One hefty final
season debut for 'Monk'
Series averages 5.14 million viewers, off 8 percent
By Tom Conroy
Aug 12, 2009
For a cable series that's seven years old, even a celebrated one like USA's "Monk," one would expect its eighth and final season debut to be down, and it was, but not by very much.
The premiere, which aired at 9 p.m. Friday, drew 5.14 million total viewers, making it the top show on cable for that hour and second only to NBC’s “Dateline" on broadcast.
That's just 8 percent fewer viewers than the 5.6 million who tuned in for season seven's premiere and not all that much lower than the 5.77 million total viewers the detective series averaged at its peak in season six.
In 18-to-49 viewers, “Monk” averaged 1.47 million viewers.
“Monk” helped USA handily win the week in basic-cable primetime, with an average of 4.12 million viewers, well ahead of No. 2 TNT with 2.73 million.
In fact, this was the channel’s highest-rated week ever. USA had five other shows in the week’s top 10 for total basic-cable viewers: the season finale of “Burn Notice” (No. 2), “Royal Pains” (4), two episodes of “WWE Entertainment” (5 and 7) and “NCIS” (10).
USA’s “Psych,” which had its fourth-season premiere in the hour after “Monk,” came in at No. 26 for the week, with 3.98 million viewers.
“Monk's" final premiere becomes all the more impressive when compared to the final season premiere of “The Shield,” the FX series that along with “Monk” is often credited with driving the transformation of basic cable from an alternative to broadcast to a destination.
That show drew only 1.9 million viewers in its seventh-season premiere last November, down from a high of 4.8 million for its first season premiere.
“Monk” was perhaps the first series to prove that basic cable could beat the broadcast networks at what used to be their own game.
As the broadcasters were stumbling over each other in their race to find the next big reality hit—or failing that an envelope-pushing drama that could rival “The Sopranos”—USA scored by airing a scripted series that was really no edgier than the character-driven detective shows of ’70s network TV
Critics have noted the resemblance of Detective Monk (Tony Shalhoub), who suffers from severe obsessive-compulsive disorder, to the outwardly incompetent Lieutenant Columbo, as well as to the numerous TV crime fighters of that era who overcame their ostensible handicaps every week (Ironside, Longstreet, Cannon, Barnaby Jones).
The impeccable acting of Tony Shalhoub has helped “Monk” earn critical acclaim along with its audience loyalty.
His 2003 Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series was the first in that category given to the star of a basic-cable series. It followed by one year the Lead Actor in a Drama win by Michael Chiklis of “The Shield.” Shalhoub has been nominated in his category every year since, winning again in 2005 and 2006.
The success of “Monk” would help USA establish itself as the home of character-based comedy-dramas (or drama-comedies) such as “Burn Notice,” “Psych” and “Royal Pains.” Meanwhile, TNT would follow USA’s lead and score with defective-detective series like “The Closer” and “Saving Grace.”
Unlike many departing series on both broadcast and cable, “Monk” won’t leave its loyal viewers hanging. An episode later in the season will feature the return of Monk’s first assistant, Sharona (Bitty Schram), and the final episodes will revolve around the long-unsolved murder of Monk’s wife, the trauma that drove his mental illness into its acute phase.
***
In cable ratings for the week ended Aug. 9:
Top five networks in primetime (18-49s): USA, TNT, TBS, Discovery Channel, FX.
Top five networks in primetime (total viewers): USA, TNT, Fox News Channel, Nick at Nite, TBS.
Top movie (18-49s): Nickelodeon’s “iCarly Movie: iFight Shelby Marx” (Saturday, 8 p.m.) 1.63 million.
Top sporting event (total viewers): ESPN’s “Major League Baseball: Red Sox/Yankees” (Sunday, 8 p.m.) 4.70 million.
Shows making the top 10 among 18-34s, 18-49s and 25-54s: USA’s “Royal Pains” (Thursday, 10 p.m.); USA’s “Burn Notice” (Thursday, 9 p.m.); TLC’s “Jon & Kate Plus 8” (Monday, 9 and 9:30 p.m.).
Show on the rise: Nickelodeon’s “iFight Shelby Marx,” Saturday 8 p.m. The movie was No. 1 for the week among total viewers, averaging 7.9 million, as well as 4.3 million kids 2-11 and 3.5 million kids 6-11.
Show on the decline: VH1’s “Megan Wants a Millionaire,” Sunday 9 p.m. The reality series slipped nearly 20 percent week-to-week among 18-34s, from 817,000 viewers to 657,000.
|
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Ranked on Household Rating
Week Ending August 9 |
|
Rank |
Primetime |
Total Day |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
3083
|
NICK
|
1843
|
|
2
|
TNT
|
2059
|
NAN
*
|
1380
|
|
3
|
FOXN
|
1783
|
USA
|
1307
|
|
4
|
NAN
|
1511
|
TNT
|
1110
|
|
5
|
TBSC
|
1206
|
FOXN
|
980
|
|
6
|
ESPN
|
1079
|
ADSM*
|
979
|
|
7
|
HGTV
|
1076
|
TOON
|
916
|
|
8
|
HIST
|
1003
|
TBSC
|
742
|
|
9
|
DISC
|
1000
|
ESPN
|
667
|
|
10
|
TLC
|
966
|
DISC
|
630
|
|
11
|
AEN
|
930
|
HIST
|
625
|
|
12
|
FX
|
928
|
TRU
|
602
|
|
13
|
TOON
|
890
|
AEN
|
582
|
|
14
|
LIF
|
885
|
FOOD
|
576
|
|
15
|
FAM
|
879
|
LIF
|
563
|
|
16
|
FOOD
|
842
|
HGTV
|
562
|
|
17
|
SYFY
|
829
|
FX
|
538
|
|
18
|
HALL
|
802
|
FAM
|
523
|
|
19
|
TRU
|
801
|
SPK
|
513
|
|
20
|
CMDY
|
773
|
HALL
|
471
|
|
21
|
CNN
|
673
|
CNN
|
468
|
|
22
|
AMC
|
668
|
CMDY
|
466
|
|
23
|
MSNB
|
641
|
TLC
|
457
|
|
24
|
SPK
|
604
|
TVLD
|
444
|
|
25
|
VH1
|
576
|
AMC
|
423
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research data
|
|
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE PROGRAMS
Ranked on Households
Week Ending August 9 |
|
Rank
|
Program |
Net
|
(000) |
|
1
|
Burn Notice
|
USA
|
5355
|
|
2
|
The Closer
|
TNT
|
5153
|
|
3
|
iCarly Movie: Shelby Marx
|
NICK
|
4974
|
|
4
|
Royal Pains
|
USA
|
4816
|
|
5
|
Law & Order: CI (Orig)
|
USA
|
3823
|
|
6
|
Monk
|
USA
|
3566
|
|
7
|
NCIS
|
USA
|
3552
|
|
7
|
WWE Raw
|
USA
|
3552
|
|
9
|
WWE Raw
|
USA
|
3467
|
|
10
|
Red Sox/Yankees
|
ESPN
|
3427
|
|
11
|
iCarly Movie: Shelby Marx
|
NICK
|
3342
|
|
12
|
In Plain Sight
|
USA
|
3308
|
|
13
|
iCarly
|
NICK
|
3231
|
|
14
|
NCIS
|
USA
|
3226
|
|
15
|
NCIS
|
USA
|
3172
|
|
16
|
Jon & Kate Plus 8
|
TLC
|
3144
|
|
17
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
3036
|
|
18
|
iCarly Movie: Shelby Marx
|
NICK
|
3008
|
|
18
|
Jon & Kate Plus 8
|
TLC
|
3008
|
|
20
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2974
|
|
21
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2947
|
|
22
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2942
|
|
23
|
NCIS
|
USA
|
2912
|
|
24
|
NCIS
|
USA
|
2908
|
|
25
|
NCIS
|
USA
|
2831
|
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research data
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending August 9 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
578
|
ADSM*
|
449
|
|
2
|
TBSC
|
471
|
NICK
|
347
|
|
3
|
TNT
|
384
|
NAN
*
|
332
|
|
4
|
DISC
|
364
|
TBSC
|
283
|
|
5
|
CMDY
|
361
|
TNT
|
251
|
|
6
|
TLC
|
357
|
USA
|
234
|
|
7
|
VH1
|
338
|
CMDY
|
221
|
|
8
|
NAN
|
336
|
DISC
|
219
|
|
9
|
FX
|
331
|
ESPN
|
210
|
|
10
|
MTV
|
323
|
MTV
|
208
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research data
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending August 9 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Jon & Kate Plus 8
|
TLC
|
1477
|
|
2
|
Jon & Kate Plus 8
|
TLC
|
1417
|
|
3
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1346
|
|
4
|
Burn Notice
|
USA
|
1180
|
|
5
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1166
|
|
6
|
The Secret Life of the American Teenager
|
FAM
|
1145
|
|
7
|
Real Chance Of Love 2
|
VH1
|
1120
|
|
8
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1118
|
|
9
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1098
|
|
10
|
Royal Pains
|
USA
|
1076
|
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research data
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending August 9 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
1429
|
ADSM*
|
637
|
|
2
|
TNT
|
1049
|
NAN
*
|
622
|
|
3
|
TBSC
|
881
|
TNT
|
612
|
|
4
|
DISC
|
766
|
USA
|
596
|
|
5
|
FX
|
701
|
NICK
|
577
|
|
6
|
TLC
|
656
|
TBSC
|
521
|
|
7
|
NAN
|
637
|
DISC
|
437
|
|
8
|
ESPN
|
616
|
ESPN
|
422
|
|
9
|
CMDY
|
596
|
FX
|
389
|
|
10
|
HIST
|
585
|
TRU
|
373
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research data
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending August 9 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Burn Notice
|
USA
|
2826
|
|
2
|
Jon & Kate Plus 8
|
TLC
|
2538
|
|
3
|
Royal Pains
|
USA
|
2473
|
|
4
|
Jon & Kate Plus 8
|
TLC
|
2425
|
|
5
|
WWE Raw
|
USA
|
2411
|
|
6
|
WWE Raw
|
USA
|
2302
|
|
7
|
Red Sox/Yankees
|
ESPN
|
2026
|
|
8
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1971
|
|
9
|
The Closer
|
TNT
|
1956
|
|
10
|
The Real Housewives Of
Atlanta
|
BRAV
|
1854
|
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research data
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending August 9 |
|
|
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Rank
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
1739
|
USA
|
702
|
|
2
|
TNT
|
1257
|
TNT
|
677
|
|
3
|
TBSC
|
800
|
NAN
*
|
539
|
|
4
|
DISC
|
726
|
TBSC
|
458
|
|
5
|
FX
|
671
|
ADSM*
|
453
|
|
6
|
ESPN
|
663
|
NICK
|
453
|
|
7
|
HIST
|
651
|
DISC
|
403
|
|
8
|
TLC
|
616
|
ESPN
|
395
|
|
9
|
FOOD
|
602
|
TRU
|
379
|
|
10
|
AEN
|
599
|
HIST
|
369
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research data
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending August 9 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Burn Notice
|
USA
|
3450
|
|
2
|
Royal Pains
|
USA
|
3053
|
|
3
|
The Closer
|
TNT
|
2692
|
|
4
|
WWE Raw
|
USA
|
2455
|
|
5
|
WWE Raw
|
USA
|
2434
|
|
6
|
Jon & Kate Plus 8
|
TLC
|
2394
|
|
7
|
Jon & Kate Plus 8
|
TLC
|
2276
|
|
8
|
Red Sox/Yankees
|
ESPN
|
2207
|
|
9
|
Law & Order: CI (Orig)
|
USA
|
2021
|
|
10
|
Monk
|
USA
|
1953
|
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research data
|
|
|
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