The rumors of NBC looking to issue some full season orders this week proved true, as the network officially confirmed that back nine pickups have been granted for “Community,” “Parks and Recreation” and “Mercy.”
The two comedies–freshman “Community” and sophomore “Parks and Recreation”–have struggled to deliver in the ratings; since being paired together in the 8PM timeslot, the two shows are posting 18-49 demo ratings in the ballpark of 2.0 (“Community”‘s to-date average sits at 2.6, but that figure includes some 9:30 airings that were bolstered by “The Office”). Nonetheless, as they have stable audiences and critical backing (“Community” is one of the season’s best reviewed new series, while “Parks” is earning respect from critics who wrote it off last year), NBC was able to justify full season orders.
In addition to showing minor audience growth in recent weeks, “Mercy” also benefited from internal support for its creative direction–Angela Bromstad, NBC’s Entertainment President, cited the creative direction as proof that the show could become a “strong player” for the network.
Fellow new medical series “Trauma” has not yet received a full season order.