That was fast.
While the disappointing premiere numbers for “American Idol” made it seem inevitable that the show would find itself in a heated ratings battle with timeslot competitors like “Modern Family” and “The Big Bang Theory,” few figured it would come so quickly into the winter season.
Though subject to slight change in the finals, as of right now, CBS can claim its comedy “The Big Bang Theory” outdelivered “American Idol” in head-to-head competition. From 8-8:30PM, the 100th episode of what is now the most-watched sitcom on television delivered a 5.2 adults 18-49 rating, besting the 5.1 for “Idol.”
“Idol” technically won the timeslot–its hourly average rating of a 5.6 defeated the 4.4 for the combination of “Big Bang” and “Rob”–but the head-to-head loss at 8PM still makes for compelling television industry drama.
As of right now, this marks the first time a regular scripted series has ever defeated “Idol” in the demo. And even if the final numbers adjust “Idol”‘s 8PM mark to a higher number than that of “Big Bang,” the battle was still dangerously close.
Though “Idol” historically delivers its worst numbers of the night in the 8-8:30PM half-hour, based on the evidence from the Wednesday and Thursday numbers, it appears to be more vulnerable to scripted competition than it ever has been. “Big Bang” undoubtedly took something out of “Idol”‘s first half-hour last night, and on Wednesday, “Modern Family” drove the usually-hot 9-9:30PM half-hour to a lackluster number.
On the viewership front, “Idol”‘s 16.2 million slightly topped “Bang”‘s 15.7 million. But that figure–or even the 17.7 million average for the entire hour–is a very disappointing mark for the second part of an “Idol” season premiere.
