Overnights
Flatliner of a finale for CBS's 'Jericho'
By Toni Fitzgerald
May 10, 2007, 10:42

With last night’s lackluster finale, post-apocalypse drama “Jericho” seems unlikely to return next year on CBS.

The show averaged a 2.1 adults 18-49 rating, according to Nielsen overnights, down slightly from a 2.2 for its penultimate episode last week and tying NBC’s “Thank God You’re Here” for fourth in the 8 p.m. timeslot, just 0.1 ahead of Univision.

That was 38 percent off the 3.4 the show debuted with last fall, even airing opposite “Dancing with the Stars.” Back then, “Jericho” seemed like one of the more promising new programs for CBS.

It attracted a steady audience despite airing opposite ABC’s reality hit before going on a three-month hiatus in November. But when the show returned a few months later, it struggled, likely hobbled by that long break. Airing opposite several expanded editions of Fox monster hit “American Idol” didn’t help, and in recent weeks “Jericho” had been hovering at a 2.4 or below, half a point off its season to date average.

Though CBS tends to skew older, that downward trend in viewership does not bode well for a show on the bubble for renewal. Media people expect that “Jericho,” the network’s first new show to get a full-season order last fall, will be dropped.

Meanwhile, Fox was first for the night among 18-49s with a 6.8 average rating and a 20 share. CBS was second at 3.1/9, ABC third at 3.0/9, NBC fourth at 2.1/6, CW fifth at 1.9/6 and Univision sixth at 1.9/5.
 
At 8 p.m. Fox led with a 3.2 for “Bones,” with CW second with a 2.4 for “America’s Next Top Model.” ABC was third with a 2.3 average for “According to Jim” (2.3) and “Notes from the Underbelly” (2.3), while CBS and NBC tied for fourth at 2.1, CBS for “Jericho” and NBC for “Thank God You’re Here.” Univision took sixth with a 2.0 for “La Fea Mas Bella.”
 
Fox led again at 10 p.m. with a 10.5 for “American Idol,” with CBS second with a 3.5 for “Criminal Minds” and Univision third with a 2.0 for “Destilando Amor.” ABC was fourth with a 1.9 average for repeats of “According to Jim” and “George Lopez,” with NBC and CW tied for fifth at 1.5, NBC for “Crossing Jordan” and CW for “One Tree Hill.”
 
ABC took the lead at 10 p.m. with a 4.9 for “Lost,” followed by CBS with a 3.6 for “CSI: NY.” NBC was third with a 2.6 for “Medium” and Univision fourth with a 1.5 for “Don Francisco Presenta.”
 
Among households, Fox led the night with an 11.5 average rating and a 19 share. CBS was second at 7.3/12, ABC third at 4.7/8, NBC fourth at 4.2/7, CW fifth at 2.7/4 and Univision sixth at 2.3/4.