CBS’ Undercover Boss (1.9/9 in adults 18-49, 8.6 million viewers) dropped 21% in 18-49 from its big Friday premiere last week but still ranked as the top program of the night in the 18-49 demographic. The reality series was also the most watched show last week but that title went back to CBS’ Friday staple Blue Bloods (1.7/5, 11.2 million), which was up 6% in the demo from last week. Sandwiched between Undercover Boss and Blue Bloods at 9 PM was A Gifted Man (1.3/4, 9.1 million) which didn’t help its renewal chances with a 13% drop from last week’s time slot premiere.
As Undercover Boss declined, ABC’s Shark Tank (1.8/6) and Fox’s Kitchen Nightmares (1.5/5) bounced back, up 20% and 15%, respectively, from last week when they were pushed down by Undercover Boss’ debut. Shark Tank matched its best 18-49 result for a regularly scheduled episode. The Friday 8 PM hour is shaping up as one of the most competitive in the unscripted arena with 3 solid shows, Undercover Boss, Shark Tank and Kitchen Nightmares, duking it out.
NBC’s Grimm (1.5/5) was down a tenth returning from yet another preemption. (NBC’s scheduling team must really hate the fairytale/horror drama, never allowing it to run uninterrupted for more than 2-3 weeks.) Grimm still won the 9 PM hour in 18-49. Its lead-in, Who Do You Think You Are? (0.9/3), was down 25%. Meanwhile, in its winter finale, Fox’s Fringe (1.2/4) showed signs of life, up a tenth from the series low it had been stuck at for weeks. From 9-11 PM, ABC dropped from the highly-rated two-hour 20/20 special about Whiteney Houston last week (2.0/6) with What Would You Do? (1.4/4) and 20/20 (1.2/4). That helped NBC’s Dateline (1.3/4), which was up 2 tenths at 10 PM. The CW aired repeats.
