As expected, the second week of ABC’s Roseanne spin-off dipped in the ratings. The big question last week was: By how much?
ABC’s The Conners (1.7 in adults 18-49 Live+Same Day, 7.9 million total viewers) was down 29% in 18-49 (-26% from the fast national) and down 26% in viewers from the premiere.
For comparison, the Roseanne revival was down 25% in 18-49 and just 16% in viewers between its blockbuster debut and Week 2 last spring. The Conners also relinquished the No. 1 spot for the night in the demo to NBC’s This Is Us (2.1), which was down only a tenth from last Wednesday.
The Conners still marked a time-slot improvement in the slot versus last fall when The Middle was airing its final season there, logging ABC’s best delivery in the half-hour slot over the last five years that the World Series has started a Tuesday night – since 2013.
One big factor was that Fox had Game 1 of the World Series on last night. But it’s debatable how much of The Conners drop should be attributed to the sports competition. CBS’ entire lineup was actually unchanged in the ratings compared to last week, and NBC shows were barely impacted — with The Voice and This Is Us only dropping a tenth of a point each (and New Amsterdam at 10 p.m. actually improving). The CW’s lineup likewise improved. ABC’s lineup, however, softened across the board after The Conners dipped at 8 p.m.
But its declines carried over to the rest of ABC’s Tuesday series. New comedy The Kids Are Alright (1.1, 5.1 million) was down 21% in the demo from its debut last week, black-ish (0.9, 3.8 million) dipped a tenth, while sophomore Splitting Up Together (0.7, 2.9 million) and newbie The Rookie (0.8, 4.4 million) each slipped two tenths.
Still, The Conners was the second-highest rated entertainment series Tuesday night, behind only This Is Us (8.8 million, 2.2 rating), and a win is a win.
Speaking of which, here’s Entertainment Weekly’s rundown of fall TV’s 10 biggest winners and losers(so far).
Accurate World Series ratings are not yet in, but the game delivered 12.6 million viewers and a 3.4 demo rating in the fast nationals, which are not adjusted for live coverage. This is roughly on par with last year.
(Excerpts) Read More at: EW.com and Deadline.com