tag:www.tvweek.com,2009://15 2008-02-14T17:32:32Z James Hibberd's 'Rated' is TVWeek.com's daily programming news and ratings blog. Email James Hibberd. Subscribe: Rated RSS feed / TVWeek E-Daily Newsletter Movable Type 3.33 tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.27227 2008-02-14T17:00:27Z 2008-02-14T17:32:32Z

As some of you already know, I'm moving on to another publication. Thanks again to all those who supported the blog during its tenure at TVWeek. Check the TVWeek.com homepage for Andrew Krukowski's ongoing daily ratings coverage. For my latest work, please see THR.com starting Feb. 19.

TVWeek Author As some of you already know, I'm moving on to another publication. Thanks again to all those who supported the blog during its tenure at TVWeek. Check the TVWeek.com homepage for Andrew Krukowski's ongoing daily ratings coverage. For my latest... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.27105 2008-02-06T19:14:55Z 2008-02-06T19:37:54Z

Fox’s “American Idol” reigned supreme again Tuesday night, with competition from Super Tuesday primary coverage seeming to matter not a bit. In fact, “Idol” was up a tick from last week to an 11.2 rating among adults 18 to 49, according to preliminary Nielsen returns. Fox followed “Idol” with an original “House” (9.0), and the medical drama posted its highest regular-time-period rating in more than eight months. NBC was the runner-up with “The Biggest Loser: Couples” (3.1), followed by Super Tuesday coverage (2.1). CBS was third with an “NCIS” repeat (1.8) and election coverage (1.3). ABC came in fourth with election coverage (1.4). The CW aired a “Reaper” repeat (0.7) and “One Tree Hill” (1.3). Nielsen returns for Monday night were delayed a full day, which cost NBC a headline. Matching its rating from last week, “American Gladiators” may finally have stabilized (3.7), although it’s tough to be certain since the previous episode was pushed until 10 p.m. on the West Coast, preventing an apples-to-apples comparison. “Deal or No Deal” continues to perform well (4.4) and was the highest-rated show of the night. ABC came in a rare second place for the evening thanks to a 90-minute “20/20” (4.3) that aired hidden-camera footage providing new information regarding the disappearance of Natalee Holloway. Lead-in “Dance Wars” (2.5) was on par. Fox came in third with “Prison Break” (2.9) and an on-par “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” (3.5). Fourth-place CBS aired a mix of originals and repeats, punctuated by the premieres of new sitcom “Welcome to the Captain” (2.6) and the return of “The New Adventures of Old Christine” (3.1). “Captain” matched its “How I Met Your Mother” repeat lead-in, but underperformed for the time period. “Old Christine” was 16% below its average for the time period last year, but that’s to be expected given its repeat lead-in of “Two and a Half Men” (3.8). The network aired a repeat of “CSI: Miami” (2.4) at 10 p.m. The CW aired a “Gossip Girl” repeat (0.6), “Girlfriends” (0.8) and “The Game” (1.0).

Julieanne Smolinski tvweek.com Fox’s “American Idol” reigned supreme again Tuesday night, with competition from Super Tuesday primary coverage seeming to matter not a bit. In fact, “Idol” was up a tick from last week to an 11.2 rating among adults 18 to 49,... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.27070 2008-02-04T19:02:40Z 2008-02-04T21:00:15Z

Fox says it's official: Sunday's suspenseful matchup between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants was the most-watched Super Bowl in history, according to time-zone-adjusted fast national Nielsen estimates provided by the network. An estimated 97.5 million viewers, up 5% from last year, tuned in to watch the Giants achieve a last-minute upset of the previously undefeated Patriots to make Super Bowl history. The show was the second-most watched television program of all time, behind the 1983 finale of "M*A*S*H," which was viewed by 106 million people. The previous most-watched Bowl, with 94.1 million viewers, was Dallas vs. Pittsburgh in 1996. Sunday’s game scored a 37.6 rating among adults 18 to 49, making it the highest-rated Super Bowl in the demo in eight years. The 1996 Super Bowl remains the highest rated with a 41.2 rating. This year’s Super Bowl was followed by an original episode of “House,” which earned a record-setting 12.8. "House" was the highest-rated scripted program on any network in two years and was up 29% from last year's post-game airing of "Criminal Minds" on CBS. Overall, Fox enjoyed its highest-rated night ever in the demo and in total viewers, as well as posting the highest-rated night on any broadcast network in at least 17 years. Some of the headlines this morning: "Super Bowl Headlines Tell Tale of Two Cities," "Giants Stun Perfect Pats in Super Bowl" and "An Idol and an Icon Entertain Super Bowl Revelers." Plus: USA Today's annual ad-meter rates the Super Bowl commercials. Review: "America's national celebration of advertising gluttony for once couldn't overshadow the game." Competition was scarce. ABC was a distant second, averaging a 1.2 rating for the night, led by an airing of the movie “Meet the Fockers” (1.4). CBS and NBC tied with a 0.8 average, CBS led by a “Cold Case” repeat (1.3) and NBC airing a marathon of “The Biggest Loser: Couples” repeats (0.6 and 1.0). More to come.

Julieanne Smolinski tvweek.com Fox says it's official: Sunday's suspenseful matchup between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants was the most-watched Super Bowl in history, according to time-zone-adjusted fast national Nielsen estimates provided by the network. An estimated 97.5 million viewers,... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.27029 2008-02-01T20:40:21Z 2008-02-01T20:41:26Z

Following through on NBC Universal President-CEO Jeff Zucker’s mandate to order shows direct to series, NBC has picked up 13 episodes of “The Listener.” The drama, about a young man who can hear people’s thoughts, was greenlit by Canadian broadcaster CTV last month and is produced by Toronto’s Shaftesbury Films. “We’re delighted that ‘The Listener’ will broadcast on NBC in the U.S. and on CTV in Canada,” said Christina Jennings, chairman-CEO of Shaftesbury Films. “There seems to be a new pattern emerging at American TV networks, which have lately become more open to working with production companies outside the U.S.” That “new pattern” is due, of course, to the writers strike, which has caused network programmers to search beyond U.S. borders for original content. Earlier this week, CBS acquired 13 episodes of CTV’s upcoming drama series “Flashpoint.”

Julieanne Smolinski tvweek.com Following through on NBC Universal President-CEO Jeff Zucker’s mandate to order shows direct to series, NBC has picked up 13 episodes of “The Listener.” The drama, about a young man who can hear people’s thoughts, was greenlit by Canadian broadcaster... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.27021 2008-02-01T18:41:54Z 2008-02-01T18:50:53Z

The fourth-season premiere of ABC’s “Lost” led Thursday night, although it was down marginally from its previous season debut in October 2006. “Lost” earned a 6.7 preliminary Nielsen rating among adults 18 to 49, down 13% from the season-three premiere. ABC pointed out that it’s the show’s first original episode to air in eight months, the show premiered on a new night and time, and the rating was well above last season’s average. Critics have been full of praise, with USA Today’s Robert Bianco saying the premiere was “a heart-stopping, perfectly pitched episode” and the San Francisco Chronicle’s Tim Goodman calling the first two episodes “roller coasters of fast action and revelation.” The show was heavily advertised as a two-hour premiere, but the first hour was actually a backstory clip show (psych!) that earned the second-highest rating of the night (4.9). The debut of ABC’s “Eli Stone” in the 10 p.m. slot won the hour (4.2), but was down slightly from the premiere of “Big Shots” in the time period earlier this season and lost 17% of its demo rating in the second half-hour. Fox came in second, with “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader” (3.1) and “Don’t Forget the Lyrics” (3.3) continuing to perform above average now that “American Idol” is boosting Fox’s viewership levels. NBC was third, with comedy repeats leading into a two-hour “Celebrity Apprentice” (3.2). The return of “Lost” helped knocked “The Apprentice” to its lowest Thursday night rating ever (excluding Thanksgiving). CBS was fourth with repeats of “CSI: NY” (1.9), “CSI” (2.8) and “Without a Trace” (2.4). In fifth place, The CW had its best “Smallville” rating in a couple of months (1.6), followed by “Supernatural” (1.3).

Julieanne Smolinski tvweek.com The fourth-season premiere of ABC’s “Lost” led Thursday night, although it was down marginally from its previous season debut in October 2006. “Lost” earned a 6.7 preliminary Nielsen rating among adults 18 to 49, down 13% from the season-three premiere.... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26976 2008-01-30T21:47:04Z 2008-01-30T21:48:14Z

Fox’s double punch of “American Idol” and an original episode of “House” readily dominated the Nielsen ratings Tuesday night. “Idol” ruled the evening with an 11.0 preliminary rating among adults 18 to 49, slipping 7% from last week. With an 8.6 rating, “House” was up 23% since its last original airing three months ago, thanks to the “Idol” lead-in. NBC was the runner-up, with “The Biggest Loser: Couples” down 11% because of heightened competition in the 9 p.m. hour from “House.” A repeat of “Law & Order: SVU” (2.9) won the 10 p.m. hour. CBS came in third in the demo with repeats of “NCIS” (2.0) and “The Unit” (1.5) followed by “48 Hours Mystery” (2.4). ABC came in fourth with two episodes of “Just for Laughs” (1.4 and 1.3), “According to Jim” (2.0), “Carpoolers” (1.3) and a repeat of “Boston Legal” (1.3). The CW had a “Reaper” repeat (0.6) and “One Tree Hill” (1.3).

Andrew Krukowski tvweek.com Fox’s double punch of “American Idol” and an original episode of “House” readily dominated the Nielsen ratings Tuesday night. “Idol” ruled the evening with an 11.0 preliminary rating among adults 18 to 49, slipping 7% from last week. With an... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26960 2008-01-30T01:30:04Z 2008-01-30T01:31:09Z

Lisa Horowitz tvweek.com The conventioneers march into the Mandalay Bay exhibit hall, wide-eyed and excited. They’re youthful, happy to be here and full of optimism about the future. The conventioneers are, of course, not attending NATPE. They’re going to the snow sports convention... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26955 2008-01-29T23:10:10Z 2008-01-29T23:10:27Z

NBC’s “American Gladiators” topped the Nielsen ratings despite hitting a new low on Monday night. “Gladiators” had a 3.7 national Nielsen rating among adults 18 to 49, down from last week’s 4.3. NBC noted the show’s time period was shifted to 10 p.m. in West Coast markets due to President Bush’s State of the Union address, impacting viewership. NBC still managed to win the night, edging out second-place CBS, which aired comedy repeats. Fox aired a repeat of “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” (2.2) for third place. ABC was fourth with “Dance War” (2.5) and a repeat. The CW didn’t air the president’s address, but still came in fifth.

Andrew Krukowski tvweek.com NBC’s “American Gladiators” topped the Nielsen ratings despite hitting a new low on Monday night. “Gladiators” had a 3.7 national Nielsen rating among adults 18 to 49, down from last week’s 4.3. NBC noted the show’s time period was shifted... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26934 2008-01-29T00:22:30Z 2008-01-29T00:58:56Z

File this under “surprising yet makes sense.” NBC has bumped its new reality series “The Baby Borrowers” a mere 22 days before its scheduled Feb. 18 premiere, despite recently airing ads touting the show and sending screeners to critics (surprising). Instead, NBC will debut "My Dad Is Better Than Your Dad” in “Borrowers’” previously scheduled Monday 8 p.m. slot, since “American Gladiators” is currently ruling the time period. The network figures having another sporty competition series like “My Dad” once "Gladiators" runs out of new episodes could continue its Monday night ratings momentum (makes sense). Still, the question invariably becomes: Does the move signal a lack of network confidence in “Borrowers”? NBC says it still loves the show and will schedule a premiere at a future date. The network also announced that game show “Amne$ia,” hosted by Dennis Miller, will debut Friday, Feb. 22, at 9 p.m. following the season finale of “1 vs. 100,” then shift to 8 p.m. the next week.

TVWeek Author File this under “surprising yet makes sense.” NBC has bumped its new reality series “The Baby Borrowers” a mere 22 days before its scheduled Feb. 18 premiere, despite recently airing ads touting the show and sending screeners to critics (surprising).... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26906 2008-01-28T18:26:18Z 2008-01-28T18:31:16Z

Broadcast networks aired a weekend lineup heavily populated by repeats and specials, as the impact of the writers strike on their primetime lineups becomes increasingly evident. ABC easily won Sunday night, led by a two-hour “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” (5.1 preliminary Nielsen rating among adults 18 to 49) and “America’s Funniest Home Videos” (2.8). Fox was second, led by a repeat of “Family Guy” (3.8), which outranked originals of “The Simpsons” (3.6) and “American Dad” (3.0) and its other repeats. CBS came in third with “60 Minutes” (2.7), “Shark” (2.0) and the Hallmark Hall of Fame movie “The Russell Girl” (2.2). NBC had “U.S. Men’s Championship Figure Skating” (0.8) and a “Guinness World Records: Top 100” special (2.2). The CW aired “Life Is Wild” (0.4), “CW Now” (0.3) and repeats. Fox won Saturday yet again with back-to-back episodes of “Cops” (1.9 and 2.3), followed by “America’s Most Wanted” (2.2). ABC edged out CBS for second place with its fifth airing of Julia Roberts starrer “Pretty Woman” (1.6). CBS was third with “Super Bowl’s Greatest Commercials 2008” (1.8) and back-to-back episodes of “48 Hours Mystery” (1.1 and 1.6). Fourth-place NBC aired “U.S. Women’s Championship Figure Skating” (0.9). On Friday, NBC scored a narrow victory with “1 vs. 100” (2.3), “Friday Night Lights” (1.9) and “Las Vegas” (2.1). Fox was second with repeats. CBS was third with repeats and “Garth Brooks: Live in L.A.” (2.1). The CW was fourth with “Friday Night Smackdown” (1.4). ABC came in fifth with repeats and “20/20” (1.9).

Lisa Horowitz tvweek.com Broadcast networks aired a weekend lineup heavily populated by repeats and specials, as the impact of the writers strike on their primetime lineups becomes increasingly evident. ABC easily won Sunday night, led by a two-hour “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” (5.1... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26880 2008-01-25T23:51:17Z 2008-01-26T01:47:39Z

The bandana is back. Dan Cortese—best known from MTV Sports, “Melrose Place,” “Veronica’s Closet” and, now and forever, a series of 1990s Burger King commercials—is returning to prime time. NBC has tapped the actor as host of its upcoming competition reality series “My Dad Is Better Than Your Dad.” The network notes that Cortese is a father and football coach, and therefore a perfect host for the show. “My Dad,” from Mark Burnett Productions and Reveille, features fathers and their kids teaming up to complete stunt-driven challenges. Given that the similarly physically competitive “American Gladiators” is heating up NBC’s ratings, the network likely hopes to funnel some “Gladiator” interest into the new show. The network is expected to announce a “My Dad” premiere date next week.

TVWeek Author The bandana is back. Dan Cortese—best known from MTV Sports, “Melrose Place,” “Veronica’s Closet” and, now and forever, a series of 1990s Burger King commercials—is returning to prime time. NBC has tapped the actor as host of its upcoming competition... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26853 2008-01-24T23:26:02Z 2008-01-25T21:31:40Z

"It's way beyond my expectations," Fox's president of alternative entertainment Mike Darnell says of the lofty premiere ratings for "Moment of Truth.” "I cannot imagine a better retention of 'Idol.'" Darnell is basking in the day-after Nielsen glow—and inflamed critic responses—for his latest headline-grabbing unscripted effort. The show wasn’t sent to critics before the debut. It’s a tactic Darnell says he learned the hard way after sending out a preview copy of “Temptation Island” right before walking into the Television Critics Association press tour several years ago. So now after every Fox reality premiere, Darnell gets the roller-coaster experience of reading his reviews and ratings on the same day. “They thought ["Moment"] was everything from boring, to vile, to boring and vile,” he says. “But generally speaking, if you have a critically acclaimed reality show, it’s not a big hit. Then you have, like, ‘Amazing Race.’ Reviews have been great for ‘Kitchen Nightmares,’ and it does well, but it’s not a 25 [share]. I don’t think most critics would say they represent regular people. ["Moment"] did not get good reviews, and I would have thought I had done something wrong if it did.” One common complaint from critics and viewers is that the show’s pace is too sluggish, particularly in the game’s early rounds. “For every game show on television, somebody says it’s too slow,” Darnell says. “‘Deal or No Deal,’ for all its energy, can be slow. When opening those first 10 boxes, I feel like I’m gonna kill myself.” That said, Darnell says the “Moment” pace will pick up. “It’s always been a semi-issue with the show because you have the pauses between the revelation and [the lie detector result],” he says. “You gotta have that to watch the reaction of the friends and family. But we’re going to try to quicken the pace a little bit.” The show’s promised “end of western civilization” drama will increase as well, Darnell says, particularly once the show shifts to the 8 p.m. hour in early March. “We intentionally opened with a middle-of-the-road episode,” he says. “I didn’t want people from middle America to freak out coming out of ‘American Idol.’” Darnell does not expect the show to retain its lofty premiere ratings height. But with a debut that strong, he figures there’s plenty of ratings acreage to burn. “There’s no one who doesn’t think it will go down after ‘Idol,’” he says. “But if I lose 20% next week, great.”

TVWeek Author "It's way beyond my expectations," Fox's president of alternative entertainment Mike Darnell says of the lofty premiere ratings for "Moment of Truth.” "I cannot imagine a better retention of 'Idol.'" Darnell is basking in the day-after Nielsen glow—and inflamed critic... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26840 2008-01-24T17:52:10Z 2008-01-24T23:31:02Z

For the third time this month, the season's highest-rated new series premiere record has been shattered: Fox’s provocative lie detector game show opened with a massive Nielsen rating thanks to an “American Idol” lead-in and plenty of viewer curiosity. “Moment” was seen by 23 million viewers and scored a 10.2 preliminary rating among adults 18 to 49, retaining 94% of its “Idol” audience (10.8). That’s higher than previous record-setting freshman debuts this season by NBC’s “American Gladiators” (5.9) and Fox’s “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” (7.6). The "Moment" premiere is the largest retention ever of an “Idol” lead-in, and the highest-rated premiere on any network since last February's "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader" (11.2) -- Fox's previous game show to debut in a post-"Idol" slot. Drop off between the first and second half hour of "Moment" was 13%, which is nominal considering the large influx of “Idol” viewers. The "Moment" rating could shift slightly in the nationals later today since there’s one minute of “Idol” bleed into the program. The show was not sent for review to critics, but TV Guide’s Matt Roush had an early critique this morning: “Who with a brain or a soul could do anything but despise Fox's new bottom-of-the-reality-barrel time-waster.” Viewers posting on the blog were more intrigued, though several said the show’s pace needed to speed up. Once again, an NBC unscripted effort held up best against “Idol.” Continuing its “Million Dollar Mission,” last night’s “Deal or No Deal” hit a 15-month high in this time period (3.7). The “MDM” (where suitcases containing $1,000,000 keep being added to the board until a contestant finally wins the top prize) has played like a sweeps stunt, only placed in January. The play has given a more serialized nature to the show that has boosted tune-in, not unlike Ken Jennings’ famed winning streak on “Jeopardy.” NBC also had “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” (2.2) and “Law & Order” (3.0). Other competitors didn’t fare nearly as well against Fox’s duo. Third-place CBS’s entire lineup hit series lows, including “Power of 10” (0.9), “Criminal Minds” (3.2) and “CSI: NY” (3.3, winning the 10 p.m. hour). ABC’s “Wife Swap” also hit a series low (1.9), followed by “Supernanny” (2.7) and a season low “Cashmere Mafia” (2.0). The CW aired “Crowned” (0.7) and a “Gossip Girl” repeat (0.5). UPDATE: Fox's Mike Darnell on "Moment of Truth" ratings and critic reviews. "They thought it was everything from boring, to vile, to boring and vile. But generally speaking, if you have a critically acclaimed reality show, it's not a big hit..." More ...

TVWeek Author For the third time this month, the season's highest-rated new series premiere record has been shattered: Fox’s provocative lie detector game show opened with a massive Nielsen rating thanks to an “American Idol” lead-in and plenty of viewer curiosity. “Moment”... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26825 2008-01-23T19:40:43Z 2008-01-23T19:44:44Z

Fox easily won Tuesday night across key measures in the preliminary Nielsen ratings, with “American Idol” (11.7 among adults 18 to 49) and a “House” repeat (5.1) scoring the highest returns. “Idol” dipped 15% from last week’s two-hour premiere, which is a slightly better retention than last year. NBC came in second place, with “The Biggest Loser: Couples” (3.7) rebounding 23% from last week thanks to having to face only an hour of “Idol” instead of two. At 10 p.m., “Law & Order: SVU” won the hour (4.6). CBS placed third with repeats of “NCIS” (2.1) and “The Unit” (1.9) followed by “48 Hours Mystery” (2.0). ABC was fourth with two “Just for Laughs” episodes (both 1.4), “According to Jim” (2.2), “Carpoolers” (1.7) and “Boston Legal” (2.2). The CW aired a “Reaper” repeat (0.6) and “One Tree Hill” (1.3).

TVWeek Author Fox easily won Tuesday night across key measures in the preliminary Nielsen ratings, with “American Idol” (11.7 among adults 18 to 49) and a “House” repeat (5.1) scoring the highest returns. “Idol” dipped 15% from last week’s two-hour premiere, which... tag:www.tvweek.com,2008://15.26805 2008-01-22T20:06:26Z 2008-01-22T20:19:03Z

Monday: ‘Gladiators’ Ready? NBC continued its Monday-night reign with unscripted power duo “American Gladiators” (4.3 preliminary Nielsen rating among adults 18 to 49) and “Deal or No Deal” (4.4, the highest-rated show of the night), followed by an original “Medium” (3.4). NBC also won in total viewers. Despite dominating at 8 p.m., “Gladiators” was down another few ticks this week, which has to give NBC executives some pause. The series keeps winning hours, yet keeps losing (a slight number of) viewers. This is the third week for “Gladiators” in its Monday time period and you want to see ratings stabilization right … about … now. If the show holds its number next week, chances are “Gladiators” will at minimum enjoy a fair-sized run. If the show’s rating drops into the 3s, it’s worry time. Speaking of which, second-place Fox’s “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” (3.6) is in its second week in its 9 p.m. time period and continues to drop (down 14%). Fox points out that “Terminator” improved the slot by 70% compared to last year. Lead-in “Prison Break” was down slightly (3.1). Fourth-place ABC’s “Dance War” (2.6) also continued to dip, followed by “Notes From the Underbelly” (1.6) and “October Road” (1.9). In third place, CBS had comedy and “CSI: Miami” repeats, earning a 3.1 average for the night. In fifth, The CW had comedy repeats (0.7). Sunday: You Know There’s a Writers Strike When… CBS stocks its Sunday night schedule with a news special called “Global Warming: The Melting Polar Ice Caps” that in turn earns a mere 1.7 rating. And you really know there’s a writers strike when that “Polar Ice Caps” special was the highest-rated non-sports programming for its time period. “Ice Caps” beat everything at 7 p.m. except Fox’s presentation of the NFC Championship game, New York Giants at Green Bay Packers, which earned a massive 18.4 preliminary rating. ABC was second for the evening with repeats and a two-hour “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” (3.8). CBS was third with the news special, the season finale of “The Amazing Race” (3.1) and repeats. NBC was fourth with “Dateline” (1.2) and a movie. The CW had repeats, “CW Now” and an original “Life Is Wild” (0.2—and not canceled, remember?). Saturday: Cops and Movies Fox won easily with “Cops” (2.0 and 2.3) and “America’s Most Wanted” (2.4) over competing repeats and movies. Friday: Immortal CBS Dramas This deep into the writers strike, how is it CBS still manages to still have originals of its entire Friday night scripted lineup? The alternative crime dramas were the three highest-rated shows of the night: “Ghost Whisperer” (2.7), “Moonlight” (2.4) and “Numb3rs” (2.6). Fox was second with repeats. NBC was third with “1 vs. 100” (1.8), “Friday Night Lights” (1.8) and “Las Vegas” (2.0). The CW was fourth with “Friday Night Smackdown” (1.5). ABC was fifth with repeats and “20/20” (1.8).

TVWeek Author Monday: ‘Gladiators’ Ready? NBC continued its Monday-night reign with unscripted power duo “American Gladiators” (4.3 preliminary Nielsen rating among adults 18 to 49) and “Deal or No Deal” (4.4, the highest-rated show of the night), followed by an original “Medium”...