. I expect it will suffer the same fate as Prime Suspect.

The Tomorrow People (CW) - Young pretty people with superpowers.

=THURSDAY=

ABC
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland
Grey's Anatomy
Scandal

CBS
The Big Bang Theory
The Millers
The Crazy Ones
Two and a Half Men
Elementary

FOX
The X Factor results
Glee

NBC
Parks & Recreation
Welcome to the Family
Sean Saves the World
The Michael J. Fox Show
Parenthood

THE CW
The Vampire Diaries
Reign

New Shows:

Once Upon a Time in Wonderland (ABC) - This spinoff of Once Upon A Time will spend its time in Wonderland, where John Lithgow plays the White Rabbit.  Hard to say if this franchise is strong enough to already support a spin-off.

The Millers (CBS) - Will Arnett (Arrested Development) is a man dealing with the divorce of his parents (Margo Martindale, Beau Bridges) in the first episode. The laughs look broad (it's from Raising Hope's Greg Garcia) but that might mean it fits right in behind Big Bang Theory.

The Crazy Ones (CBS) - Robin Williams returns to TV, and CBS is treating it like Richard Dreyfuss in The Education of Max Bickford. Remember that show? Exactly.

Welcome to the Family (NBC) - Mike O'Malley (Glee, Justified) plays a guy who learns his wife is pregnant AND so is his teenage daughter. Said daughter is impregnated by her Latino boyfriend so some culture-clash comedy will probably be in there too.

Sean Saves the World (NBC) - Sean Hayes (Will & Grace) is a bachelor who came out to his wife a few years ago, but now he gets custody of his 14-year-old daughter. Linda Lavin (Alice) plays his mom. It's been getting reviews on par with Nathan Lane's Encore Encore.

The Michael J. Fox Show (NBC) - Mike finally gets his own show again! I wouldn't have been disappointed if he became a full-timer on The Good Wife, but hey, here he is to try to help the network that originally made him a star. He plays a once star reporter who semi-retired due to his Parkinson's, but he decides to get back in the game. Betsy Brandt (Breaking Bad's Marie) plays his wife. I'm looking forward to this.

Reign (CW) - Mary Queen of Scots gets the CW treatment. Torrance Coombs (The Tudors) plays one of her suitors.

=FRIDAY=

ABC
Last Man Standing
The Neighbors
Shark Tank
20/20

CBS
Undercover Boss
Hawaii Five-0
Blue Bloods

FOX
MasterChef Junior
(encores)

NBC
Dateline NBC
Grimm
Dracula

THE CW
The Carrie Diaries
America's Next Top Model

New Shows:

Dracula (NBC) - It might benefit from following Grimm but I haven't heard much good about it, and Friday is still Friday. It stars Jonathan Rhys-Meyers (The Tudors).