So much for an Olympic after-glow. After 17 nights of near double-digit young adult ratings, NBC averaged a 1.8 Adult 18-49 rating last night. After significant on-air promotion during the London Olympics, the two-hour premiere of Stars Earn Stripes sputtered to a 1.7 rating from 8-10 pm, while the season premiere of Grimm scored a 2.0 rating. Stars Earn Stripes will probably go down to a 1.5 or lower in the next few weeks, given the normal pattern of new show launches.
But the Grimm rating is somewhat encouraging. The 2.0 rating represents a solid increase from the season finale on Friday, May 18 (1.6 rating) and signals the show is indeed headed for a sophomore bump this season.
FOX returned to its winning form on Mondays with the premiere of Hotel Hell posting an okay 1.9 rating at 8 pm and Hell’s Kitchen scoring an impressive 2.7 rating at 9 pm. The night averaged a 2.3 rating.
CBS finished in third place from 8-11 pm with a 1.3 rating from the regular schedule of repeat comedies and Hawaii Five-O.
ABC struggled to a 1.1 rating with original reality programming: a 1.2 rating for Bachelor Pad from 8-10 pm and a 0.7 rating for Glass House at 10 pm.
These results are very reminiscent of the last Monday before the Olympics started. On July 23, FOX won the night with a 2.7 rating (original episodes of Hell’s Kitchen and MasterChef), NBC was in second place with a 1.8 rating (Fear Factor and American Ninja Warrior), and CBS and ABC trailed with a 1.3 rating (both with schedules identical to last night’s). After a big event like the Super Bowl, Academy Awards or Olympics, life returns to normal and pre-existing viewing patterns generally resume.
