'Momma's' debuts; CBS has best Tuesday in years

The finale of NBC's "The Biggest Loser" pulled off a trick that CBS' "Survivor" and ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" could not -- matching the rating of its concluding episode from last fall.

"Loser" (11.8 million viewers, 4.6 adults 18-49 rating and a 12 share) tied last year's closer, helping NBC match CBS for first place for the night in the adult demo. "Loser" gave NBC its highest rating for entertainment programming in its two-hour block in three years.

The reality veteran also provided a strong lead-in for the premiere of new series "Momma's Boys" (6.0 million, 2.5/7), which 46% from its lead-in yet placed second at 10 p.m. with a respectable bow. Given the modest expectations for the dating show and large "Loser" audience, however, neither percentage drop is all that surprising.

Meanwhile, CBS' freshman hit "The Mentalist" (19.3 million, 4.2/11) set new record highs, up 8% from its previous season high. "NCIS" (19.9 million, 4.0/11) had its largest audience all season. At 10 p.m., with NBC airing reality instead of its usual powerhouse "Law & Order: SVU," the network got a sample of how Tuesdays might look next fall with Jay Leno in the slot -- lacking crime show competition, "Without a Trace" (14.5 million, 3.2/9) hit a season high.

All told, CBS delivered its largest Tuesday total viewer audience with regularly scheduled programming ... since 1995. 

CBS has continued to buck the broadcast ratings erosion trend this season, down but slightly year-to-year versus competitors enduring double-digit declines. 

Helping matters: Usual Tuesday leader Fox aired repeats. ABC had a repeat at 8 p.m. followed by back-to-back of "According to Jim" (4.8 million, 1.7/4) then Eli Stone” (5.2 million, 1.6/4). The CW had repeats.

Comments

[Frodo]

That is what CBS does, they OWN ALL!!!

[smokeybear]

I watched the first episode of the Mentalist last night. It's decent, but the main character is a crappy version of Crews from Life. Not that Life is a better show because it's not. Although S1 of Life was definitely a better watch.

I'm surprised CBS has he most viewed shows on TV. I've seen episodes of NCIS and CSI; they're your typical cop show that's boring as all hell.

Anyway that's just my opinion and obviously people will think I'm wrong.

[James Hibberd]

My take: It was creatively the weakest episode to date. They're trying to keep it from being too dark, but this was downright goofy and took too many liberties with logic -- if you have a show whose detective is logical and cynical, you can't have story that's silly and implausible. You need smart cop/smart show, not smart cop/dumb show. Showing magic tricks to a monkey? Calibrating for evil? Plus, suddenly using jittery handheld camera during a raid seemed amateurish. Producers are still refining the show, hopefully this isn't the direction they're heading.

[Nina]

smokeybear u a fool ncis is great tv! y dont u just sit bak nad watch the crap on nbc and go away

[Len]

Just another TV show headed for the pits - who's watching the big 3 any more? They are dinosaurs headed for extinction. I have never in my 70 years seen so much dribble offered from the pioneers of the medium - ABC, NBC and CBS. Even Fox has some pretty crappy stuff for folk whose IQ is the same number as their waistline.

[smokeybear]

Is this like a CBS only website or something? Why must I go away? I definitely watch NBC for The Office, 30 Rock and Life. My fav. shows would probably be Dexter, Mad Men and The Shield. I mean I'm just laying my opinion down. No hard feelings.

[i]

lol, nina is probably a good example of your typical CBS watcher.

[Dr K]

NCIS is popular because the characters are likable with well-defined character quirks that provide the same pleasant continuity as a 50's family show. Is it relatively predictable? Sure. So, essentially, was Gunsmoke and My Three Sons. In fact you probably could take each character from NCIS and find a match from the shows of the 50's and 60's, though I can't see Matt whacking Chester up-side the head.

[Charles]

WHAT?!?!? NCIS ROCKS! Gunsmoke and My 3 sons sucked ass! Gibbs is da bomb, what friggin planet are you from?!?! They killed off a main character(Kate) and then replaced her with a cooler one?!?!?!??!?! CSI anything sucks butt! Too many pretty people, doing unrealistic BS...Come on, NO CSI without a detectives badge and gun would EVER be the lead in an interrogation , give me a break! Even Law n Order owns CSI! Example of a CSI episode:
I just checked satellite images....Really???? So the city of Miami has a police/CSI Satellite? Wow...not to mention their Hummers that are inefficient for CSI work. Give me a break!

[Charles]

Oh and WTF is the deal with not turning on crime scene lights???? Are you telling me you can see more in a room with a flashlight than you can with full light? And no offense UVA light doesn't spot just sperm, RESEARCH! Who is the mannish looking woman in CSI:NY??!? She has a n Adams Apple for GODS sakes!

Sample:
hooker gives them KILLER testimony, they apologize but then arrest her for hooking...WTF?!?!??!?! Sorry, real police work would not do that. You would not jeopardize witnesses with a simple hooker arrest, when you got a MURDER tip from her that led to the arrest of the multi-murdering fool.

[Rick]

My overweight wife watched it as if it were the Second Coming. So what? She's fat. It gave her that squishy female emotional feel-good, yada, yada. I see nothing in this but a surrender of most evening programming to female viewership. And that means...???? Y'all are banking how much $$$ on that? Good luck with that one.

[Gretchen]

smokeybear it's not just the site that is pro CBS it is the entire network viewership, I pity your love of the dribble that NBC provides, look at how pathetic that network is, on the other hand CBS is not only the most watched network but leading in all the demographics. So suck it smokeybear and the rest of you NBC loving fools, CBS is all over yall!

[Elwood]

I watch mold form on the shower curtain myself. It's more entertaining than all that goop.

[Oak Park Lefty]

Reality stinks. Keep the crime stuff rolling in. That's why I watch CBS. NBC is dumping the best of Law & Order to cable and you can bet TNT, A & E and the others getting it will see audiences climb. But the bottom line is that the book "Magatrends" back in the early '80's was right. The networks are finally becoming histoire.

[jack]

the only thing i have to say other than the fact that cbs is obviously better than nbc is that charles is nuts! lol not to mention are the retards like smokeybear who probably just linked here cause its on the drudge...for a cool site the drudge report as some of the most retarded viewers no wonder they call you drudge drones lol!

[Karen]

When you put shows on that appeal to women, they will be successful. Most men either watch what their women watch or they play video games online. In other words, modern TV is garbage, crap and not worth watching.

[Festus]

Jack, you are illiterate. Get a life.

[pmoshay]

Overall, CBS has the most class, by a long shot. Cold Case, is the finest drama in ages. Real stories, character development... Without A Trace, is a strong 2nd... sucks they killed Shark for iffy stuff like Mentalist. The comedies, well they're a taller order. Beg Carl Reiner...

[Jim]

I'll never watch the network that killed Jericho. Great for NBC managing to tie them in the time slot. I hope it is just a hint of what is to come. It is time to return CBS to the bottom with nobody under 65 watching.

[Ford]

Huh, show premiers? Sorry, I was watching some movies on Hulu.com to care about network TV. I'm really sick of the 2.5 minute commercial breaks. Not worth it anymore given the internet.

[Ted]

I find it increasingly difficult to continue to watch television become more feministic (man bad, woman good), then have to sit through the commercials.

The Internet has more channels to surf.

[Jacob]

Seriously Jim? You must not be keeping up with the times NBC has been run into the ground by Silverman & Zucker btw at CBS gave Jericho a second chance when has a network done that...oh and Jack you are seriously stupi I love CBS programming and I love the Drudge!!!

anyone who posts here is an idiot with too much time

[smokeybear]

Where did I say I love NBC? I do like watching TV, but it's not like I'm rooting for a sports team.

I'm a retard for coming to this site? That's really an insult to James, not me. There's good news here so I like it. Simple.

These attacks just aren't logical. I'm all for good television! Clearly the shows I watch aren't perfect, but I don't think any show can be. Maybe Mad Men...that show is ridiculously good.

[XKarenX]

CBS rocks it this year,(entertainment not news-- we get all ours from newspapers and news aggregators online). We love "Life", the comedies especially on Monday, the CSIs. ABC? Except for a bit of reality TV, Pretty much just the Kimmel. As for other late nighters: never Letterman, never Leno, never, ever Conan, sometimes the trying but interesting Ferguson show again on CBS. (Ray Davies was on recently with one of the best live musical performances -available at YouTube- that I had ever seen). Ferguson's musical guests are usually topnotch. BTW, Our house is also one of the last troglodyte cave dwellers with no cable. But our HD friendly rabbit ears will rule the airwaves come February...

[Don C]

I thought this episode (Dec 16)of Mentalist was the weakest of the season. It didn't have the "spark of humor" that was present in most of the other shows..

but I will continue watching..

[Robot]

The big 4 networks have nowhere to go but up. In the age of digital broadcasts and a looming economic downturn, more people will be ditching their $100/mo cable bill for free TV. I've been cable free for over a year, and it's great. The digital broadcast signal you can pick up with just a simple pair of "bunny ears" is amazing. In fact, the signal and picture quality is better than any HDTV signal cable or sat offers. Why? Because the over the air broadcast signal is un-commpressed, un-touched signal from the source. It's similar to a jpeg picture compared to its raw format. So, if any of you are looking to save some money, ditch cable and put of the antenna. You'll be rewarded with free, HDTV, and no $100/mo bill.

[Dutchman]

It seems that Americans have been very well trained by the Big Three to want to watch only car chases ( which teach our kids some REALLY stupid things), sluts (whether they be Moms (Des. Housewives or Sex and the City)or anything having to do with destroying the family), dead-beat guys that are only in it for themselves (Free Sex, Easy Money or Perverted, irresponible lifestyles) and "How to screw people out of their hard earned money and destroy lives" shows like most Soaps.
I don't watch the network shows only commercials for same, but if I DIDN'T have a life I would consider the more REAL shows, NOT REALITY SHOWS for Gosh shakes, but those that build Character rather then the ones they have that are designed to destroy same. These shows ALL make Americans look like the A-holes we have in Hollywood, which I consider "White Trash With Money" (WTWM) as they act and live exactly like WTWM would. Think about it and compare the two lifestyles. Think about the Lottery Winners that were basically White Trash before and how that act and live afterward,,,there is NO difference.
America isn't hated because of our foreign policies like the Big Three News medias would REALLY like us, U.S. to believe. It's hated because of what the world sees on TV satelite and in the movies we show around the world which in turn helps our enemies recrute their members and make friends of the same people that always have their hands out when we pass out the U.S. greenback.
To bad the Big Three won't open their blind eyes and see that family oriented shows make more money then the slime they put out daily,,just like Hollywood won't make movies that make us, U.S., look like the good guys we are or make religion be a Positive thing rather then turning over every rock to find the bad,,,now that would be "honesty" and they don't have that word in their vocabulary.
But then again I was raised in a TWO Parent family,,,first and ONLY marriage,,,with parents that taught us repect, honesty and fair play. We see very little if any of that on the Boob Tube and the Silver Screen,,to our dismay and endangerment.

[usafan]

All the mentalist is is a rip on Psych.

[Phoebe]

CBS is the only network committed to drama and great series TV. I haven't watch ABC in five years; I do watch the Law & Order programs on NBC - but they moved Criminal Intent to USA - stupid! Especially since NBC now runs all those idiotic reality programs. It is no wonder that viewers are turning to TNT (The Closer, Burn Notice, Leverage, Damages, et al) and USA. I am considering dropping my HBO/ShowTime/CMAX as the movies now showing are so bad, they aren't worth the view--only Dexter!!!

[Emerson]

Network television? What's that.

That's like sitting through six minutes of commercials before your favorite AM/FM radio station music comes back on.

Cable. Sirius/XM. Google 'em.

[profp]

LOVE those two shows! The only night of the week we block off strictly to watch TV is Tuesday -- NCIS followed by The Mentalist! NOW, if only I could get USA to move Burn Notice to the 9pm Tuesday slot....

[Iwodog]

One word, Marge!

[matt]

Lost is the best show on tv and the only one i will sit thru commercials for

[Kill tv]

I cant wait till tv dies. I have not got the digital converter and I plan on watching my tv signal DIE.
I got rid of pay tv in 2002 and I feel better about my life and have lost weight. TV has been an absolute failure as far as advancing society. There is no need for TV any more. unless you are really fat and want to watch other people do what you cant do loose weight. Thats entertainment?
Mr Bill :o

[Joe]

Why don't all of you just read a good book 3-4 nights per week? A trip to the local public library might do you a bit of good. Network TV is all that I have with the new DTV converter. It is digital HD and atrocious. If I watch the news, there is maybe a 30 second soundbite of news and then one minute of commercials. There is hardly any continuity of presentation with the local and national news broadcasts unless you consider the continuous commercials. FYI, The FCC allows more commercials during news broadcasts and late night viewing. Remember the original "Star Trek" series? When stations broadcast "Star Trek" today, the original episode has 2-3 minutes cut from the original in order to insert commercials. Doesn't anyone notice this? Please Virgin Atlantic, I implore you, when you reach outer space, shoot down the satellites that host transponders for all TV telecasts.

[Thomas]

Why should I care about someone I don't know losing weight? It is their life, not mine. I watch TV for news and entertainment, but it seems that all they have now are commercials. I hate "reality TV". If I wanted that I would just sit on the porch or go down to the coffee house with a friend and watch people walk by and we could make up stories about them. I like NCIS, but Law and Order and CIS (all of them) have become old hat.

[John Anderson]

Criminal Minds on CBS is one of the best shows ever produced in my opinion. If you haven't watched the show I recommend you pick up the first three seasons on DVD and catch up. It is absolutely wonderful!

[mark]

The Unit, which is never mentioned is by far the best and most under rated show on T.V. today...I don't watch anything else...

[Einstein]

Are you people for real? Are you really bitching at each other about TV shows? You guys need to really look at the big picture and get a life.