NBC's Thursday night comedy block received a solid bounce in the ratings on Thursday night, competing against NCAA college basketball coverage and the seemingly unstoppable "American Idol" juggernaut, according to preliminary numbers.
Somewhat dampening the victory: Most of the laughers were just recovering from series or season lows.
"Community" at 8 p.m. drew a 1.8 rating /6 share in the adults 18-49 demo — up 6 percent from its season low last week of 1.7/6 — and 4.5 million total viewers, versus last week's 4.2 million. The upward trend continued with "Perfect Couples" at 8:30, which grabbed a 1.6/5 in the demo, a 33 percent increase from last week's series low of 1.2/4, and attracted 3.4 million total viewers for last night's episode.
At 9, "The Office," which aired a repeat last week, had a 3.4/10 in the demo and 7 million viewers, a significant increase from the prior week's 1.5/5 and 3.7 million viewers. "Parks and Recreation," which experienced a series low the previous Thursday, was up 39 percent among adults 18-49, with a 2.5/7, and 5.2 million total viewers.
"30 Rock," at 10, recovered from last week's series low to score a 2.0/8 in the demo, an 18 percent increase, and nabbing 4.4 million viewers, while "Outsourced" was up 7 percent from last week's series low, pulling a 1.5/4 in the demo and 3.6 million viewers.
CBS' coverage of the NCAA basketball, which aired from 8-11, drew a 2.5/7 among adults 18-49, an encouraging increase over last week's 1.6/5. (The tournament started off at a 17-year high this year, thanks to the combined broadcast over CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV.)
The evening's big winner, once again, was Fox's "American Idol." The 8 p.m. airing beat both the competition and last week's performance, grabbing a 6.2/19 in the demo — a 9 percent bump from last week's 5.7/18, and 20.7 million total viewers vs. last week's 19.7 million. A previously aired episode of "Bones" at 9 drew a 2.5/7 in the demographic and 8.8 million total viewers.
ABC's "Winter Wipeout" at 8 scored a 2.2/7 in the demo, up 5 percent 2.0/7, drawing 7.5 million viewers, while "Grey's Anatomy," the evening's second-highest rated show behind "Idol" at 9, had a 3.6/10 in the demo and 10 million viewers. "Private Practice," rounding out the evening at 10, drew a 2.2/7 among adults 18-49, and 7.9 million viewers.
