The NBC season is still young, and few shows have premiered thus far. However, freshman drama Brilliant Minds continued its run this week, so keep reading for my view on how it held up in its second episode. Plus, my first thoughts of the season on the one show I haven't yet discussed - Chicago PD!
Certain Cancellation:
N/A
Leans Cancellation:
N/A
Leans Renewal:
Brilliant Minds (0.28, 0.27-0.29)
Likely Renewal:
Chicago Fire (0.37, 0.36-0.38)
Chicago Med (0.35, 0.33-0.36)
Certain Renewal:
Chicago PD (0.35, 0.34-0.36)
Saturday Night Live (0.84)
Yet to Premiere:
Found
Grosse Pointe Garden Society
Happy's Place
The Hunting Party
The Irrational
Law & Order
Law & Order: SVU
Lopez vs Lopez
Night Court
St. Denis Medical
Suits: LA
Chicago PD: Last week, I expressed my concern over the premiere ratings of the two other Chicagos, and why I felt both were in at least some bit of danger this season. However, I did mark one Chicago as a lock to return - Chicago PD. While it rated below Chicago Fire, its 0.34 is still a solid rating for a 10 PM show, even if it's a pretty poor showing by its own standards. It rose a notch this week, to a 0.36. That was enough to tie both of the other Chicagos, and solidified my view that it's the safest of the trio. Ratings-wise, I do think it's probably the strongest, as 10 PM is a worse time slot and it rates almost as well as Chicago Fire. It also seems to do the best on Peacock, consistently topping the other two Chicagos in the Peacock TV trending list. This is consistent with its strong streaming performance from back in the Hulu days. It's also heavily syndicated, airing on USA, MyNetworkTV, Ion, Oxygen and broadcast syndication. This is a far more extensive syndication package than Chicago Fire, while Chicago Med still doesn't have one at all. PD's glory days are far behind it, but it does still rate well - especially for a 10 PM show - and these syndication deals are a huge point in its favor financially. It is a relatively expensive procedural to produce, but there are far more factors weighing in its favor than weighing against it. The ongoing ratings decline of the Chicagos will not lead to PD's downfall this season, or anytime in the near future. It's a CERTAIN RENEWAL.
Brilliant Minds: The other 10 PM drama that's premiered thus far on NBC, Brilliant Minds is in far worse shape than Chicago PD. The freshman drama is fighting for space on a packed NBC, and its ratings so far have been very uninspiring. It held up pretty well this week, with a 0.27 in the demo, but its retention from The Voice is already looking a bit worrisome, as that show rose a notch this week. However, it's still holding The Voice better than The Irrational did at this point last season, and NBC did put out a glowing press release about the show drawing over 9 million viewers for its pilot, though they didn't mention its demo rating in that press release. I'm still not confident about the show's long-term future, but this isn't any weaker thus far than several shows that NBC renewed in recent seasons. It could really go either way at this point, but its second week hold was enough for me to keep it as a renewal prediction for now, so it still LEANS RENEWAL.
What do you think of my predictions? What are your predictions? Let me know in the comments and vote in the poll of the week!
