| medialifemagazine.com Younger viewers
Instead, it’s a couple of green monsters. In a year when seven Christmas specials on the broadcast networks already have drawn huge ratings, with more to come, Shrek and the Grinch tower above them all. Last week’s all-new special “Shrek the Halls” and the classic “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” tied for the best ratings among kids 2-11 on any broadcast network in more than seven years, excluding Super Bowls. The specials averaged an 11.6 rating and incredible 33 share apiece on ABC on Wednesday, Nov. 28, at 8 p.m. The other holiday specials, featuring more traditional, less-grumpy heroes, all did well in that demographic but weren’t nearly as dominant. CBS’s Tuesday showing of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” was the year’s third-highest-rated holiday special with kids, averaging a 7.8 at 8 p.m. ABC’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas” averaged a 6.6 the day before “Shrek,” also airing at 8 p.m. And last Friday night, ABC’s annual reairing of the theatrical movie “The Polar Express” at 8 p.m. drew a 6.0, making it the season’s No. 6-ranked special. “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town,” which aired Wednesday at 8 p.m. on ABC, has been the lowest-rated special with a still-substantial 4.6. “Shrek” and “Grinch” towered over the competition for several reasons, the first being that “Shrek” is the only original Christmas special that has aired this season. The rest are repeats, and because these days all the classics are already available on DVD, they may not have been quite as much of a must-see during their broadcast airing. But another reason may be that “Shrek” and “Grinch” are a lot different than the other specials. They focus not on Santa, like “Rudolph” or “Town,” but on ugly, angry monsters who just don’t get the appeal of Christmas. They are arguably the funniest of the specials and definitely the most relatable, because everyone has feelings of frustration at Christmas, even kids. There are still several more kids’ Christmas specials yet to air on broadcast, including “Frosty the Snowman” and “Frosty Returns” tonight on CBS, “Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too” next week on ABC, and a “Sesame Street” special Dec. 23 on ABC. Meanwhile, in other younger viewer ratings for the week ending Dec. 2: Among teens 12-17, Fox led with a 2.3 rating and 8 share, followed by ABC at 2.1/7, NBC at 1.4/5, the CW at 1.3/4, CBS at 1.2/4, Univision at 0.9/3, MyNetworkTV and Telemundo at 0.2/1, Telefutura and Ion at 0.1/0, and Azteca at 0.0/0. Among kids 2-11, ABC led with a 2.7/10, followed by Univision at 1.3/5, Fox at 1.1/4, CBS at 0.9/4, NBC at 0.9/3, the CW at 0.8/3, Telemundo at 0.3/1, Telefutura and MyNetworkTV at 0.2/1, Ion at 0.1/0 and Azteca at 0.0/0. The top five shows among kids 2-5: 1. ABC’s “Shrek the Halls” (ABC, Wednesday 8 p.m.); 2. ABC’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (Wednesday 8:30 p.m.); 3. ABC’s “Charlie Brown Christmas” (Tuesday 8 p.m.); 4. Disney’s “Little Einsteins” (Saturday 10 a.m.); 5. ABC’s “Polar Express” (Friday 8 p.m.) The top five shows among kids 6-11: 1. ABC’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (Wednesday 8:30 p.m.); 2. ABC’s “Shrek the Halls” (ABC, Wednesday 8 p.m.); 3. Nickelodeon’s “SpongeBob SquarePants” (Saturday 10 a.m.); 4. Disney’s “Hannah Montana” (Tuesday 5:30 p.m.); 5. Disney’s “The Santa Clause” (Monday 8 p.m.) The top five shows among kids 9-14: 1. ABC’s “Shrek the Halls” (ABC, Wednesday 8 p.m.); 2. ABC’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (Wednesday 8:30 p.m.); 3. Nickelodeon’s “Zoey 101” (Sunday 8 p.m.); 4. Nickelodeon’s “Avatar: Day of Black Sun” (Friday 8 p.m.); 5. Disney’s “Suite Life of Zack and Cody” (Monday 6 p.m.)
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