Thursday TV ratings: Legacies up, Ghosts down [Oct. 21, 2021]

Thursdays are a difficult night when it comes to the live TV ratings. Most shows saw downward ticks in both the demo and audience numbers this week.

It shouldn’t be surprising to hear that Thursday Night Football pulled in the best results of the night. Its 2.1 demo rating was way above anything else on TV. However, it’s worth nothing that its 8.15 million viewers was only about 2 million larger than CBS’s Young Sheldon.

Only two shows saw upward ticks in the metrics. Station 19 was up 7% in the demo (to match for highest demo of the night in scripted shows) and up 4% in the audience. Legacies was up 66% in the demo and up 5% in the total audience.

I don’t think we’d be worrying about either of these two shows, anyway. The upward ticks on an otherwise bad night are good.

The Blacklist premieres mixed, Coroner Season 3 finale down in the live TV ratings

The Coroner Season 3 finale seeing downward ticks in both the demo and audience is disappointing. However, the show was still ahead of Legacies in the total audience. CBC has already renewed the series in Canada, and we’re sure to see The CW acquire that fourth season.

The Blacklist kicked off its new season. It’s moved from Fridays to Thursdays, which will have a part in the 19% dip in the audience compared to the Season 8 premiere. On top of that, the show has lost its lead female and its creator. I don’t think there’s going to be a 10th season anyway, and that’s not because of the live TV ratings. It just seems to be wrapping up—and I do believe it’s time.

As mentioned, Young Sheldon had a good audience at 6.11 million. That was 6% down, though. The demo was 7% down. There’s nothing to worry about as the show has already been renewed. These numbers are important for the rest of the night on CBS.

All other shows on the network dipped. United States of Al dropped the most in the demo with a 20% dip. Ghosts wasn’t far behind with an 18% dip in the demo. I’m not sure we should be too concerned yet. The audiences are still among the best of the timeslots. Ghosts has just received a full-season order, so I get a sense it’s going to get a second season, too. And I don’t think we’ll say goodbye to United States of Al just yet.

The comedy to be concerned about is B Positive. It was down 13% in the demo and 5% in the audience, and it pulled in the lowest audience out of the comedies. Bull is also a show we’re keeping a close eye on as it continues to dip.

We don’t have to worry about Law & Order: SVU, but Law & Order: Organized Crime is on our radar. The show was down 9% in both metrics, but it was the best demo of the timeslot and only just behind SVU. The audience was second in the timeslot, but I think NBC will keep it on the air.

ABC is the last of the networks to look at. Grey’s Anatomy is a series we’re keeping an eye on but not because of the metrics. It’s all about whether Ellen Pompeo is going to leave.

Big Sky is the one to watch out for with the metrics. The show was down 11% in the demo and 3% in the audience. I get a feeling this series isn’t getting a third season. The timeslot isn’t a good one, though. Maybe ABC will give it a bit of a pass.

Check out the live TV ratings for Thursday, Oct. 21 to see how your favorite shows fared.

Which shows are you most concerned about? What do you take from the TV ratings? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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