So much for last week’s stabilization.
While it appears Halloween had a clear, adverse impact on ratings for broadcast shows, the downward bias targeted some shows more than others. Among the more significant victims was “Two and a Half Men,” which fell sharply to a 4.7 adults 18-49 rating with 13.8 million viewers.
Coming a week after the show seemed to have ended its decline as viewers adjusted to Ashton Kutcher in the lead role, the decline is especially-disappointing.
In terms of audience share, “Men”‘s performance in the young adults demo fell slightly from a 13 to 12. That means that while lower viewership levels for Halloween are definitely worthy of blame, it would be irresponsible to assume that there was not also weaker interest in this week’s telecast.
Interestingly, “Men” was not the most disappointing entry at 9PM. That honor instead belongs to FOX’s “House,” which fell to a very low 2.5 with 6.6 million viewers. The days of calling “House” a hit appear to have long past. Earlier in the night, FOX’s “Terra Nova” only mustered a 2.1 with 6.4 million viewers. At this point, it seems very plausible that “Terra”‘s run will culminate at the end of its first season.