The Good Guys: How Low Can the Ratings Go Before It’s Cancelled?

After a disappointing debut last spring and a lackluster summer run, many were surprised that FOX kept The Good Guys on the fall schedule. In hindsight, FOX execs may be wondering why they did as well.

The Good Guys is an action comedy that pairs a washed-up, old-school cop (Bradley Whitford) with a young, by-the-book detective (Colin Hanks). Others in the series include Jenny Wade, Diana-Maria Riva, Jennifer Besser, Kimberly Lynn Campbell, Kennith Edwards, Nathan Fane, and Arthur Wooldridge.

The May premiere attracted a disappointing 1.5 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 4.93 million viewers. That put the TV show’s debut in fourth place in total viewership and tied for third in the coveted demographic with NBC’s Minute to Win It. Not a good start.

Over the summer, airing on Monday nights, Good Guys only mustered an average of a 1.2 rating in the demo and 4.01 million total viewers. FOX decided to cut the run short in August and saved the remaining new episodes for the fall season.

Unfortunately, Good Guys has been performing even worse this fall. The first episode attracted just a 0.9 demo rating and 2.8 million viewers. The ratings have fallen even lower since then, consistently placing in fifth place for the timeslot. Last Friday, viewership dropped 25% in the demo, hitting an all-time low with a 0.6 demo rating.

FOX has six episodes of Good Guys left and, understandably, there’s been no word about the network ordering any more. With ratings like these, the network will either pull the remaining episodes or just let them run out. Either way, it’s impossible to imagine that Good Guys won’t be cancelled.

What do you think? Do you like Good Guys? Why have people been watching other things on Friday nights? Anything you would change about the show?