“Grey’s Anatomy” already isn’t the same without Patrick Dempsey — at least, not in the ratings.
The Shonda Rhimes medical drama dipped a bit on Thursday, down seven percent from last week’s shocker. That said, the two-hour special episode still pulled a very strong 2.6 rating in the key demographic, and it was just two-tenths of a ratings point down from last week’s big numbers (a 2.8 and 9.4 million total viewers).
So, don’t weep too hard for ABC — it still edged out CBS in the primetime demo.
Beyond that rivalry, Telemundo actually finished third on Thursday among adults 18-49, topping both NBC and Fox.
ABC was first in ratings with a 2.0 rating/7 share in the advertiser-coveted demographic and second in total viewers with an average of 7 million, according to preliminary numbers. The first half-hour of “Grey’s” at 8 p.m. averaged a 2.6/10 and 8.9 million viewers. The second 30-minutes earned a 2.4/8 and 8.4 million viewers. At 9, the show was back up to a 2.6 with an 8 share, and had 8.6 million viewers. The final 30-minutes of “Grey’s” got a 2.7/8 and 8.8 million viewers. “American Crime” at 10 posted a 1.1/3 and 4.1 million viewers. The concluding half-hour had a 0.9/3 and 3.5 million viewers.
CBS was second in ratings with a 1.9/6 and first in viewers with 8.8 million. “The Big Bang Theory” at 8 slipped to a 3.2/12 and 13.4 million viewers. “The Odd Couple” at 8:30 got a 2.0/7 and 9.3 million viewers. At 9, the “Mom” season finale had a 2.0/7 and 8.8 million viewers. Following a rerun, “Elementary” at 10 started with a 1.3/4 and 7.2 million viewers. It concluded at 10:30 with a 1.1/4 and 6.6 million viewers.
Telemundo was third in ratings with a 1.0/3, but fifth in viewers with 2.6 million.
NBC and Univision tied for fourth in ratings, both with a 0.9/3. NBC was third in total viewers with 4.9 million; Univision was sixth with 2.4 million.
For NBC, following a repeat, “The Blacklist” at 9 fell 20 percent to a 1.2/4 — tying a series low — and 6.4 million viewers. The final 30-minutes of the James Spader drama received the exact same numbers, just 100,000 fewer total viewers. “Dateline NBC” started at 10 to a 0.9/3 and 5 million viewers. The next time around, the second half-hour of the show kept the same rating/share, but added 100,000 viewers.
Fox was sixth in ratings with a 0.8/3, but fourth in viewers with 3.5 million. “Bones” at 8 opened to a 0.9/3 and 4 million viewers. The show maintained the demo number, but tacked on 300,000 viewers at 8:30. At 9, the season finale of “Backstrom” put up a 0.7/2 and 2.9 million viewers. The second half-hour at 9:30 had a 0.7/2 and 2.7 million viewers.
The CW was seventh in ratings with a 0.4/1 and in viewers with 1 million. At 8, “The Vampire Diaries” got a 0.6/2 and 1.3 million viewers. At 8:30, it got a 0.5/2 and 1.2 million viewers. “Reign” at 9 received a 0.4/1 and 877,000 viewers. The second 30-minutes dropped to a 0.3/1 and 831,000 viewers.