Some recent ratings highlights:
• With I'm a Celebrity waning, The Bachelorette surged 13 percent week-to-week on Monday night to average 7.2 million total viewers over its two-hour run. Here Come the Newlyweds (4.77 mil), however, dipped 5 percent.
• The Closer returned to an audience of 7.14 million, slipping just 8 percent from its Season 4 opener. Raising the Bar in turn kicked off its sophomore run with an audience nearly double (3.6 mil) its Season 1 finale.
• I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here! delivered 5.19 mil, which was on par with its most recent outing but down ...
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Now playing in this week's Mitovich Mega Minute vodcast:
• Lost's Jorge Garcia previews the (very complicated) "return" of the Oceanic 6.
• Without a Trace focuses an episode on someone who is not Jack or Sam.
• Which familiar face might appear on both The Closer and its spin-off?
Watch this week's video after the jump!
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The ridiculous (in a good way) ratings for Disney Channel's multiple record-breaking weekend launch of High School Musical 2 was just the most spectacular reminder of what a great TV summer this has been — if you have cable.Not even a big hit like TNT's The Closer can match HSM2's numbers, and some of the best series, like AMC's mesmerizing Mad Men, are only doing so-so. But that's only to be expected given the glut of programming on many nights — including Thursdays, when Mad Men goes head-to-head with USA Network's latest clever breakout caper, Burn Notice. I thought my DVRs would get a break this summer. Didn't happen.Just look at the options we’ve had over the last few nights, including terrific new episodes of Burn Notice and Mad Men on Thursday. I’m really enjoying Burn now that ex-spy Michael Weston is getting closer to the truth about how he was set up to be fired. And what can I say about Mad Men besides the word I used to start my initial review of th...
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Question: I agree 101 percent with your Dispatch that The Closer is fantastic. I would go further and say it is better than many of the top dramas on the regular networks. The writing is super, and the cast is perfect. I cannot imagine how they could have gotten it any better. I really am happy for Kyra Sedgwick. She is a great actress who, in the past, has not received the attention she deserves, because of her famous hubby.
Answer: And now Kevin Bacon is going to direct an episode (officially the second-season "finale," airing in December, outside of the regular season). Sedgwick is my pick to win the Emmy this season, though I'll be surprised if she actually scores (given the maddening weirdness of the Emmy voters, who I'm expecting will find a way to give one more trophy to Allison Janney). You're right about the cast. The bench on The Closer is almost embarrassingly full of strong actors, all of whom give Brenda Leigh Johnson terrific support each week ...
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Question: I think it's really interesting how Psych became such a hit on USA. The same with Saved's success on TNT (although I find the show a dull Rescue Me knockoff). Some channels (both cable and network) have found certain formulas that really work, and then stick with that brand. Psych, for instance, fits seamlessly into the USA brand by being a cross between The Dead Zone and Monk. In fact, I want to further compliment USA on the best ad campaign I have seen in years. I actually stop fast-forwarding on my DVR to watch those hilarious USA ads featuring their wonderful array of characters. My wife and I love them! But my question goes back to the failure earlier this year of Love Monkey (also a wonderful show) on the stodgy, serious CBS network. CBS puts on this wonderful, sweet and quirky show and it fails; so they go back to their dull formula with the ridiculous The Unit, and it's a ratings smash. Do you feel that networks and cable channels (after a scenario like this for CBS) ...
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