Modest Sampling for ‘Frequency’ on The CW

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What follows are the metered market (overnight) results in households by network and by half-hour for Wednesday, October 5:

Household Rating/Share
Fox: 5.3/ 9, ABC and CBS: 4.7/ 8 each, NBC: 4.0/ 7, CW: 1.2/ 2

Percent Change from the Year-Ago Evening:
ABC: + 9, CBS: – 8, NBC: -13, Fox: -18, CW: -20

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-Winners:
“Survivor” (CBS), “Empire” (Fox), “Modern Family” (ABC), “Designated Survivor” (ABC)

-Honorable Mention:
“Lethal Weapon” (Fox), “The Goldbergs” (ABC), “Speechless” (ABC)

-Sluggish:
“Blindspot” (NBC), “Law & Order: SVU” (NBC), “Arrow” (CW)

-Losers:
“Frequency” (CW), “Code Black” (CBS)

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Ratings Breakdown:
Overnight household erosion was the immediate observation, with only one network, ABC, up from the comparable year-ago evening. Fox remains the network to beat on Wednesday care of episode three of “Lethal Weapon” (#2: 4.5/ 8 at 8 p.m.), which is a shoo-in for a full season renewal, and season three of “Empire” (#1 for the night: 6.2/10 at 9 p.m.). “Empire,” however, slipped by 29 percent from the 8.7/14 in the household overnights on the year-ago evening. Last week it scored a 6.6/10, which translated into 9.65 million viewers and a 3.7 rating/13 share in adults 18-49, based on the Live + Same Day data.

In the case of “Empire,” sometimes it is better to build into a hit than open as an immediate blockbuster.

In series-premiere news, CW drama “Frequency” launched with a 1.0/ 2 in the household overnights in the 9 p.m. hour. The promising news was no slippage in the second half-hour. But “Frequency” dropped by 17 percent in the household overnights from the season-premiere of “Supernatural” on the year-ago night (1.2/ 2 on 10/07/15). And it was 29 percent below the 1.4/ 2 for the season-premiere of lead-in “Arrow” at 8 p.m. (which, year-to-year, was down by 26 percent).

On Tuesday, CW drama “No Tomorrow” debuted with a 0.9/ 1 in the overnights, which translated into 1.51 million viewers and a 0.5/ 2 in adults 18-49, based on the Live Plus Same Day data. In other words, The CW had better hope there is notable DVR usage for both scripted dramas.

Elsewhere, veteran “Survivor” on CBS topped the 8 p.m. hour with a 5.3/ 8, which was right on par with the year-ago edition. “Criminal Minds” followed with a 4.9/ 8 at 9 p.m., which is beginning to show its age with slippage of 10 percent from the year-ago evening (5.4/ 8 on 10/07/15). And sophomore “Code Black” capped off the night with a third-place 3.8/ 7 at 10 p.m., which was down by 14 percent from the 4.4/ 8 one year earlier. Last week, a 4.2/ 7 in the overnights for “Code Black” translated into 6.37 million viewers and a 1.2/ 4 in adults 18-49, based on the Live Plus Same Day data. CBS can certainly do better here.

On ABC, week three of drama “Designated Survivor” remained the dominant overnight force at 10 p.m., with a 5.4/ 9. Comparably, this was 64 percent above the 3.3/ 6 for “Nashville” on the year-ago evening, and it built from lead-in “black-ish” (#4: 3.8/ 6 at 9:30 p.m.) by 42 percent.

Also in week three news was ABC sitcom “Speechless,” which at a 4.2/ 7 (#3) at 8:30 p.m. held 95 percent of “The Goldbergs” lead-in (#2: 4.4/ 8 at 8 p.m.). In the 9 p.m. half-hour, veteran “Modern Family” was on the map with a second-place 5.1/ 8, which increased from 21 percent from aforementioned lead-in “Speechless.”

Fourth-place NBC closed the night with its combination of dramas “Blindspot” (#4: 3.7/ 6), “Law & Order: SVU” (#4: 4.0/ 6) and “Chicago PD” (#2: 4.2/ 7), which beat competing “Code Black” on CBS by 11 percent.

Source: Nielsen Media Research

8:00 p.m.
ABC – “The Goldbergs”: 4.4/ 8 (#2)
CBS – “Survivor”: 5.3/ 9 (#1)
NBC – “Blindspot”: 3.8/ 6 (#4)
Fox – “Lethal Weapon”: 4.3/ 7 (#3)
CW – “Arrow” (season premiere): 1.4/ 2 (#5)

8:30 p.m.
ABC – “Speechless”: 4.2/ 7 (#3)
CBS – “Survivor”: 5.2/ 8 (#1)
NBC – “Blindspot”: 3.6/ 6 (#4)
Fox – “Lethal Weapon”: 4.7/ 8 (#2)
CW – “Arrow” (season premiere): 1.4/ 2 (#5)

9:00 p.m.
ABC – “Modern Family”: 5.1/ 8 (#2)
CBS – “Criminal Minds”: 5.0/ 8 (#3)
NBC – “Law & Order: SVU”: 3.9/ 6 (#4)
Fox – “Empire”: 6.1/10 (#1)
CW – “Frequency” (series premiere): 1.0/ 2 (#5)

9:30 p.m.
ABC – “black-ish”: 4.1/ 6 (#3)
CBS – “Criminal Minds”: 4.8/ 8 (#1)
NBC – “Law & Order: SVU”: 3.8/ 6 (#4)
Fox – “Empire”: 6.3/10 (#1)
CW – “Frequency” (series premiere): 1.0/ 2 (#5)

10:00 p.m.
ABC – “Designated Survivor”: 5.5/ 9 (#1)
CBS – “Code Black”: 3.9/ 6 (#3)
NBC – “Chicago PD”: 4.2/ 7 (#2)

10:30 p.m.
ABC – “Designated Survivor”: 5.2/ 9 (#1)
CBS – “Code Black”: 3.7/ 7 (#3)
NBC – “Chicago PD”: 4.1/ 7 (#2)

Source: Nielsen Media Research