Benjamonster's TV

ABC 8:00 The Middle Viewers: 8.4 million, 18-49 demo: 2.5 8:30 Better With You Viewers: 7.0 million, 18-49 demo: 2.2 9:00 Modern Family Viewers: 11.9 million, 18-49 demo: 4.6 9:30 Cougar Town Viewers: 7.0 million, 18-49 demo: 2.8 10:00 The Whole Truth Viewers: 4.6 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 CBS 8:00 Survivor Viewers: 12.3 million, 18-49 demo: 3.5 9:00 Criminal Minds Viewers: 14.6 million, 18-49 demo: 3.6 10:00 The Defenders Viewers: 10.4 million, 18-49 demo: 2.5 NBC 8:00 Undercovers Viewers: 7.2 million, 18-49 demo: 1.6 9:00 Law & Order: SVU Viewers: 9.5 million, 18-49 demo: 2.8 10:00 Law & Order: Los Angeles Viewers: 10.6 million, 18-49 demo: 3.2 FOX 8:00 Hell's Kitchen Viewers: 6.1 million, 18-49 demo: 2.8 9:00 Hell's Kitchen Viewers: 6.6 million, 18-49 demo: 3.0 Wednesday night was another busy night but all the networks were down from their premiere week numbers. ABC kicked things off with its comedies. The Middle was down a bit from ...

LAW & ORDER: LOS ANGELES Starring: Skeet Ulrich, Corey Stoll, Regina Hall, Wanda De Jesus, and Alfred Molina Created by Dick Wolf Teleplay by Blake Masters, Story by Dick Wolf, Directed by Allen Coulter Law & Order gets a fifth installment in the franchise (of the first four, two remain on the air after NBC cancelled the mothership last spring). This really truly is Law & Order in a new setting. Against the glitzy backdrop of Los Angeles, the first half focuses on the "law" with Detectives Rex Winters (Skeet Ulrich) and TJ Jaruszalski (Corey Stoll). The second half deals with the "order" featuring Deputy District Attorneys Ricardo Morales (Alfred Molina) and Evelyn Price (Regina Hall). The pilot episode focused on a very Hollywood episode featuring a young starlet and her mother. There isn't much to review here if anyone has seen an episode of the New York version of Law & Order over the last 20 years. It is a standard procedural t...

ABC 8:00 No Ordinary Family Viewers: 10.7 million, 18-49 demo: 3.2 9:00 Dancing with the Stars Results Viewers: 17.3 million, 18-49 demo: 3.8 10:00 Detroit 1-8-7 Viewers: 8.7 million, 18-49 demo: 2.1 CBS 8:00 NCIS Viewers: 19.1 million, 18-49 demo: 4.1 9:00 NCIS: Los Angeles Viewers: 16.5 million, 18-49 demo: 3.7 10:00 The Good Wife Viewers: 12.8 million, 18-49 demo: 2.5 NBC 8:00 The Biggest Loser Viewers: 7.2 million, 18-49 demo: 2.7 10:00 Parenthood Viewers: 4.8 million, 18-49 demo: 2.0 FOX 8:00 Glee Viewers: 13.5 million, 18-49 demo: 5.9 9:00 Raising Hope Viewers: 7.1 million, 18-49 demo: 3.1 9:30 Running Wilde Viewers: 4.5 million, 18-49 demo: 1.9 Tuesday night brought a very crowded lineup at 8pm and some mixed results for freshmen series. ABC kicked things off with the series premiere of No Ordinary Family which had the best debut of any new ABC series but didn't knock it out of the park. It would have been perfect for Sunday at 8pm but could ge...

NO ORDINARY FAMILY Starring: Michael Chiklis, Julie Benz, Christina Chang, Kay Panabaker, Jimmy Bennett, Autumn Reeser, with Tave Donovan, and Romany Malco Created by Greg Berlanti and Jon Harmon Feldman Teleplay by Jon Harmon Feldman, Story by Greg Berlanti and Jon Harmon Feldman, Directed by David Semel No Ordinary Family is a new big-budget drama from ABC about a family who acquires superhero powers. When the Powell family takes a trip to Brazil to reconnect, their plane crashes and they are thrown into some strange water. When they come back home, they begin to discover superpowers one by one. Patriarch Jim (Michael Chiklis) has Superman powers - massive strength, ability to leap tall buildings, and won't get killed by a gun shot (unless it was very very close). His busy and highly successful wife Stephanie (Julie Benz) has the power of speed and for a woman who doesn't have enough time in the day, this proves very helpful. Teenage daughter Daphne (Kay Panaba...

ABC 8:00 Dancing with the Stars Viewers: 21.3 million, 18-49 demo: 4.8 10:00 Castle Viewers: 11.1 million, 18-49 demo: 2.8 CBS 8:00 How I Met Your Mother Viewers: 9.0 million, 18-49 demo: 3.9 8:30 Rules of Engagement Viewers: 8.1 million, 18-49 demo: 3.2 9:00 Two and a Half Men  Viewers: 13.9 million, 18-49 demo: 4.8 9:30 Mike & Molly Viewers: 11.1 million, 18-49 demo: 3.7 10:00 Hawaii Five-0 Viewers: 12.7 million, 18-49 demo: 3.6 NBC 8:00 Chuck Viewers: 5.4 million, 18-49 demo: 2.0 9:00 The Event Viewers: 9.1 million, 18-49 demo: 2.9 10:00 Chase Viewers: 6.3 million, 18-49 demo: 2.1 FOX 8:00 House Viewers: 10.2 million, 18-49 demo: 3.8 9:00 Lone Star Viewers: 3.2 million, 18-49 demo: 1.0   The second week of the season got underway last season and there was good news for ABC and CBS, bad news for FOX, and so-so news for NBC. On ABC, Dancing with the Stars was dominating and managed to retain nearly all its viewers who turned in for the prem...

The first casualty of the 2010-2011 season is in and it is FOX's Lone Star . One of the most critically acclaimed shows heading into the season, it did not make an impact and viewers seemed to reject it. The first episode tanked with an average of 4.1 million and 1.3 in the demo, losing viewers as the episode went on. The second episode fell further to 3.2 million and 1.0 in the demo. It's a shame that viewers didn't buy into this. I personally watched both episodes one and two and was intrigued by the premise and the talented young cast. I thought there were a lot of interesting storylines they could explore but that will not happen now. From when it was announced for the schedule last May, it seemed like an odd fit for FOX's lineup but critics hoped FOX would give the series a chance to grow. They may have if it had received middling ratings but it was just too low. There was no justification in keeping something this low on the air. In its place will be the third s...

Here are the final ratings for Sunday night. Check back later today for ratings and commentary from last night and (hopefully) a pilot review for No Ordinary Family , which premiere tonight at 8pm on ABC! ABC 7:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Viewers: 5.6 million, 18-49 demo: 1.5 8:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Viewers: 8.5 million, 18-49 demo: 2.5 9:00 Desperate Housewives Viewers: 13.1 million, 18-49 demo: 4.3 10:00 Brothers & Sisters Viewers: 9.5 million, 18-49 demo: 2.9 CBS 7:00 NFL Overrun Viewers: 23.1 million, 18-49 demo: 8.5 7:47 60 Minutes Viewers: 14.4 million, 18-49 demo: 3.1 8:47 The Amazing Race Viewers: 11.5 million, 18-49 demo: 3.8 10:17 Undercover Boss Viewers: 11.5 million, 18-49 demo: 3.8 NBC 7:00 Football Night in America Viewers: 10.1 million, 18-49 demo: 4.1 8:20 Sunday Night Football Pregame Viewers: 13.9 million, 18-49 demo: 5.2 8:30 Sunday Night Football Viewers: 18.1 million, 18-49 demo: 7.3 FOX 7:00 The Simpsons (Repeat...

ABC 8:00 College Football Viewers: 5.6 million, 18-49 demo: 2.0 CBS 8:00 Hawaii Five-0 (Repeat) Viewers: 6.2 million, 18-49 demo: 1.1 9:00 Blue Bloods (Repeat) Viewers: 5.6 million, 18-49 demo: 1.0 10:00 48 Hours Mystery Viewers: 6.3 million, 18-49 demo: 1.3 NBC 8:00 The Event (Repeat) Viewers: 2.9 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7 9:00 Chase (Repeat) Viewers: 4.1 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7 10:00 Law & Order: SVU (Repeat) Viewers: 4.6 million, 18-49 demo: 1.1 FOX 8:00 Cops Viewers: 4.4 million, 18-49 demo: 1.5 9:00 America's Most Wanted Viewers: 4.7 million, 18-49 demo: 1.6  

BLUE BLOODS Starring: Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan, Will Estes, Len Cariou, and Tom Selleck Created by Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess Written by Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess Directed by Michael Cuesta TV veteran Tom Selleck returns to the small screen in the family cop drama Blue Bloods about a family that has NYPD blood running through their veins. Frank Reagan (Selleck) is the police commissioner, his father Henry (Len Cariou) is a retired cop. Son Danny (Donnie Wahlberg) is a detective with PTSD from Iraq and he has a penchant for taking matters into his own hands (he's accused of police brutality in the pilot). Daughter Erin (Bridget Moynahan) is a District Attorney who clashes with Donny, has a teenage daughter, and is going through a divorce. Finally youngest son Jamie (Will Estes) is a newly graduated member of the Police Academy and is approached about cooperating with special agents who are looking into a secret society within the NYPD. It is re...

OUTSOURCED Starring: Ben Rappaport, Anisha Nagarajan, Diedrich Bader, Parvesh Cheena, Pippa Black, Rebecca Hazlewood, Rizwan Manjt, Sacha Dhawan Based on the movie "Outsourced." Developed for television by Robert Bordern Written by George Wing and John Jeffcoat, Directed by Ken Kwapis Outsourced is a new culture-clash comedy on NBC that focuses on Todd (Ben Rappaport) - a young new manager for an American novelties company whose call center is outsourced to India. When Todd reluctantly goes to India, he is met with a group of "B list" callers who know very little about American culture or why Americans would want such odd novelties such as fake vomit. Among the call center employees are a co-manager (Rizwan Manjt) who is eyeing Todd's job, Madhuri (Anisha Nagarajan) who speaks so softly she can barely be heard, and Gupta (Parvesh Cheena) who will talk anyone's ear off. To be honest, I actually expected Outsourced to be worse than it was. Th...

$#*! MY DAD SAYS Starring: William Shatner, Jonathan Sadowski, Nicole Sullivan, Will Sasso Created by David Kohan, Max Mutchnick, Justin Halpern, & Patrick Schumacker Written by David Kohan, Max Mutchnick, Justin Halpern, & Patrick Schumacker, Directed by James Burrows $#*! My Dad Says is a new CBS sitcoms based on the popular twitter feed created by Justin Halpern. In the TV edition, recently unemployed Henry (Jonathan Sadowski) needs money and stops by to see his estranged Dad (William Shatner) who is a grumpy 72 year old man. The show focuses on the inappropriate and outlandish things Dad says, hence the title. Rounding out the cast are Henry's brother Vince (Will Sasso) and his wife Bonnie (Nicole Sullivan). There was not much to like about this pilot. After promising new multi-camera sitcoms in Mike & Molly and Better With You , this was more reminiscent of the many multi-camera flops in recent years. The writers seemed too focused on coming up wit...

MY GENERATION Starring: Michael Stahl-David, Jaime King, Kelli Garner, Keir O'Donnell, Mehcad Brooks, Daniella Alonso, Julian Morris, Sebastian Sozzi, Anne Son, Elizabeth Keener Based on the Swedish Television Series "Blomstertid" Teleplay by Noah Hawley Directed by Craig Gillespie My Generation is a new ABC mockumentary with a unique premise. In the year 2000, nine seniors at a Texas high school were followed around by a camera crew and talked about their lives, their hopes, and their dreams. Now it's ten years later and the film crew has caught up with the nine students to see how they are as adults - how they've changed, their broken dreams, their new lives. The kids were all the high school stereotypes - overachiever Steven (Michael Stahl-David), brainiac Brenda (Daniella Alonso), jock Rolly (Mehcad Brooks), punk Dawn (Kelli Garner), beauty queen Jackie (Jaime King), rich kid Anders (Julian Morris), nerd Kenneth (Keir O'Donnell), rock sta...

THE DEFENDERS Starring: Jim Belushi, Jerry O'Connell, Jurnee Smollett, Tanya Fischer, Gillian Vigman Created by Kevin Kennedy and Niels Mueller Written by Niels Mueller and Kevin Kennedy Directed by Davis Guggenheim The Defenders is a new lighthearted legal drama that takes back in the glitzy setting of Las Vegas. It centers on a team of defense lawyers - Nick Morelli (Jim Belushi) and Pete Kaczmarek (Jerry O'Connell). If the pilot if an indication of how the series will be, the episode focuses mainly on a case but also delves into the personal lives of the partners. Nick is estranged from his wife and has a young son while Pete is a Vegas playboy. Both enjoy the glamor and glitz of Vegas while passionately doing anything they can to defend their clients. There are good things and bad things about The Defenders . The filming is slick and the Vegas backdrop makes for a lot of fun elements in the show. Jim Belushi is a standout as Morelli. His charisma and perf...

ABC 8:00 Modern Family (Repeat) Viewers: 3.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 8:30 Better With You (Repeat) Viewers: 2.9 million, 18-49 demo: 0.9 9:00 The Whole Truth (Repeat) Viewers: 2.9 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7 10:00 20/20 Viewers: 5.5 million, 18-49 demo: 1.6 CBS 8:00 Medium Viewers: 6.1 million, 18-49 demo: 1.4 9:00 CSI: NY Viewers: 10.3 million, 18-49 demo: 2.0 10:00 Blue Bloods Viewers: 13.0 million, 18-49 demo: 2.2 NBC 8:00 Dateline NBC Viewers: 7.3 million, 18-49 demo: 1.6 10:00  Outlaw Viewers: 4.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.1 FOX 8:00 Human Target (Repeat) Viewers: 3.1 million, 18-49 demo: 0.6 9:00 The Good Guys Viewers: 2.8 million, 18-49 demo: 0.9 Friday night of premiere week saw a mixed bag with CBS having the most to write home about. The big winner of the night was the series premiere of the Tom Selleck drama Blue Bloods . The well-received drama saw over 13 million viewers, a number not seen on Friday in a long time. It was old-skewing as expecte...

THE WHOLE TRUTH Starring: Rob Morrow, Maura Tierney, Eamonn Walker, Anthony Ruivivar, Sean Wing, Christine Adams Created by Tom Donaghy Written by Tom Donaghy, Directed by Alex Graves The Whole Truth is a new legal drama from Jerry Bruckheimer's company that devotes equal time to the prosecution and defense. Assuming the set up is the same every week, it begins with an arrest and arraignment and then follows each side's preparation and then the trial and verdict. At the end of the episode, we find out through some way if the jury made the right call. The defense team is led by Jimmy Brogan (Rob Morrow) and the prosecution is led by Kathryn Peale (Maura Tierney). Adding to the dynamics is the fact that Brogan and Peale are old friends from law school. The rest of the ensemble make up the two teams. There is nothing unique or new about The Whole Truth even with its double-sided view. The show attempts to display both sides but ends up nearly having a split perso...

BETTER WITH YOU Starring: Joanna Garcia, Jennifer Finnigan, Josh Cooke, Jake Lacy, with Kurt Fuller, and Debra Jo Rupp Created by Shana Goldberg-Meehan Written by Shana Goldberg-Meehan Directed by James Burrows Better With You is a new multi-camera sitcom from Shana Goldberg-Meehan ( Friends ) that centers on three couples at very different stages of their relationship. Ben and Maddie (Josh Cooke and Jennifer Finnigan) have been together for nine years but are not married ("a valid life choice"). Maddie's sister Mia (Joanna Garcia) has met and gotten engaged to Casey (Jake Lacy) after 7 weeks due to the fact that she's pregnant. Their parents (Kurt Fuller and Debra Jo Rupp) have been married 35 years and aren't quite as romantic as they once were, but are accepting of the immature and oddball Casey because it means there's going to be a wedding and a baby. Better With You showed promise in its pilot. Coupled with Mike & Molly , this may ...

UNDERCOVERS Starring: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Boris Kodjoe, Ben Schwartz, Mekia Cox, Carter MacIntyre, and Gerald McRaney Created by JJ Abrams and Josh Reims Written by JJ Abrams and Josh Reims Directed by JJ Abrams Undercovers is a new escapist spy drama from JJ Abrams who created the hit shows Lost and Alias among others. This one centers on two married former spies turned caterers in retirement, Samantha and Steven Bloom (Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Boris Kodjoe). Coaxed back into the spy business by Carlton Shaw (Gerald McRaney), the Blooms head out on a mission in the pilot to get a former friend and fellow agent Leo Nash (Carter MacIntyre) back and track down a most-wanted enemy in the process. Rounding out the cast are the always-needed tech guy Bill (Ben Schwartz) and Samantha's sister and catering employee Lizzy (Mekia Cox). This show comes with a lot of pedigree and expectations consider the creator and the pilot shows promise but ultimately doesn't live up to the ...

DETROIT 1-8-7 Starring: Michael Imperioli, James McDaniel, Aisha Hinds, DJ Cortona, Jon Michael Hill, Shaun Majumder, Natalie Martinez, Erin Cummings Created by Jason Richman Written by Jason Richman Directed by Jeffrey Nachmanoff Detroit 1-8-7 is a gritty new cop drama set in crime-ridden Detroit. Originally conceived as a documentary-style show, it is now a more traditional drama and focuses on the Homicide Division. The ensemble is led by Michael Imperioli as veteran Detective Louis Fitch. Each episode will likely deal with a crime or two and in the pilot, the crimes ended up being connected. Jon Michael Hill is also a standout as Fitch's first-day partner Damon Washington and provided some of the comic relief in the dark pilot. Other members of the ensemble include tough and jaded Detective Ariana Sanchez (Natalie Martinez), veteran Sergeant Jesse Longford (James McDaniel), and Lt. Maureen Mason (Aisha Hinds). If the pilot is any indication, there will be lots o...

Here are the ratings from last night: ABC 8:00 My Generation Viewers: 5.2 million, 18-49 demo: 1.6 9:00 Grey's Anatomy Viewers: 14.3 million, 18-49 demo: 5.4 10:00 Private Practice Viewers: 8.8 million, 18-49 demo: 3.2 CBS 8:00 The Big Bang Theory Viewers: 14.0 million, 18-49 demo: 4.9 8:30 $#*! My Dad Says Viewers: 12.6 million, 18-49 demo: 4.0 9:00 CSI Viewers: 14.7 million, 18-49 demo: 3.4 10:00 The Mentalist Viewers: 15.5 million, 18-49 demo: 3.4 NBC 8:00 Community Viewers: 5.0 million, 18-49 demo: 2.2 8:30 30 Rock Viewers: 5.9 million, 18-49 demo: 2.6 9:00 The Office Viewers: 8.5 million, 18-49 demo: 4.4 9:30 Outsourced Viewers: 7.5 million, 18-49 demo: 3.6 10:00 The Apprentice Viewers: 3.8 million, 18-49 demo: 1.4   FOX 8:00 Bones Viewers: 9.9 million, 18-49 demo: 2.7   9:00 Fringe Viewers : 5.7 million, 18-49 demo: 2.1 Thursday night of premiere week saw lots of shows return strong, two pilots sample well, one poor sample, a...