TNT recently premiered a new police drama, Rizolli & Isles, starring Angie Harmon. Will the TV show be a big success or be cancelled like her last detective series, Women’s Murder Club?
In Rizzoli & Isles, tough detective Jane Rizzoli (Harmon) teams up with serious forensic pathologist Maura Isles (Sasha Alexander). The rest of the cast includes Bruce McGill, Lee Thompson Young, Lorraine Bracco, and Jordan Bridges.
The show debuted on July 12th, with a lead-in from The Closer. The series premiere attracted a 1.5 in the demo and 7.55 million viewers. Not only is that an excellent sampling but it nearly tied its established lead-in and came in third place among all of the week’s cable shows. It set a record as the highest-rated debut for a commercial-supported cable series.
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In week two, Rizzoli & Isles actually beat The Closer’s demo numbers. The episode again drew a 1.5 rating in the demo but total viewers slid to 7.27 million. For week three, on Monday night, viewership dropped — to a 1.3 in the demo and 6.548 million viewers.
While the ratings are still very good for the cable series, this week’s ratings drop is not a good sign. Hopefully it’s not the start of a trend. You may recall that TNT’s Raising the Bar also set ratings records when it debuted. After just two seasons, it was cancelled. It remains to be seen if Rizolli & Isles will follow in its footsteps.
What do you think? Do you think Rizzoli & Isles is worth watching or should it be cancelled already?
I love this show…I record a lot of shows and spend time trying to catch up…it is one of the first ones I look to watch…I hope it stays
Angie Harmon’s character is tough and ironic and her protrayal keeps the show afloat – she’s worth rooting for. What a shame Sahsa Alexander seems so miscast. The writing is weak but I don’t think this is just a writing problem. Sasha sucks the energy out of her scenes with pauses and sighs wide-eyed blank expressions when she needs to do something to compensate for a character written with zero personal wants or needs (except perhaps her wardrobe and forensic factoids). Such a contrast to Rizzoli who is clearly driven. The relationship is sooo ho hum and without real conflict… Read more »
I love the two actresses. And I want desperately to like the show…I keep watching HOPING (beyond hope, it seems) that it will become…better. It’s rather superficial, platonic, shallow, campy… and these two beautiful and talented actresses deserve better writers. I know that Bruckheimer and Wolff sort of “own” the drama of prime time, but there’s a REASON–they know how to tell an engaging, compelling story with characters that pop off the screen and into our hearts. The premise of R&I isn’t so bad, but please, somebody write an engaging story with some real teeth. But…I’m not ready to vote… Read more »
I like the show so far. I like both women. Even though I like Lorraine Bracco, some of the scenes with her are kind of hokey, no offense. Last night Lorraine was actually in the police station selling some kind of health drinks she made. That was kind of silly. If I were a cop and my mom did that I would never speak to her again. Less of this family life and more crime solving please.
I love the show so far. No, it’s not perfect, but hardly any show is in its first season. It needs time to establish itself, and I’m glad that it was renewed for another season so that it can work out some of its drawbacks. The Rizzoli character is really fun to watch, but Isles has some dialogue issues. She needs to come across as a little more human and a little less like a robot. And I’m not the biggest watcher of cop shows (this is my first, actually) but I don’t find R&I’s plots boring or unoriginal. I… Read more »
Although I do agree that the plot isn’t as mind bending as I would have hoped, I do find the show extremely interesting. The stories are bizarre and I do like the way the characters interact. I think it is a good combination of the chat of Grey’s and the murder of CSI. I think Rizzoli and Isles balance each other out to make a good team but I do slightly get annoyed of Isles medical rants but not enough to make me dislike the show. I say it stays.
love the show…. definitely a keeper, enjoy it and has covered issues that women detectives experience in the real world….
I love the lead character who makes the show, however the character of Isles is like a tiresome imitation of Data from the Next Generation with her significant IQ and utter lack of social skills.
I agree, the Isles character just doesn’t work for me. I don’t think I’ll be a regular viewer.
Cancel it….. I find the show boring. Watched the first two shows and changed the channel in the middle of the third episode. I got the impression they spent more time trying to impress and/or had the hots for one another.
Great show!!!Love them both!!
After viewing the 1st episode (which I was very excited to see) I decided not to watch anymore. After reading Tess Gerrittsen’s books, I found the show to be boring, mostly due to the acting. I’ll stick to reading the books!
keep it! i didnt even know about it till i watched the closer premiere, and it followed. so im hooked now.
It’s just been renewed. It is not weak, nor is it a rehash. It’s a good crime show, starring two women, one a science geek.
I find this is the worst show i have seen in a long time. No character is likeable(maybe the stupid plot device turtle). This is just insulting to my inteligence, come on people make me think a lttle. Card board thin and weak. Seams like the type of show that would be on CBS just a rehash nciscsi crap. What a shame this replaced the great saving grace. I expect more from TNT.
I’m enjoying R&I so far. Voted to keep it, am looking forward to the characters “fleshing” out, and look forward to Monday nights.