The network is in a bit of a pickle. They still have some very successful programs but some of them have been on the air for several years and they need to find new blood. This new crop has been a disappointment so far but it looks like they really want to make them work.
The network has now given full season orders to two new series — No Ordinary Family and Better with You — and ordered a handful of more installments from Detroit 1-8-7 and Brothers & Sisters. Are they safe?
Four episodes of No Ordinary Family have aired so far. The series debuted to a 3.2 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 10.69 million total viewers. Those numbers are positive. Unfortunately, the show’s ratings have sunk every week. Last week’s episode hit a 2.2 in the demo and 7.41 million viewers. If the ratings don’t even off, this show will certainly be on the chopping block.
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Better with You hasn’t been dropping like No Ordinary Family but didn’t get as good a start either. The sitcom debuted to a 2.5 in the demo and 7.86 million total viewers. It now seems to have leveled off at a 2.1 in the demo. Though sandwiched between The Middle (averaging a 2.6) and ABC’s highly successful Modern Family (averaging a 4.8), Better with You has averaged just a 2.2 rating. It seems a percentage of viewers are making a conscious effort to skip the freshman comedy. ABC has several other sitcom possibilities waiting in the wings and they’ll surely try them.
Detroit 1-8-7 is doing even worse in the ratings and as a result didn’t get a full season. ABC has just ordered five additional installments, bringing the first season total to 18 episodes. Now that My Generation and The Whole Truth have been dumped (though the latter isn’t off the air yet), Detroit 1-8-7 is the lowest-rated not-cancelled scripted show on the network. It’s averaging a 1.9 rating in the demo and is consistently in third place for the timeslot. Unless the numbers turnaround, it doesn’t have a future and will surely be cancelled in the spring.
On the positive side, as previously reported, Brothers & Sisters has received an order for four more episodes, bringing the season total to 22 installments. When the network only ordered 18 episodes in the spring, many speculated that the show was on its way out. The ratings have been good this season and, luckily for the cast and crew, they’re better than any of the new shows. For now, Brothers & Sisters looks to be on track for season six.
What do you think? Are any of ABC’s new shows worth watching? Are you surprised that any were given orders for additional episodes? Will any survive to see a second season?
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