TV ratings: The Conners, Devils, black-ish, and more [Oct. 21]

A break down of the live TV ratings for Wednesday, Oct. 21

It’s beginning to feel like fall (TV). ABC debuted new seasons of its comedies, while all networks except FOX had new episodes of current shows. It’s time to break down the live TV ratings for Wednesday, Oct. 21.

First of all, let’s talk FOX. The only reason there wasn’t a new episode was because of Game 2 of the World Series. The Masked Singer and I Can See Your Voice were preempted for the sport, which pulled in similar ratings compared to Game 1. The audience was slightly down, but Game 2 won the night.

ABC’s Wednesday night comedy block

On ABC, it was all about the season debuts of the comedy block. ABC will only have one night of comedies this year, with The Goldbergs, The Conners and black-ish airing on Oct. 21.

The Goldbergs and The Conners debuted down from the previous season by 8%/18% and 17%/29% in the audience/demo respectively. Are these numbers anything to worry about?

Despite the dips, the numbers were good. Outside of the sport, ABC won most of the night. The Goldbergs was only slightly behind CBS’s Big Brother, and The Conners beat or matched it.

What about black-ish? After a weekend premiere, the show returns to its new normal spot of 9:30/8:30c on Wednesdays. It ticked up in the total audience by almost 40%, proving that a one-off premiere possibly wasn’t the greatest idea when it wasn’t promoted all that well.

We’ll be keeping an eye on how the next few episodes perform. Dips from the previous season premiere aren’t unusual, but it all depends on how the shows steady over the coming episodes. For black-ish, it’s how it steadies in its timeslot.

CBS, NBC, and The CW live TV ratings

What about the other networks? CBS didn’t have a great night. While Big Brother did win the timeslot outside of the sport, it was down 10% in the demo and steady in the audience compared to the previous Wednesday episode. We’re coming very close to the end, so it’s surprising the numbers aren’t going up!

The Amazing Race ticked down by almost 10% in the audience and 14% in the demo. It was second in the timeslot, but would have still been disappointing.

NBC had a mixed night, with The Wall up by 18% and 20% in the audience and demo respectively. The series has been renewed for a fourth season, so this is a great sign that NBC did the right thing.

However, American Ninja Warrior was down 19% in the audience and 33% in the demo. It’s down in sixth place out of all seven unscripted shows. Dateline is the only show below it. It is hard to call the decisions the networks will make this year since summer programming has been moved to the fall to deal with the lack of scripted shows right now.

The CW had a good night. While Coroner was down 6% in the total audience, the numbers are still fair for an acquisition. It’s a no-brainer for The CW to acquire the third season, which is currently filming in Canada.

Devils was up almost 40% in the total audience, which is excellent for the third episode. It actually takes the show above the series premiere in the audience, which is a great sign for a renewal.

Take a look at the live TV ratings for Wednesday, Oct. 21.

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