Unless otherwise noted, the ratings numbers below are based on the final overnights and may vary slightly from the preliminaries reported on the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site.
Ratings results for the sci fi / fantasy airing Friday Dec 5th thru Monday Dec 8th (analysis and metric definitions below):
Haven Syfy Fri 12/5 7 PM
Rating: 0.2 | Tot Viewers (MM): 0.9 | StD Rating: 0.2 | Target: 0.4 | Cancellation Alert: Medium
No improvement in its ratings for its Fall finale, but during the second half of its fifth season William Shatner will be jumping onboard to save the day!
Grimm NBC Fri 12/5 9 PM
Rating: 1.2 | Tot Viewers (MM): 5.0 | StD Rating: 1.2 | Target: 1.2 | Cancellation Alert: Low
It’s numbers remain pretty low in its fourth year, but not low enough to worry just yet.
Constantine NBC Fri 12/5 10 PM
Rating: 0.8 | Tot Viewers (MM): 3.2 | StD Rating: 1.0 | Target: 1.2 | Cancellation Alert: High
With production already halted, this show is headed in the wrong direction with its ratings. (More on this one below.)
Z Nation Syfy Fri 12/5 10 PM
Rating: 0.5 | Tot Viewers (MM): 1.4 | StD Rating: 0.5 | Target: 0.4 | Cancellation Alert: Renewed
Its number held steady with its season finale. This show will return in Fall of 2015.
Once Upon A Time ABC Sun 12/7 8 PM
Rating: 2.0 | Tot Viewers (MM): 6.1 | StD Rating: 2.6 | Target: 1.8 | Cancellation Alert: Low
(Numbers based on the preliminaries) It has slipped notably from its early season highs, but it is still doing well enough for a fourth year series on ABC. It remains safe for now.
The Librarians TNT Sun 12/7 8 PM
Rating: 1.3 | Tot Viewers (MM): 5.4 | StD Rating: 1.3 | Target: 1.0 | Cancellation Alert: Low
A good debut for this show, especially considering its late Fall start. TNT’s counter-programming move seems to have worked. (More on this one below)
Resurrection ABC Sun 12/7 9 PM
Rating: 1.0 | Tot Viewers (MM): 3.9 | StD Rating: 1.5 | Target: 2.0 | Cancellation Alert: Elevated
(Numbers based on the preliminaries) It improved slightly from its series low last week, but not enough to get it off the hot seat. (More on this one below)
The Walking Dead AMC Sun 12/7 9 PM
Rating: On Hiatus | Tot Viewers (MM): n/a | StD Rating: 7.5 | Target: 2.0 | Cancellation Alert: Renewed
This show is on hiatus now, but it probably still broke some sort of record like most people missing a show in a week or something . . . New episodes of this show resume on february 8th.
The Originals CW Mon 12/8 8 PM
Rating: 0.6 | Tot Viewers (MM): 1.4 | StD Rating: 0.6 | Target: 0.7 | Cancellation Alert: Low
(Numbers based on the preliminaries) Not spectacular numbers for its Fall finale, but still better than anything The CW had on this night last year. It’s safe for now.
Gotham (R) FOX Mon 12/8 8 PM
Rating: 0.6 | Tot Viewers (MM): 2.2 | StD Rating: 2.5 | Target: 2.0 | Cancellation Alert: Low
New episodes of this show resume January 5th.
Sleepy Hollow (R) FOX Mon 12/8 9 PM
Rating: 0.4 | Tot Viewers (MM): 1.6 | StD Rating: 1.6 | Target: 2.0 | Cancellation Alert: Low
New episodes of this show resume January 5th.
Series Premiere: On Sunday, TNT’s The Librarians had its two hour bow where it pulled a 1.3 rating in the 18-49 demographic with 5.4 million total viewers. That puts the show ahead of The Last Ship which debuted for the same cable channel this past Summer at a 1.2 rating with 5.3 million total viewers. TNT’s spin department is counting this as a “huge launch” and also touting The Librarians as “cable’s #1 new series launch for the year-to-date in Live + Same Day delivery”. I believe that is actually for scripted hour dramas, but you never know for certain how they are spinning all those numbers. But the gist is that the show did well with its debut, even though it bowed pretty late in the Fall season. The cable nets seem to have much more success in launching shows during times that are typically low viewership for the broadcast networks (Summer and Winter), and I’m sure it also helped that it did not have to go directly against The Walking Dead which wrapped the first half of its fifth season the prior Sunday. I don’t expect to see The Librarians take a sharp drop off in the coming weeks (it will almost certainly dip some closer to Christmas, though), so at this point the show’s prospects look good for a second season renewal.
On the Hot Seat: NBC’s Constantine was already in trouble when the network announced that they were halting production after thirteen episodes though they claimed they would allegedly still consider it as a candidate for return during the 2015-16 season. It’s likely that latter statement was mostly just spin to deter any “Save My Show” campaigns, and for all practical purposes it looked like Constantine was dead in the water. I did still think the show had a very slight chance if it could improve its numbers (despite what the Cancellation Bear said). But after seeing a small improvement shortly after the announcement, the show’s numbers have sunk back to a series low as the most recent episode could only pull a 0.8 rating in the 18-49 demo with 3.2 million total viewers. Its current season to date average is now only at a 1.0 score and I can’t see any reason that NBC would entertain bringing it back at those levels. They would be better off returning last season’s cancelled Dracula to the Friday 10 PM EST timeslot as that one was cheaper for them due to international partnerships and it had a slightly higher average of a 1.1 score. But I don’t see them having any interest in that move either, so they will fill in the hour with low-rated Hannibal once Constantine wraps up then probably roll the dice again next year. If Constantine could get its numbers back up, then it might still have a chance. But that would require a steep climb in a very short time, and I don’t see that happening. For now, consider the show de facto cancelled. Also still on the hot seat is ABC’s Resurrection which improved from last week’s lows to pull a 1.0 rating with 3.9 million total viewers, but that is far too little to change its fate at this point. Currently, ABC has fourteen total episodes planned for the show’s second season, and I can’t see it extending beyond that or returning for a third year short of a sudden (and unlikely) ratings turnaround.
Be sure keep an eye on the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for the latest numbers and any breaking news throughout the week. You can see the status of all the currently airing sci fi / fantasy shows at the Cancellation Watch page. And for more information on where I get these numbers and how I make my Cancellation Alert assessments, check out the Cancelled Sci Fi FAQ.
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Metric Definitions:
Rating: Overnight rating in the 18-49 demographic for same day viewing based on the final numbers unless otherwise noted
Tot Viewers: Estimated total viewers to tune in to the episode for same day viewing
StD Rating: Season to date average for the rating metric tracked above.
Target: The estimated average rating that the show needs to sustain to get renewed.
Cancellation Alert: My prediction of the likelihood that a show will get cancelled. From least to most likely the statuses are Low, Moderate, Medium, Elevated, and High.
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Ratings Source: TV by the Numbers and ShowBuzzDaily
Nielsen TV Ratings: ©2014 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.
This Kaniac totally loved the premiere of The Librarians, and is very happy to have Christian Kane back on TV!
I Loved The Librarians, it’s like Leverage meets Supernatural there are no limits to what they can do. As usual Christian Kane was excellent, his acting style is more than convincing, if you only watch one show each week make it The Librarians or you will be kicking yourself for not watching it — yes it is that good.
Christian Kane brought his magic to The Librarians! i wont miss one episode for the world! It was such fun and entertaining show!! Such a treat ..
BRING BACK DRACULA, NBC!