It was finales galore on Thursday night, but two were particularly important as a pair of much-loved but little-watched programs got one last chance to show why they deserve new seasons. Did The Secret Circle and Parks and Recreation do well enough to save themselves? And what veteran posted its best numbers in quite a while? We've got last night's Fast National ratings below:
At Ology, we judge shows by two factors: the total number of viewers (in millions) as well as the percentage of viewers in the incredibly crucial 18-49 year old demographic (so 1% of viewers aged 18-49 tuning in is expressed as a 1.0 demo rating). That demo number is almost more important than the overall number of viewers; despite the millions, a show that can nail that youthful core has a better shot at securing a renewal. So if you see us throwing around demo digits all loosely, you know why.
The Secret Circle holds steady, but is it enough?: With one last chance to impress the execs at The CW before Upfronts, The Secret Circle was flat, posting a 0.5 in the key demo and 1.24 million viewers. That's less than half the number that tuned in to the mindblowing season finale of The Vampire Diaries (1.1 demo and 2.49 million viewers), which is not great. The show remains on the bubble as the CW will try to decide if any of their shows stand a better chance at holding The Vampire Diaries' audience (perhaps that Hunger Games-inspired show, The Selection, will get a crack at it).
Knope 2012 makes her closing statement: Meanwhile, on NBC, 3.46 million viewers tuned in to see Leslie Knope defeat Bobby Newport in the Parks and Rec season finale. Those numbers, along with the 1.7 key demo rating, are almost exactly what the show posted last week. The show somewhat surprisingly remains on the bubble even though the slightly lower-rated Community earned a 13-episode renewal (which it celebrated with a 1.4 in the key demo and 3.12 million viewers). Like The Secret Circle, NBC now has all the information it will get and, with no unlikely and sudden increase or decrease in ratings, Pawnee's fate will come down to the strength of NBC's development slate.
Grey's Anatomy did really well: One show that is not sweating Upfronts is Grey's Anatomy, which got picked up for an eighth season the other day. However, the show was not content to rest on its laurels and posted its best night in the key demo in months. The 3.4 rating was good enough for first place in the demo, while the 9.56 million viewers isn't too shabby either. Unfortunately for Shonda Rhimes, Scandal couldn't capitalize, dipping in the demo and total viewers and looking like a shaky bet for a second season.
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Ratings by Channel (total millions of viewers/18-49 demo rating):
#1 – FOX (2.9)
American Idol (15.1m/3.9)
Touch (6.94m/2.0)
#2 – CBS (2.8)
The Big Bang Theory (13.3m/4.2)
Rules Of Engagement (9.0m/2.7)
Person Of Interest (12.7m/2.6)
The Mentalist (12.4m/2.4)
#3 – ABC (2.2)
Missing (6.4m/1.1)
Grey’s Anatomy (9.5m/3.4)
Scandal (6.5m/2.0)
#4 – NBC (1.4)
Community (3.1m/1.4)
30 Rock (3.0m/1.5)
The Office (4.4m/2.2)
Parks and Recreation (3.5m/1.7)
#5 – The CW (0.8)
The Vampire Diaries (2.5m/1.1)
The Secret Circle (1.2m/0.5)
What do you think of the numbers? Comment below!
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