NBC’s “The Event” was nothing short of a flop in its return to television Monday, sinking below its already-disappointing numbers from the fall.
The three-month hiatus was not kind to the show, which tried to welcome new viewers by adhering to more focused, action-heavy storytelling in its two-hour return. Up against re-runs on CBS and a weaker lineup on ABC (“The Event” ran against “Dancing with the Stars” this fall), the episode averaged a mere 1.4 adults 18-49 rating with 5.23 million viewers.
Only slightly stronger than “The Cape” in the 9PM hour, “The Event” was effectively useless in boosting viewership for 10PM drama “Harry’s Law.” As a result, the well-liked NBC legal series failed to significantly reap the benefit of going against repeats on CBS and ABC–it garnered 9.40 million viewers with a 1.8 rating, a rating generally in-line with its performance against originals from one or both of the networks.