ABC touts 'V' premiere ratings

Network says the reboot delivered the best 8 p.m. drama premiere since 'Lost' in 2004

Wednesday, Nov 4, 2009 7:28 PM

Daniel Fienberg

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Scott Wolf of 'V'

Credit: ABC

In its premiere, ABC's "V" got its clock cleaned by CBS' "NCIS," losing to the crime-fighting procedural by nearly 6 million viewers.

See, somebody had to give you the down-side to the "V" premiere numbers, because otherwise, ABC has found plenty to celebrate for its new sci-fi drama.

In final Live + Same Day Program Ratings, the "V" premiere averaged 14.3 million viewers and a 5.2 rating in the 18-49 demo for its Tuesday (Nov. 3) launch. Both of those numbers were up from the Fast National figures reported earlier in the day.

While "V" may have lost to "NCIS" in overall viewers, the ABC series beat CBS by 21 percent in the coveted demo and ranked as Tuesday's top show among adults 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54, delivering the new season's highest ratings for any new show in the young adult demos. This was ABC's best Tuesday 8 p.m. performance among adults 18-49 in three years and the network's best non-sports performance for the time slot in most key male demos in six years.

ABC continued to slice up the "V" ratings, calling it the best Tuesday night fall series debut among adults 18-49 on any network since 2005 and ABC's best in the same parameters since 2003. And, going the other way, it was the best 18-49 debut for a regularly slotted 8 p.m. drama since a little show called "Lost" in 2004.

"V" has three more episodes to air in its November premiere. That will leave the remaining nine first-season episodes for a yet-to-be-determined spring date.

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Kate Got its clock cleaned by NCIS? That'a funny thing to say about a show that'll earn more $$$! The reason 18-49s are coveted is because they're the primary measure for setting ad rates. So which show do you think CBS would prefer to have? More money or the moral victory of more viewers?
November 4, 2009 at 10:24PM EST Reply to Comment
- dan Kate - I'm familiar with the prioritization of 18-49 viewers. I do write about TV ratings occasionally. But if you're asking which one CBS would rather have, between "NCIS" and "V," the answer is "NCIS" every day of the week and twice on Sundays. "NCIS" remains TV's most watched show and between syndication and DVD sales and that spinoff, I don't think CBS will sweat that for one week (or even two weeks or a month) "V" won the key demos. It's a long-con, not a short-con. In addition, CBS sells a slightly older demo than the other networks and in that demo, "V" only *barely* beat "NCIS" and I'd almost guarantee you that "NCIS" moves ahead in that older demo next week. -Daniel
  November 5, 2009 at 12:47AM EST
SchoolHard It's my understanding that the other episodes would air in apx March, 2010. Not the Fall. Which Fall do you mean, the current one or next September? If the latter, then thats not the current word on the street. Its supposed to resume in March, after the start of American Idol, so less competition.
November 5, 2009 at 9:35AM EST Reply to Comment
- dan Crud. That's 100% a typo. Fixed... Spring it is!
  November 5, 2009 at 12:18PM EST