The Devil's Hands... Nielsen Ratings

[on:]

USA Today published the Nielsen ratings for the week starting August 4th and ending August 10th.
The columns are Viewers   Household Rating   Household Share   Rank   Last Week('s rank)
 

Sunday, August 10th
7:00 -
60 Minutes (CBS)(r) 10.4 7.2 15 8 3
Dateline (NBC) 6.6 4.4 9 47 32
Angels in the Infield (ABC)(r) 5.9 3.6 7 55 --
Futurama (Fox) 4.3 2.7 6 78 76*
Gilmore Girls (WB)(r) 2.0 1.4 3 107 103*

Other ratings of interest:
Sunday 7:30:
Banzai (Fox) 3.9 2.2 4 83 81
Thursday 9:00:
The O.C. (Fox)(sr) 4.2 2.9 5 80 --
Monday 8:00:
Anything for Love (Fox) 4.3 3.1 6 78 --
Friday 8:30:
Wanda at Large (Fox)(rp) 3.5 2.3 5 85 --

And in the "How the hell could this possibly have this many viewers?" category:
Monday 8:30:
Stupid Behavior (Fox)(sr) 4.8 3.3 6 71 --


So Banzai's tanking rather quickly. And the last episode of Futurama did quite well for the DeathSlot(tm).

[Reply #1 on:]

I don't understand those numbers. Does it mean it was the 4th most watched programme at 7?

[Reply #2 on:]

Yes, please enlighten us dummies who don't know what those numbers mean and are too lazy to look it up, like me.

[Reply #3 on:]

Is 6 the share?  Last season Futurama got a couple of 10 shares at 7:00.  So are these numbers good or not?  I'm confused.

Edit:  Then again, when it got 10 shares, it wasn't August.  It was during the regular season.

[Reply #4 on:]

I'm not sure about this, but here's how I think the rating are supposed to go:

The first number is the total viewers,(in millions) the second is the percentage of American households tuned in, the third is the share, (the percentage of household who actually had their TVs turned on) the forth is the show's rank for the week and the fifth is last weeks rank.

Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

[Reply #5 on:]

Is it good enough for FOX to order more episodes? 

[Reply #6 on:]

Why don't the WB or UPN just pick up the show then? All the loyal fans will flock to their stations and it would be one of their most watched shows

[Reply #7 on:]

It's really hard to find Nielsen ratings beyond the top 20. One I found from November had the Simpsons at 9.1 million viewers and King of the Hill at 6.9 million.

More simply put, if Futurama can't get better ratings than "Stupid Behavior Caught on Tape," Fox isn't going to spend the money on it.

[Reply #8 on:]

So, the Finale was lower than last week's!!!   

Here's to you, Nielsen!   

[Reply #9 on:]

Once again, "Stupid Behavior" was cheap to produce and provided more bang for the buck than Futurama.  As for UPN or The Frog picking up the program, I doubt that's going to happen.  Animation ain't cheap.  Nor are talents like Katey Sagal, Billy West, and the others.  Besides, I can all but guarantee the other networks are run by a bunch of mind-numbed number crunchers identical to The Visionaries at Fox.  Their entire philosophy brings to mind the line from "Oliver Twist" when Oliver's purchase was being contemplated by the mortician:  "If we can get enough work out of him without putting too much food into him..."  In other words:  "Bottom line!  Bottom line! (Awwwk!)  Keep it cheap!  Bugger quality!  (Awwwk!)"  Words they've all learned to parrot!

[Reply #10 on:]

That's true. Just because the WB and UPN are at the bottom of the network food chain doesn't mean their not owned by huge media conglomerates.

Although, if Cartoon Network ordered new episodes, (which is an extreme longshot)they'd probably be run on the WB as well , just to get a better return on their investment.

[Reply #11 on:]

OT: UPN ran an animated series before: Dilbert.

However, I'm with Unca Dave.

[Reply #12 on:]

 

Originally posted by SQFreak:
OT: UPN ran an animated series before: Dilbert.

However, I'm with Unca Dave.

But Dilbert didn't last too long ;|

But yea, I too am with Unca...

[Reply #13 on:]

i'm no genius but those numbers seem really low. so they beat a repeat of gilmore girls and that's it? whoopie!

[Reply #14 on:]

Yeah it's low, but still--they beat Bonzai! Heavily promoted, better-timeslotted Bonzai! Take that, FOX losers.

[Reply #15 on:]

The ratings were dismally low.  Forget about making excuses blaming timeslots and promotion.  No one viewing primetime network tv watches Futurama.

A rerun of Stupid Behavoir could bury the finest Futurama ep.

[Reply #16 on:]

Then why didn't Bonzai?

Or anything else FOX schedules for 7pm on Sundays? Or, checking the original post in this thread, The OC? The OC has been promoted EVERYWHERE, all the freaking time! And it has a decent timeslot. And it still didn't beat Futurama? Bravo, FOX!

[Reply #17 on:]

jeezsus "Angels in The Infield Beat it" what the hell is wrong with the average american viewer

[Reply #18 on:]

 

Originally posted by FishyJoe:
The OC has been promoted EVERYWHERE, all the freaking time! And it has a decent timeslot. And it still didn't beat Futurama? Bravo, FOX!

That was a The OC rerun though. That was the premier re-aired two days after the real premier.

[Reply #19 on:]

 

Originally posted by Ricky:
Is it good enough for FOX to order more episodes?   

According to this page from the Fox.com website (which is an answer to one of their FAQ questions), Futurama won't be returning to Fox next season.

[Reply #20 on:]

Ratings are irrelevant.  The show is canceled, and it ain't coming back, at least on F*X. 

[Reply #21 on:]

 

Originally posted by newhook_1:
jeezsus "Angels in The Infield Beat it" what the hell is wrong with the average american viewer

they didn't know it was on. Fox aired a promo, what twice? I never saw it. If not for Peel and related websites i wouldn't have known it was on either.

[Reply #22 on:]

It may sound naive and misguided (as a fan) but Futurama's low ratings are ENTIRELY Foxs fualt it has NOTHING to do with the show itself! Cartoon Network have proved this, they've taken the same product and look what they've turned it into! And they're only re-runs! Imagine how well Futurama would have done if it had started on CN! Just wait and see how well the finle' does on CN.
And look how well Futurama does over here in the UK on Sky One, sure they don't treat it like royalty, but they don't neglect it either, and it's one of thier top shows! Sky probably aren't allowed to promote Futurama too much anyway, since it's all part of Fox. You can imagine every time the show starts doing well on Sky and they start to push it, Fox give them a ring and just say "no, we can't have that. Remember this is Futurama, we don't like it OK"
Incase more proof were needed look at the HUGE success of the DVD's.
The point is that whenever Futurama appears without Fox it does well, Fox are the only people stupid enough to make it fail! I mean you'd have to be pretty good at being incompetent to make a show like Futurama go down the drain, but they managed it! Next you'll hear the've managed to ruin The Simpsons!...Oh Wait.

[Reply #23 on:]

Uhh...the DVDs are on Fox. Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, but that's still Fox.

Futurama does fine - great almost - as long as it's not associated with Fox Television.

[Reply #24 on:]

 

Originally posted by SQFreak:
 That was a The OC rerun though. That was the premier re-aired two days after the real premier.

Oh, whoops. I haven't been keeping up with the broadcast schedules.

[Reply #25 on:]

 

Originally posted by SQFreak:
Uhh...the DVDs are on Fox. Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, but that's still Fox.

Yeah OK I knew that, but the Home Entertainment division is seperate. I have nothing against them, they make great DVDs and put alot of effort into their releases. I meant Fox as in Fox TV.
So to clarify. Futurama does fine as long as Fox TV isn't involved!

[Reply #26 on:]

 

Originally posted by Venus:
 they didn't know it was on. Fox aired a promo, what twice? I never saw it. If not for Peel and related websites i wouldn't have known it was on either.

ah I see when I heard it was cancelled I stopped watching it on fox and begain watching it on global instead so needless to say I haven't watched fox in months.

[Reply #27 on:]

 

Originally posted by M Jackson:
 Next you'll hear the've managed to ruin The Simpsons!...Oh Wait.

I think The Simpsons is past its prime too, but to be fair its still as popular(and profitable) as ever.  Plus, they don't have anything to do with the quality of the show given that they have next to no say in the actual production of it.  The producers wont let them near the studio with a 20 foot clown pole.  Writer Tim Long even joked (actually, I'm not sure it was entirely a joke) that they've hired a security guard to keep Fox execs out of Gracie Films.