“Persons Unknown,” “The Good Guys” Slip in Ratings

Despite steady lead-in support from “Last Comic Standing” and “Lie to Me,” respectively, “Persons Unknown” and “The Good Guys” declined in their second weeks of regular broadcast.

NBC’s “Persons,” which debuted with a pilot considered solid from a self-contained standpoint but not entirely effective in hooking viewers, saw a tumble for week two. With an essentially identical lead-in out of “Last Comic Standing,” this week’s “Unknown” dropped to a 1.2 adults 18-49 rating with just 3.45 million viewers; worse, the show’s rating dropped from a 1.3 at 10PM to a 1.1 at 10:30PM. At just an hour in length this week, “Comic” was up slightly with a 2.1 adults rating, although its viewership dipped to 4.78 million.

FOX’s “The Good Guys,” meanwhile, looks effectively dead. Showing no potential to make any sort of mark, the series was down to a 1.3 rating with 4.36 million viewers. As evidenced by giving the series an early slot on the fall lineup, FOX clearly wants the quirky series to work, but the numbers are simply showing no life. “Lie to Me” was the lead-in with 6.48 million viewers and a 2.0.

With CBS (and The CW) in repeats, ABC claimed the night’s demographic victory. “The Bachelorette” opened the night with a 2.6 and 8.34 million viewers, while “True Beauty” scored a 1.9 and 5.45 million viewers, losing almost 10% of its demo and more than 13% of its viewership from half hour one to half hour two.

Ratings Sources: Nielsen, TVBN