Hopping on the Mad Men bandwagon, ABC recently began airing Pan Am on Sunday nights. The network’s been searching for some new hot dramas to replace Desperate Housewives and their aging medical series. Have they found the solution in a show named after a defunct airline or will this one just crash and be cancelled?
Pan Am follows the pilots and flight attendants that work for the world-famous airline in 1963. Dean (Mike Vogel) is a young pilot who’s just been promoted to captain. His co-pilot, Ted (Michael Mosely), is hiding a secret. Stewardess Maggie (Christina Ricci) isn’t afraid to push the limits, Colette (Karine Vanesse) flirts too much, and Kate (Kelli Garner) has taken on a dangerous side-job after helping her sister, Lara (Margot Robbie), become a runaway bride. While traveling the world, the flight crew have interesting brushes with history.
The series debuted on September 25th to a 3.1 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 11.06 million viewers. Those aren’t bad numbers but they’re hardly impressive either. Pan Am was second in the timeslot, behind NBC’s football coverage. Looking at the breakdown for the show’s ratings in quarter hour increments, about 10% of the demo audience tuned out before the episode was finished. That’s not terrible but certainly not positive either.
The second episode dropped 16% in the demo to a 2.6 rating with 7.76 million viewers. That’s a pretty normal second week drop-off but Pan Am really didn’t have many viewers to spare. Week three is where things really got bad.
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The third episode saw the demo drop by an astounding 27%. Did the people who tuned in for the second episode decide that they’d seen enough or, was the third week just a fluke?
Apparently it was the latter because the ratings dropped by another 5%, to a 1.8 in the demo with 5.84 million. Last night’s numbers held steady according the fast affiliate numbers. That’s positive but a 1.8 demo rating is certainly not.
Pan Am is currently the lowest-rated new show on ABC with an average of a 2.2 rating in the demo and 7.36 million. Those numbers will keep dropping unless future episodes perform significantly better. Of the 14 scripted shows currently on the network, Pan Am ranks 12th, beating only Body of Proof and already-cancelled Charlie’s Angels.
While Pan Am’s fate seems all but sealed, ABC doesn’t seem ready to throw in the towel just yet.
They’re reportedly bringing in veteran writer and producer Steven Maeda as showrunner. He previously worked on Miami Medical for CBS and Lie to Me for FOX. ABC execs, who apparently still really like Pan Am, want to hear Maeda’s story ideas before deciding on whether they want to order additional episodes for a full season.
It’s very likely too late to pull this show out of its downward spiral but perhaps ABC will get lucky and beat the odds. Typically, once viewers reject a show, it’s nearly impossible to get them to take another look.
What do you think? Should ABC keep Pan Am flying for a full season or should they just pull the plug and cancel it now?
Image courtesy ABC.
Keep. It gets better all the time.
Please keep it. Our whole family watches it.
Keep it!! We love it….. One of the best shows ABC has had in a long time!
I am sick of reality TV! Pan Am is a breath of fresh air. The clothes, set, and storylines keep me tuning in. Keep, keep and I say keep!
New of cancellation stops a lot of viewers in their tracks…rating drop. I have lost count of the shows I’ve really enjoyed, just to have them suddenly end.
Keep it! Its one of my new favorite shows on abc right with the show Revenge, also on Abc. Abc knows how to make different new shows other than boring reality shows and crime dramas.
Keep for sure!
The football programming puts is on rather late on some Sunday! It is a keeper
keep it!!
I like the show. It’s not completely accurate, but how many of the current cop and body dramas are? As a cop friend once said, they never show you on suspension and having to fill out tons of paperwork after discharging your weapon. I was a passenger in the “golden age” of air travel when the Boeing 707 ruled the skies, and the Pan Am globe was synonymous with far flung and exotic destinations. The show does capture the vibe of just how exciting that time was. You’d think that people would tire of endless cop dramas, and want to… Read more »
Keep Pan Am flying!! I agree with Jack Ryan. We really need to know and show the glamor of flying then, when it was still a good experience. That was the day!! The Golden Age. ABC needs to promote Pan Am more!! Keep Pan Am flying! This time slot??? Maybe a schedule change is needed to attract more “passengers” to the flights. Not much on TV excites me but this does!! I hope Pan Am flies for decades!!
Keep it – enjoy watching a show from the 60’s time period and enjoy seeing how flying used to be…..and should still be! I like it.
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Keep!
Love pan am don’t cancel it
Please keep Pan Am – I am a faithful viewer and have really enjoyed the story line!
It should be kept on the air. Nighttime TV has become boring with the maany crime shows out there. Pan Am is not only a breath of fresh air that been needed for along time but shows many viewers what air travel was like and should be. ABC has done a great job in creating a retro feel . Keep it going give it the chance to grow and I am certain both ABC and viewers will be rewarded.