NBC’s limited-run series “The Book of Daniel” earned its share of advance scrutiny for its portrayals of contemporary men and women of the cloth, but that didn’t translate to a large turnout for the drama’s premiere Friday.
The network had better news on Thursday with the debut of its remodeled 8-10 p.m. comedy block anchored by “My Name Is Earl.” ABC also had a pulse for a change that night thanks to the return of its summer sensation “Dancing With the Stars.”
“Daniel,” which stars Aidan Quinn as a conflicted Episcopalian priest grappling with modern-day work and family issues and occasional visits from Jesus, opened in the 9-11 p.m. Friday berth to an average of 9 million viewers and a 2.7 rating/8 share in the adults 18-49 demographic, according to preliminary estimates from Nielsen Media Research.
“Daniel” improved slightly on NBC’s season average on what has been a troubled night for that network in particular and a low-rated night for the Big Four in general this season. Despite the buzz and a handful of affiliate defections, however, the back-to-back episodes of “Daniel” still came in behind CBS’ dramas “Close to Home” (11.5 million, 2.9/8) and “Numbers” (13.6 million, 3.6.10) and ABC’s new “In Justice” (9.2 million, 2.8/8) and “20/20” (9.2 million, 3.0/9). The drama will settle into its regular 10 p.m. slot as of next week for the rest of its eight-episode run.
ABC received a boost Friday from the 8 p.m. premiere of the “Stars” results show (12.9 million, 3.0/9), which now follows “American Idol”-style on the heels of the celebrity-hoofer competition’s Thursday performance episodes. The Friday half-hour edition of “Stars” gave ABC its best nonsports numbers in the time slot in nearly five years, though the network lost momentum at 8:30 p.m. with comedy “Hope & Faith” (8.3 million, 2.5/7). The presence of “Stars” seemed to dent the first half-hour of CBS’ drama “Ghost Whisperer” (11.4 million, 3.2/10), but CBS took the night overall with 12.1 million viewers and a 3.2/9 in 18-49.
On Thursday, the 8-10 p.m. debut of “Stars” impressed with an average of 17.5 million viewers and a 4.8/12 in the demo, according to Nielsen. “Stars” delivered a 118% increase over ABC’s season averages in the 8-10 p.m. block.
But NBC had the most at stake Thursday after relocating its Tuesday success story “Earl” and its companion, “The Office,” to the 9-10 p.m. hour against primetime’s most-watched series, CBS’ “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.”
“Earl” passed its first test, drawing 11.2 million viewers and a 5.2/13 in adults 18-49, not much of a dip from its season-to-date average in its Tuesday runs of 12.1 million viewers and a 5.3/13 in the key demo. At 9:30 p.m., NBC saw some encouraging results for “Office” (8.7 million, 4.5/11), which posted its best “Earl” retention rate to date. All told, the debut of the “Earl”/”Office” combo came in about on par with NBC’s 9 p.m. averages so far this season with “The Apprentice 4” (11 million, 5.0/12).
Still, “CSI” (27.2 million, 9.2/22) towered over the time slot, as usual.
At 8 p.m., NBC’s “Will & Grace” (8 million, 3.5/10) was slow out of the gate, but viewership perked up at 8:30 p.m. for the premiere of “Four Kings” (8.9 million, 4.2/11). The NBC comedies came in third behind “Stars” and CBS’ “CSI” repeat (14.6 million, 4.4/12).
At 10 p.m., NBC’s stalwart “ER” (14 million, 6.2/16) spiked but couldn’t keep pace with CBS’ “Without a Trace” (20.9 million, 6.8/18) and its “CSI” lead-in advantage. ABC’s momentum ebbed at 10 p.m. with “Primetime” (8.8 million, 2.9/7), even as the newsmagazine hit its highest marks of the season.
Fox, UPN and WB network sat out the Big Three network fireworks on the first Thursday of 2006 with repeats, in the case of UPN and WB, and with Rob Schneider, in the case of Fox. Fox benched “The O.C.” for the night and offered up the 2002 theatrical “The Hot Chick” (5.1 million, 2.1/5).
When all was said and done, CBS’ seasonlong Thursday winning streak remained intact as the eye network finished with 20.9 million viewers and a 6.8/17 in adults 18-49 for the night. NBC was No. 2 in the demo (5.0/13); ABC was second in viewers (14.6 million).
Source: Yahoo Entertainment News / Reuters / Hollywood Reporter, Written By: Cynthia Littleton
