TV Ratings: 'Dancing,' 'Castle' top Monday, as 'Chuck' dips, 'Code' rises

ABC easily wins Monday overall and among young viewers

By Daniel Fienberg Tuesday, May 10, 2011 12:08 PM

Stana Katic and Nathan Fillion of 'Castle'

Credit: ABC

Fast National ratings for Monday, May 9, 2011.

On the last Monday before the start of the upfronts period which will determine the fate of TV shows on the bubble, FOX's "Chicago Code" got a tiny bump, while NBC's "Chuck" took a tiny drop. Probably neither show's fate was actually impacted by their miniscule variations and certainly neither show was a factor on a Monday dominated by "Dancing with the Stars" and "Castle."

Among adults 18-49, ABC averaged a 3.8 rating for the night, tops in the key demographic. FOX was a distant second with a 2.3 rating, followed closely by CBS' 2.1 rating. NBC's 1.2 rating was good for fourth, still beating the 0.7 rating for The CW.

Overall, ABC averaged 17.67 million viewers to go with an 11.2 rating/17 share. CBS was far back in second with a 4.7/7 and 7.29 million viewers. FOX's 4.2/6 and 6.74 million viewers was a close third. NBC was fourth with a 2.7/4 and 4.28 million viewers, still better than the 0.9/1 and 1.32 million viewers.

8 p.m. - The first hour of "Dancing with the Stars" gave ABC 18.98 million viewers and a 3.7 rating among adults 18-49 for the 8 p.m. hour. FOX's "House" continued its spring swoon with 7.765 million viewers and a 2.9 rating in the key demo. NBC's "How "I Met Your Mother" (6.36 and a 2.5 demo) and "Mad Love" (5.15 million and a 1.8 demo) were third for the hour. NBC's "Chuck" averaged 4.06 million viewers and a 1.3 rating in the key demo, both down a statistically insignificant amount from last week. The CW's "90210" averaged 1.46 million viewers and a 0.7 demo rating in fifth.

9 p.m. - "Dancing with the Stars" was up to 21.4 million viewers and a 4.4 demo rating to win ABC the 9 p.m. hour. CBS' "Two and a Half Men" repeat (6.37 million viewers and a 1.7 demo) and a new "Mike & Molly" (7.5 million and a 2.2 demo) were second. Since nearly everything else on network TV was down from last week, maybe we can read some meaning into "The Chicago Code" ticking slightly up with 5.71 million viewers and a 1.7 demo rating. NBC's "The Event" dropped to 3.77 million viewers and a 1.1 demo rating. And The CW's "Gossip Girl" averaged only 1.18 million viewers and a 0.6 demo rating in fifth.

10 p.m. - "Castle" was another show rising a bit, averaging 12.64 million viewers and a 3.1 demo rating. CBS' "Hawaii Five-0" averaged 9.17 million viewers and a 2.3 demo rating in second. That left NBC's "Law & Order: Los Angeles" in third with 5.01 million viewers and a 1.2 demo rating.

All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.

Daniel Fienberg
Executive Editor

A long-time member of the TCA Board and a longer-time blogger of "American Idol," Dan Fienberg writes about TV, except for when he writes about movies or sometimes writes about the Red Sox. But never music. He would sound stupid talking about music.