Wednesday TV Ratings 7/7/21: Big Brother Returns Steady with 2020 Premiere, Stanley Cup Rises for Final Game, Card Sharks Ends Higher (UPDATED)

Preliminary Analysis: CBS's 'Big Brother' (1.0) returned onto the scene in remarkable shape, essentially on-par with its August 2020 debut (1.05). At 10, the season premiere of 'Love Island' (0.4) was also about even with its year-ago start (0.43) but continued to retain less than half of the 'Big Brother' audience. On NBC, game 5 of the 'Stanley Cup Playoffs' (0.7) grew a tenth from game 4 and surpassed all non-'Brother' broadcasts. Fox's 'MasterChef' (0.5) lost a tenth-and-a-half while 'Crime Scene Kitchen' (0.4) shed a few hundredths. 'The $100,000 Pyramid' (0.5) and the 'Card Sharks' finale (0.4) each rose a tenth from their last preliminary ratings on ABC. 'Press Your Luck' (0.4) was in repeat-mode in the 8pm slot. 'Kung Fu' (0.1) and 'In the Dark' (0.1) were flat on the CW.

Finals Update: Big Brother (+0.1), Stanley Cup Game 5 (+0.2), MasterChef (+0.1), Crime Scene Kitchen (+0.1), Love Island (+0.1) and the repeat of Press Your Luck (+0.1) adjusted up.

Wednesday TV Ratings 6/30/21: MasterChef Remains #1, ABC Game Shows Rise (UPDATED)

Preliminary Analysis: There was hardly anything worth noting on the last day of June in the arena of broadcast TV. 'MasterChef' (0.6) and 'Crime Scene Kitchen' (0.4) lost a few hundredths, but Fox still had the strongest average of the big 4 networks. ABC was steady across the board with middling results from 'Press Your Luck' (0.4), 'The $100,000 Pyramid' (0.4), and 'Card Sharks' (0.3). CBS got decent mileage out of a 'Price Is Right At Night' encore (0.4), but the 'SWAT' reruns (0.2/0.2) that followed were unsatisfactory at best. NBC was on the lower-end with its 'One Chicago' repeat lineup (0.3/0.2/0.3). 'Kung Fu' (0.1) and 'In the Dark' (0.1) made no movement on the CW.

Finals Update: MasterChef (+0.1), Press Your Luck (+0.1), Crime Scene Kitchen (+0.1), The $100,000 Pyramid (+0.1), Card Sharks (+0.!) and repeats of Chicago Fire (+0.1) and SWAT (+0.1) adjusted up.

Summer Renew/Cancel Week 5: The Hustler May Not Hustle Up a Third Season

Summer programs continue to return, with three new arrivals this week in the form of game shows The Hustler, Card Sharks and Capital One College Bowl. Keep reading for my initial take on all three of these shows.

Wednesday TV Ratings 6/23/21: Card Sharks and In The Dark Returns Tie Previous Averages, The Blacklist Finale Hits Series Low, MasterChef Easily Leads (UPDATED)

Preliminary Analysis: On a night with a handful of premieres and finales, NBC's 'The Blacklist' (0.2) found itself hitting a new series low for its season eight closer. The longtime drama was a tenth shy of last week's rating and a tenth behind its lead-in, 2017 DreamWorks film 'The Boss Baby' (0.3). ABC brought back 'Card Sharks' (0.3) in underwhelming fashion. The Joel McHale game-show was two-tenths below its last episode from January but roughly in-line with its lackluster Fall 2020 run. Earlier in the evening, 'Press Your Luck' (0.4) shed a tenth as 'The $100,000 Pyramid' (0.4) tied its previous outing. Over on CBS, 'Kids Say the Darndest Things' (0.3) was flat for its finale and was followed by more 'SWAT' repeats (0.2/0.2). Fox was steady across the board with 'MasterChef' (0.6) and 'Crime Scene Kitchen' (0.4). 'In the Dark' (0.1) returned for its third season on the CW and posted the same rating it garnered throughout season two. 'Kung Fu' (0.1) didn't budge in the 8pm slot. 

Finals Update: 'MasterChef' (+0.1) and 'Crime Scene Kitchen' (+0.1) adjusted up.

Sunday TV Ratings 1/31/21: Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and Card Sharks Rebound, 60 Minutes Leads (UPDATED)

Preliminary Analysis: With football out of the picture until next week, Sunday night became a desolate wasteland full of repeats and retreads. CBS's '60 Minutes' (0.7) was able to top all other broadcasts but there was less interest in encores of 'NCIS: Los Angeles' (0.4), 'NCIS: New Orleans' (0.3), and 'NCIS' (0.3). Taking advantage of the lack of competition, ABC's 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire' (0.5) rose by two-tenths while 'Card Sharks' (0.5) gained three-tenths and jumped to a new season high. A strong 'AFV' encore (0.6) began the night for the alphabet network while a feeble 'Rookie' rerun (0.2) capped things off. NBC went with repeats of 'Weakest Link' (0.3), 'The Wall' (0.4), 'Chicago Med' (0.3), and 'Dateline' (0.3). Fox was roughly on-par with the peacock network with encores of 'Name That Tune' (0.3), 'The Simpsons' (0.3), 'The Great North' (0.3), 'Bob's Burgers' (0.3), and an out-of-timeslot 'Call Me Kat' (0.2). The CW held even across the board with 'Batwoman' (0.2) and 'Charmed' (0.1).

Finalls Update: Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (+0.1) and repeats of America's Funniest Home Videos (+0.1), The Rookie (+0.1), NCIS: New Orleans (+0.1), Weakest Link (+0.1) and Call Me Kat (+0.1) adjusted up. Repeats of Name That Tune (-0.1) adjusted down.