Second outing on Bravo takes a steep tumble
By Abigail Azote Apr 5, 2006
Reality ripoffs, even spoofs, of successful primetime shows can themselves be quite successful. Just look at MTV’s “Laguna Beach,” which saw its ratings surge this season just as Fox’s “The O.C.” was waning.
But not always, as the new Bravo reality series “The Real Housewives of Orange County” is proving. Just why some copycat shows work while others falter is not exactly clear, but this one clearly is not.
“Real Housewives” is a less-than-subtle ripoff of the ABC hit “Desperate Housewives,” following the lives of five women, four of whom live in the exclusive enclave of Coto de Caza, a gated community set in affluent Orange County. The women work and play in a land of Botox, Hummers, multi-million dollar homes, and all around conspicuous, if not excessive consumption, all great fodder for some seriously fun drama.
Yet despite what looked liked a can't-fail formula and tremendous buzz in the days before its premiere, “Real Housewives” appears to be sinking fast.
Last week the show averaged 307,000 total viewers, down 29 percent from the 430,000 who tuned in to its premiere the week before. Its two-week average is 26 percent below Bravo’s first quarter primetime average in total viewers.
Further, the show was down 25 percent among viewers 18-49s and 25-54s in its second week. In two outings, it has lost 15 percent of lead-in “Blow Out’s” audience.
Of course one sagging week does not a flop make. “Real Housewives” can still rebound, and after tonight's episode Bravo will have a far better sense of its prospects.
Certainly, critics thought the series would pull viewers right off. The Los Angeles Times called it sad but highly watchable, and Andrew Wallenstein of the Hollywood Reporter told NPR, “There’s something about watching real people drowning in their own riches that makes for irresistible television.”
Indeed. The cast of characters is pretty engaging. Jeana is a former Playboy centerfold turned successful realtor. She is married to former Major Leaguer Matt Keough, who she says picked her from among his other girlfriends because, she says, “I had the right build for their genetics.”
Kimberly is a stay-at-home mom who divides her time between her family, drinks with the girls and pilates. She openly accepts her role as a trophy wife, saying how her husband got her breast implants as a present.
Vicki runs a lucrative insurance brokerage, and in the first two episodes she is seen cutting loose with her daughter in Mexico while tightening the noose around her slacker son's neck.
Lauri works for Vicki, something she has to do after a bad divorce. Now living in a small townhouse with her kids in a less expensive part of town, she pines for the house and life she once had behind the gates of Coto.
Jo, the youngest and only non-wife of the bunch, is engaged to Slade, who is happy having her as a kept woman if she plays the role of the perfect fiancé. That means staying at home and taking care of his kids.
Meanwhile, in other cable ratings for the week ended April 2:
Top five networks in primetime (18-49s): USA, TBS, TNT, FX, Discovery
Top five networks in primetime (total viewers): USA, TNT, ESPN, Cartoon Network, Lifetime
Top movie (18-49s): USA’s “Happy Gilmore” (Sunday, 6 p.m.) 1.28 million
Top sporting event (total viewers): USA’s WWE Entertainment (Monday, 10 p.m.) 5.47 million
Shows making the top 10 among 18-34s, 18-49s and 25-54s: USA’s WWE Entertainment (Monday, 9 & 10 p.m.); MTV’s “Real World/Road Rules: The Gauntlet II” (Monday, 10 p.m.); Comedy Central’s “South Park” (Wednesday, 10 p.m.); VH1’s “Flavor of Love” (Sunday, 8 p.m.)
Show on the rise: “Mind of Mencia,” Comedy Central, Wednesday 10:30 p.m. The returning series is showing some growth in its second season, with two episodes in. Last week, “Mencia” averaged 1.46 million viewers 18-49, up 2 percent from the week before.
Show on the decline: “8th and Ocean,” MTV, Tuesday 10:30 p.m. The show about models trying to make it in Miami’s hot fashion scene is still hot but cooling a tad. “Ocean” drew 1.15 million viewers 18-34 last week, down 3 percent from the previous week. The show was down 3 percent among 18-49s as well.
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS Ranked on Household Rating Week Ending April 2
Rank
Primetime
Total Day
Net
(000)
Net
(000)
1
USA
2005
NICK
1810
2
TNT
1600
NAN*
1226
3
NAN
1256
USA
1010
4
ESPN
1240
TNT
983
5
LIF
1229
TOON
929
6
TOON
1210
ADSM*
853
7
TBSC
1197
TBSC
788
8
FOXN
1140
LIF
771
9
SCIF
968
FOXN
669
10
FX
957
ESPN
626
11
SPK
935
MTV
594
12
FAM
915
FAM
549
13
MTV
866
HALL
542
14
DISC
842
DISC
520
15
HIST
838
HIST
503
16
CMDY
803
FX
500
17
HALL
798
HGTV
496
18
HGTV
778
SPK
486
19
TVLD
762
TVLD
481
20
AEN
711
FOOD
476
21
AMC
704
CMDY
469
22
CORT
660
AEN
465
23
VH1
649
SCIF
438
24
TLC
621
AMC
434
25
CNN
603
CORT
401
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day. Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE PROGRAMS Ranked on Households Week Ending April 2
Rank
Program
Net
(000)
1
WWE Entertainment
USA
4004
2
Kid's Choice 2006
NICK
3860
3
Spongebob
NICK
3805
4
WWE Entertainment
USA
3756
5
Fairly Odd Parents
NICK
3319
6
Spongebob
NICK
3256
7
Spongebob
NICK
3077
8
Spongebob
NICK
2985
9
Fairly Odd Parents
NICK
2969
10
Spongebob
NICK
2967
11
Spongebob
NICK
2823
12
Fairly Odd Parents
NICK
2801
13
Drake & Josh
NICK
2797
14
Drake & Josh
NICK
2710
15
RW/RR The Gauntlet ll
MTV
2687
16
Spongebob
NICK
2660
17
Drake & Josh
NICK
2649
18
Law & Order
TNT
2646
19
Jimmy Neutron
NICK
2628
20
RW/RR Gauntlet ll Reunion
MTV
2574
21
Fairly Odd Parents
NICK
2543
22
Flavor of Love
VH1
2537
23
Ned Declassified
NICK
2529
24
Spongebob
NICK
2494
25
Spongebob
NICK
2472
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS Adults 18-34 Week Ending April 2
Rank
PRIME TIME
TOTAL DAY
Net
(000)
Net
(000)
1
USA
566
ADSM*
379
2
MTV
513
NAN*
356
3
TBSC
467
NICK
322
4
CMDY
394
USA
319
5
FX
348
MTV
302
6
TNT
330
TBSC
288
7
VH1
322
TNT
244
8
SPK
298
ESPN
212
9
NAN
256
CMDY
209
10
FAM
251
FX
194
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day. Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS Adults 18-34 Week Ending April 2
Rank
PROGRAM
NET
(000)
1
RW/RR The Gauntlet ll
MTV
2145
2
RW/RR Gauntlet ll Reunion
MTV
2016
3
WWE Entertainment
USA
1576
4
South Park
CMDY
1562
5
Real World XVII
MTV
1483
6
Flavor of Love
VH1
1464
7
WWE Entertainment
USA
1384
8
8th & Ocean
MTV
1150
9
Nick Cannons Wild & Out
MTV
942
10
Mind of Mencia
CMDY
941
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS Adults 18-49 Week Ending April 2
Rank
PRIME TIME
TOTAL DAY
Net
(000)
Net
(000)
1
USA
1204
USA
619
2
TBSC
967
NAN*
615
3
TNT
858
TNT
579
4
FX
706
TBSC
561
5
DISC
673
NICK
534
6
SPK
659
ADSM*
487
7
LIF
638
LIF
433
8
CMDY
629
ESPN
381
9
SCIF
624
MTV
377
10
MTV
622
DISC
374
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day. Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS Adults 18-49 Week Ending April 2
Rank
PROGRAM
NET
(000)
1
WWE Entertainment
USA
2829
2
WWE Entertainment
USA
2567
3
RW/RR The Gauntlet ll
MTV
2523
4
RW/RR Gauntlet ll Reunion
MTV
2380
5
South Park
CMDY
2242
6
Flavor of Love
VH1
2076
7
Real World XVII
MTV
1717
8
Law & Order: SVU
USA
1492
9
Mind of Mencia
CMDY
1460
10
Law & Order: SVU
USA
1402
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS Adults 25-54 Week Ending April 2
PRIME TIME
TOTAL DAY
Rank
Net
(000)
Net
(000)
1
USA
1138
TNT
596
2
TNT
923
USA
581
3
TBSC
921
NAN*
516
4
DISC
703
TBSC
509
5
LIF
702
LIF
446
6
SCIF
692
NICK
427
7
FX
669
DISC
374
8
SPK
655
FX
338
9
ESPN
616
ESPN
337
10
CMDY
533
SPK
335
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day. Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS Adults 25-54 Week Ending April 2
Rank
PROGRAM
NET
(000)
1
WWE Entertainment
USA
2475
2
WWE Entertainment
USA
2291
3
South Park
CMDY
1743
4
Flavor of Love
VH1
1565
5
Deadliest Catch
DISC
1490
6
Law & Order: SVU
USA
1489
7
Thief
FX
1464
8
Law & Order: SVU
USA
1437
9
RW/RR The Gauntlet ll
MTV
1435
10
House
USA
1424
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
