NETWORK UPDATE: A very strong night for CBS. The NCAA TOURNAMENT overrun adjusted up by 0.1 to 4.8, and then 60 MINUTES went up 0.3 to 2.8. THE GOOD WIFE was up 0.1 to 1.8, and since THE AMAZING RACE stayed even in the previous hour, the GOOD WIFE bump can’t be attributed to the basketball game–its overall 0.4 increase from last week (against giant cable competition) has to be all about the giant plot twist that had occurred in the prior episode and the week of attention it gave the show. In any case, GOOD WIFE had some of its strongest ratings of the season, behind only ABC in the 9:20-10PM portion of its airing, and in first place for its last 20 minutes. RESURRECTION was also up 0.1, which put it down a slim 0.1 from last week–good news for the new show–and CRISIS gained an 0.1 that won’t help it. THE MENTALIST, part of which aired out of primetime, lost 0.1.
SUNDAY CABLE: As we’d previously noted, the season finale of THE WALKING DEAD (AMC) was up 1.3 from last week to set a finale record with 8.0 (plus 1.4 for the 11PM re-airing), and TALKING DEAD was up a full point to 3.7. REAL HOUSEWIVES OF ATLANTA (Bravo) lost 0.2 to 1.7. SHAMELESS (Showtime) held at 0.8 despite the big competition, and HOUSE OF LIES was up 0.2 to 0.4. Anyone who watched CBS last night know how hard the network is pushing the 2 BROKE GIRLS appearance of Lindsay Lohan in 2 weeks, and LINDSAY (OWN) stayed low but rose slightly to 0.24.
Nothing on network TV last night came close to the 8.0 for the season finale of AMC’s The Walking Dead (a season finale record for the show, although now quite up to the show’s all-time high of 8.2 for this season’s premiere)–and only a network basketball overrun beat the season finale of Talking Dead that followed at 3.7.
CBS: The biggest rating on network TV was unquestionably the 20 minute overrun of NCAA TOURNAMENT coverage that started the evening, but we won’t know if its current 4.8 rating will be sustained until final numbers are released tomorrow morning. The entire CBS line-up shifted 20 minutes due to the overrun, which means that all of the numbers are preliminary now and subject to change, particularly the current 2.5 for 60 MINUTES. Right now, THE AMAZING RACE is at 2.0, which would be up 0.2, THE GOOD WIFE is at 1.7, a provisional 0.3 bump, and THE MENTALIST is at 1.5, up 0.2 for now.
ABC: RESURRECTION was the highest-rated scripted show on Sunday network TV again last night, but it’s moving in the wrong direction, down another 0.2 to 2.3. It’s now down 40% from its debut after 4 episodes. ONCE UPON A TIME, steady at 2.1, is now not far behind its lead-out. REVENGE slipped 0.1 to 1.4.
NBC: All of the network’s new shows are headed down. In its 2d week, AMERICAN DREAM BUILDERS declined 0.1 to 0.8, then BELIEVE fell 0.1 to 1.1, and CRISIS took an even more serious hit, down 0.3 to a deadly 1.0.
FOX: BOB’S BURGERS had the misfortune of facing off against the NCAA game in its new 7PM slot, and suffered for it, down 0.2 to 1.0. AMERICAN DAD and THE SIMPSONS were even at 1.4/1.9, and FAMILY GUY slipped 0.1 to 2.1. COSMOS hit a new low, down 0.2 to 1.5.
Tonight will be all about the series finale of HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, after which CBS will try to launch the new FRIENDS WITH BETTER LIVES. All the other networks are new as well, except for a rerun CASTLE.
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