NBC’s Revolution aired its third episode this past Monday, and saw it’s numbers drop once again, to a 3.2 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 8.32 million total viewers. But it is still nowhere near the point of hitting the panic button and the network has faith in it as they went ahead and ordered the back nine episodes to give it a full season order of twenty two. The series once again won its timeslot on Monday by a healthy margin (with both Castle and Hawaii Five-0 dropping further in the ratings), and it’s above a 3.0 rating which has it in the safe zone. And as I said last week, it could probably drop as far as a 2.5 and still be okay and long as it continues to beat its competition in that hour. The question at this point is whether the show has the staying power to last into a second season or if it will continue to track the same route as other recent failed sci fi shows like FlashForward, V, and The Event. All of those started strong but ended up riding a death-spiral into cancellation. If Revolution‘s numbers level off in the coming weeks, then perhaps it will avoid that path. But if it continues to drop, then we may see history repeating itself this season.
Syfy’s Monday night shows are in the process of wrapping up their current seasons, but the network has yet to give any indication on whether they will continue for another season. Warehouse 13 rebounded a bit from the prior weeks, pulling a 0.6 rating in the 18-49 demo and 1.62 million total viewers. But Alphas sunk, mustering only a 0.4 rating and just over one million total viewers. The former series I am leaving at a Moderate Cancellation Alert status, but I’m afraid I am going to have to raise Alphas to a Medium Cancellation Alert. It pains me to do so because I really like the show, but it is now at or below levels that previously got shows like Stargate: Universe, Caprica, and Sanctuary cancelled. Also in that boat is Friday night’s Haven which has gotten its season off to a rocky start. That one bowed two weeks ago to a passable 0.5 rating, but this last week it dropped to a 0.3. It did have 1.44 million total viewers for its last episode, which is not too bad for Syfy, so I am only putting it at a Moderate Cancellation Alert status for now. But all of that network’s scripted shows really seem to be struggling of late so don’t be too surprised if they decide to do some house cleaning.
You can see the Cancellation Alert status of all the shows currently airing plus the final results from prior seasons at my Cancellation Watch page. And you can get the quickest updates on ratings results and breaking announcements by following the Cancellation Watch Twitter Site.
Ratings Source: TV by the Numbers
Why Were They Cancelled?
The Plight of Science Fiction and Fantasy Television in the Face of the Unforgiving Nielsens and Networks
Ever wondered why your favorite science fiction and/or fantasy show disappeared from the television schedule, never to deliver anymore new episodes? The reason why, most likely, is that it was cancelled because its ratings were low. And this book looks at those many cancelled sci fi/fantasy shows as well as the Neilsen ratings and television networks that dictate their fates. Available now for only $2.99 on Kindle from Amazon.com.
