Supernatural and Smallville Premieres Score Big in Friday Ratings

UPDATED: Supernatural went UP in the final ratings!  It increased to a 1.3 in 18-49 and 2.9 million.    

Oh boy, oh boy, it’s been so long since I’ve gotten to play ratings geek!  As many of you may know, tracking ratings is a fun little hobby of mine.  I finally have something awesome to write about.

Ratings for last night’s Smallville and Supernatural premieres were released they’re awesome.  Smallville got a 1.3 in the 18-49 demo and 2.9 million in total viewers. Supernatural got a 1.2 in the 18-49 demo and 2.8 million in total viewers.  This is the best Friday night The CW has had in eons.    

Both shows in the coveted 18-49 demo finished THIRD in their timeslots.  On Thursdays (or any other night for that matter), that’s a near impossible feat.  The CW finished FIRST in adults 18-34, men 18-34 and men 18-49.  The CW actually has a night where it’s competitive!  

Now, I know there are several of you out there wondering why this is so good, especially since it’s on par with previous years.  Simple. THIS IS FRIDAY NIGHT.  The other networks have all but abandoned this night.  It’s known as a ratings wasteland. These are quite remarkable demo numbers for any night on this network.  To put it in perspective, Gossip Girl, 90210, and Hellcats got a 1.0 in the 18-49 demo, One Tree Hill a .9, Life Unexpected a .7, and Nikita a 1.1.  Fox premiered their show The Good Guys and only got a .9. Smallville came in a tick under Medium (1.4) and Dateline (1.4) which finished first in the timeslot.  

What’s even more exciting is that DVR number boosts seem to be higher for Friday night shows.  Smallville proved that last year, often getting gains near 50 percent. So let’s hope that proves true when they’re released for these premieres in a few weeks. The CW took the gamble that these shows could bring their normal numbers to a bad night and perform.  So far they have.  Smallville did it last year and it looks like the Smallville/Supernatural combo this year is going to be a force to be reckoned with.  At least I hope.  There’s plenty of season left.    

I know that ratings pressure is off for these shows anyway, but its nice to see this combo perform again.  Smallville is in its last season and Supernatural is an established veteran that makes money for its studio, especially with the recent DVD sales not to mention syndication on TNT.  If anything, this bodes well for Supernatural’s chances at season seven, which are very good anyway.  It’s just more validation which is always nice for a fan to see.  

Here’s the press release from The CW (credit to tvbythenumbers.com):

Super Friday night for The CW. Strategy of pairing Smallville/Supernatural again on the night paid off.

The premiere of Smallville’s final season won its time period in adults 18-34 (1.2/5), men 18-34 (1.5/6), men 18-49 (1.4/6).  Smallville beat ABC and FOX in adults 18-49 (1.3/5).

Smallville delivered The CW’s best performance in the Friday 8-9pm time period in 2 years in total viewers (2.9mil) and adults 18-49 (1.3/5).

The debut of Supernatural scored The CW’s best performance in the time period in 2 years in all key categories, including adults 18-34 (1.3/5), adults 18-49 (1.2/4), men 18-34 (1.5/6), men 18-49 (1.3/5) and viewers (2.8mil).

Supernatural won the 9-10pm hour in men 18-34 (1.5/6) and beat ABC and FOX in adults 18-49 (1.2/4), men 18-34 (1.5/6), men 18-49 (1.3/5).

The CW was #1 on Friday night among adults 18-34, men 18-34 and men 18-49 (1.4/5).

This was the CW’s best Friday in total viewers (2.85mil), adults 18-34 (1.3/5), and men 18-34 (1.5/6) in two years (since 9/26/08, the final Smackdown).  It was our best performance in adults 18-49 (1.2/4) and men 18-49 (1.4/5) since the two-hour SMALLVILLE “Absolute Justice” episode in February 2010.

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