Benjamonster's TV

CODE BLACK Starring: Marcia Gay Harden, Raza Jaffrey, Bonnie Somerville, Melanie Chandra, William Allen Young, Harry Ford, Benjamin Hollingsworth, with Luis Guzman Created by Michael Seitzman Written by Michael Seitzman, Directed by David Semel THE SYNOPSIS As the first image of the show tells us, "code black" stands for when a hospital's patients outnumber available resources. At the Angels Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles, a "code black" is a regular occurrence, hence the title. The person in charge is the tough ER Residency Director, Dr. Leanne Rorish (Marcia Gay Harden). She often clashes with Dr. Neal Hudson (Raza Jaffrey). The rest of the ensemble is a group of residents, managed by senior nurse Jesse Salander (Luis Guzman). The residents are all first years: Mario, Christa, Malaya, and Angus (Benjamin Hollingsworth, Bonnie Somerville, Melanie Chandra, and Harry Ford). THE REVIEW Just like the hospital in the show, this pilot pick...

ABC 8:00 The Muppets Viewers: 5.8 million, 18-49 demo: 2.0 8:30 Fresh Off the Boat Viewers: 4.7 million, 18-49 demo: 1.7 9:00 Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Viewers: 4.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.7 10:00 Quantico (Repeat) Viewers: 4.2 million, 18-49 demo: 1.0 CBS 8:00 NCIS Viewers: 16.5 million, 18-49 demo: 2.2 9:00 NCIS: New Orleans Viewers: 12.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.7 10:00 Limitless Viewers: 9.7 million, 18-49 demo: 1.9 NBC 8:00 The Voice Viewers: 13.6 million, 18-49 demo: 3.7 10:00 Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris Viewers: 6.0 million, 18-49 demo: 1.9 FOX 8:00 Grandfathered Viewers: 5.3 million, 18-49 demo: 1.5 8:30 The Grinder Viewers: 5.0 million, 18-49 demo: 1.5 9:00 Scream Queens Viewers: 3.5 million, 18-49 demo: 1.4 On Tuesday night, FOX launched its new sitcom block and the results were respectable. Grandfathered and The Grinder needed to be self starters and they didn't totally fall on their faces. Both delivered an OK 1.5 demo...

ABC 8:00 Dancing with the Stars Viewers: 11.0 million, 18-49 demo: 1.6 10:00 Castle Viewers: 6.7 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 CBS 8:00 The Big Bang Theory Viewers: 15.2 million, 18-49 demo: 3.8 8:30 Life in Pieces Viewers: 8.7 million, 18-49 demo: 1.9 9:00 Scorpion Viewers: 9.5 million, 18-49 demo: 1.7 10:00 NCIS: Los Angeles Viewers: 7.7 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 NBC 8:00 The Voice Viewers: 12.1 million, 18-49 demo: 3.4 10:00 Blindspot Viewers: 9.1 million, 18-49 demo: 2.6 FOX 8:00 Gotham Viewers: 4.7 million, 18-49 demo: 1.6 9:00 Minority Report Viewers: 2.6 million, 18-49 demo: 0.9 Monday was the most disappointing night in week one and week two is shaping up the same way with many shows dropping, some of them with significant declines. It was good news on NBC where The Voice was down a mere three tenths in viewers and a tenth in the demo from its premiere. This was a great hold especially considering what happened to other shows. One of those shows was Blin...

As started last year, this will recap the week that was. It won't appear until Tuesday nights when the Sunday final ratings come in. Everything has been reset as far as number of weeks on each chart. Please note these will only cover regularly scheduled shows - not sports, not specials, not repeats, and not Saturday shows (too many burn-offs/oddities). Check out  Week #1 from last year! TOP 10 SHOWS (18-49 DEMO) 1. Empire (FOX, Wednesday 9:00pm) - 6.7 2. The Big Bang Theory (CBS, Monday 8:00pm) - 4.7 3. The Voice (NBC, Monday 8:00pm) - 3.5     The Voice (NBC, Tuesday 8:00pm) - 3.5 5. Scandal (ABC, Thursday 9:00pm) - 3.3 6. Modern Family (ABC, Wednesday 9:00pm) - 3.2 7. Blindspot (NBC, Monday 10:00pm) - 3.1 8. The Muppets (ABC, Tuesday 8:00pm) - 2.9 9. Grey's Anatomy (ABC, Thursday 8:00pm) - 2.8 10. Life in Pieces (CBS, Monday 8:30pm) - 2.6        How to Get Away with Murder (ABC, Sunday 10:00pm) - 2.6 TOP 10 SHOWS (TOTAL VIEWERS) 1....

ABC 7:00 Once Upon a Time: The Dark Swan Rises Viewers: 3.2 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7 8:00 Once Upon a Time Viewers: 5.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.8 9:00 Blood & Oil Viewers: 6.4 million, 18-49 demo: 1.4 10:00 Quantico Viewers: 7.1 million, 18-49 demo: 1.9 CBS 7:00 NFL Overrun Viewers: 13.0 million, 18-49 demo: 4.4 7:30 60 Minutes Viewers: 15.0 million, 18-49 demo: 2.9 9:00 CSI Viewers: 12.2 million, 18-49 demo: 1.8 NBC 7:00 Football Night in America Viewers: 8.3 million, 18-49 demo: 3.0 8:00 NFL Pregame Viewers: 11.9 million, 18-49 demo: 4.4 8:30 Sunday Night Football Viewers: 22.1 million, 18-49 demo: 8.1 FOX 7:00 Family Guy (Repeat) Viewers: 2.1 million, 18-49 demo: 0.8 7:30 Bob's Burgers Viewers: 2.5 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 8:00 The Simpsons Viewers: 3.3 million, 18-49 demo: 1.5 8:30 Brooklyn Nine-Nine Viewers: 3.1 million, 18-49 demo: 1.5 9:00 Family Guy Viewers: 2.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.5 9:30 The Last Man on Earth Viewers: 3.1 million...

THE GRINDER Starring: Rib Lowe, Fred Savage, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Hana Hayes, Connor Kalopsis, and William Devane Created by Jarrad Paul and Andrew Mogel Written by Jarrad Paul & Andrew Mogel, Directed by Jake Kasdan THE SYNOPSIS Rob Lowe is back on TV as Dean Sanderson Jr., an actor fresh off a run on a hit TV show called "The Grinder" where he played a hotshot lawyer. He returns to his hometown and immediately is at odds with his brother, Stewart (Fred Savage), who is a real life attorney. Dean thinks he can become a real lawyer after his successful TV run and attempts to do so. Stewart lives with his wife, Debbie (Mary Elizabeth Eliis), daughter Lizzie (Hana Hayes), and son Ethan (Connor Kalopsis). Rounding out the main cast is Dean and Stewart's father, and head of the law firm, Dean Sanderson Sr. (William Devane). THE REVIEW I really enjoyed this pilot and it starts with the cast, which is absolutely top notch. Sometimes Rob Lowe can w...

GRANDFATHERED Starring: John Stamos, Paget Brewster, Josh Peck, Christina Milian, Ravi Patel, Kelly Jenrette Created by Daniel Chun Written by Daniel Chun, Directed by Chris Koch THE SYNOPSIS Jimmy Martino (John Stamos) is a happy bachelor and restaurant owner who has never settled down and likes it that way. His life changes when a son he never knew he had, Gerald (Josh Peck), comes to visit and reveals that he's a grandpa to a baby girl. Others in the main cast include Gerald's mother, Sara (Paget Brewster) and Gerald's estranged girlfriend, Vanessa (Christina Milian) as well as restaurant employees Annelise and Ken (Kelly Jenrette and Ravi Patel) THE REVIEW This can safely be called the sweetest new show of the 2015-16 season. It goes for all schmaltz and cuteness but it largely succeeds at the show it's trying to be. John Stamos is embracing his type in a big way and he does a good job with it. He recognizes what he does well and he's ...

BLOOD & OIL Starring: Don Johnson, Chace Crawford, Rebecca Rittenhouse, Scott Michael Foster, Amber Valletta, India de Beaufort, and Delroy Lindo Created by Josh Pate and Rodes Fishburne Written by Josh Pate & Rodes Fishburne, Directed by Jonas Pate THE SYNOPSIS Blood & Oil takes place in a modern day "Boomtown" - thousands have flocked to Rock Springs, North Dakota following an oil discovery and the mayhem ensues from there. At the center is oil tycoon Hap Briggs (Don Johnson) and a young couple who has just moved out to North Dakota - Billy and Cody LeFever (Chace Crawford and Rebecca Rittenhouse). Briggs has a bad boy son, Wick (Scott Michael Foster) and a socialite wife, Carla (Amber Valletta). Rounding out the main cast is loan shark Jules Jackman (India de Beaufort) and Sheriff Tip Harrison (Delroy Lindo). THE REVIEW When this show was in development, it was one of the shows I was most excited about based on the premise. I began to ...

QUANTICO Starring: Priyanka Chopra, Josh Hopkins, Jake McLaughlin, Aunjanue Ellis, Yasmine Al Massri, Johanna Braddy, Tate Ellington, Graham Rogers Created by Joshua Safran Written by Joshua Safran, Directed by Marc Munden THE SYNOPSIS Quantico is part thriller and part soap opera. It centers on a very attractive and very fit group of young FBI recruits. We find out in a flash forward in the pilot that one of them is suspected of a terrorist attack in New York City nine months later and we also flashback to their lives before they came to Quantico Academy. At the center of the story is Alex Parrish (Priyanka Chopra), who is being questioned following the attack in the flash forward scene. The other recruits in the story are Ryan Booth (Jake McLaughlin), Miranda Shaw (Aunjanue Ellis), Nimah Amin (Yasmine Al Massri), Shelby Wyatt (Johanna Braddy), Simon Asher (Tate Ellington), and Caleb Haas (Graham Rogers). Rounding out the main cast is FBI Special Agent Liam O'Co...

ABC 8:00 College Football Viewers: 2.4 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7 CBS 8:00 Limitless (Repeat) Viewers: 4.3 million, 18-49 demo: 0.8 9:00 48 Hours Viewers: 4.8 million, 18-49 demo: 0.9 NBC 8:00 The Carmichael Show (Repeat) Viewers: 2.0 million, 18-49 demo: 0.5 8:30 Boxing Premiere Championship Viewers: 2.0 million, 18-49 demo: 0.5 FOX 8:00 College Football Viewers: 3.4 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2

ABC 8:00 Last Man Standing Viewers: 6.3 million, 18-49 demo: 1.1 8:30 The Muppets (Repeat) Viewers: 3.8 million, 18-49 demo: 0.8 9:00 Shark Tank Viewers: 6.0 million, 18-49 demo: 1.7 10:00 20/20 Viewers: 5.5 million, 18-49 demo: 1.3 CBS 8:00 The Amazing Race Viewers: 5.8 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 9:00 Hawaii Five-0 Viewers: 8.1 million, 18-49 demo: 1.0 10:00 Blue Bloods Viewers: 9.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.3 NBC 8:00 Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris (Repeat) Viewers: 3.1 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7 9:00 Dateline NBC Viewers: 5.0 million, 18-49 demo: 1.0 FOX 8:00 Minority Report (Repeat) Viewers: 2.3 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7 9:00 Rosewood (Repeat) Viewers: 2.2 million, 18-49 demo: 0.5 It was a quiet Friday night of premiere week with only a few shows having their premieres. CBS was the only network that was fully new. At 8pm, The Amazing Race was up a tenth from last fall's premiere. At 9pm, Hawaii Five-0 sprung a bit of a leak with a new series low...

THE PLAYER Starring: Philip Winchester, Charity Wakefield, Damon Gupton, and Wesley Snipes Created by John Rogers and John Fox Written by John Rogers & John Fox, Directed by Bharat Nalluri THE SYNOPSIS Set in the high stakes world of Las Vegas, The Player takes crime and turns it into a Vegas game. Alex Kane (Philip Winchester) is a security expert who is suspected of murdering his ex-wife. While the cops including former friend, Detective Cal Brown (Damon Gupton) are on his trail, we know he didn't do it. The other people who know he didn't do it are the mysterious Mr. Johnson (Wesley Snipes) and Cassandra King (Charity Wakefield). They use a state of the art intelligence system to bet on crimes where Mr. Johnson is the pit boss and Cassandra is the dealer. They enlist Kane to be their new "player," hence the title. THE REVIEW I'll start by saying that I really like this concept. I think it's a pretty interesting idea even though t...

ABC 8:00 Grey's Anatomy Viewers: 9.6 million, 18-49 demo: 2.8 9:00 Scandal Viewers: 10.3 million, 18-49 demo: 3.3 10:00 How to Get Away with Murder Viewers: 8.4 million, 18-49 demo: 2.6 CBS 8:00 NFL Thursday Night Kickoff Viewers: 7.6 million, 18-49 demo: 2.2 8:30 Thursday Night Football Viewers: 16.9 million, 18-49 demo: 6.0 NBC 8:00 Heroes: Reborn Viewers: 6.1 million, 18-49 demo: 2.0 10:00 The Player Viewers: 4.7 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 FOX 8:00 Scream Queens (Repeat) Viewers: 2.0 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7 On Thursday night, viewers came flocking back to TGIT as they the trio delivered a very strong opening to the season. At 8pm, Grey's Anatomy continued to go strong as it has now entered its 12th season and shows no sign of a slump after the Patrick Dempsey departure. The best news for ABC came from Scandal as the show came roaring back from its spring slump. It was up a full demo point from its season finale for its best performance since February...

ROSEWOOD Starring: Morris Chestnut, Jaina Lee Ortiz, Gabrielle Dennis, Anna Konkle, with Lorraine Toussaint Created by Todd Harthan Written by Todd Harthan, Directed by Richard Shepard THE SYNOPSIS In the most standard procedural entry of the new fall season, Dr. Beaumont Rosewood Jr. (Morris Chestnut) is a brilliant pathologist running his own consulting service in Miami. He frequently teams up with law enforcement and finds himself paired with a recently relocated Detective Annalise Villa (Jaina Lee Ortiz) from NYC. At his practice, Rosewood works with sister Pippy (Gabrielle Dennis) and her fiancee Tara (Anna Konkle). Rounding out the main cast is Rosewood and Pippy's mother, Donna (Lorraine Toussaint). THE REVIEW This show is without a doubt the least original I have seen so far this fall season. But that doesn't mean it's the worst. In fact, I enjoyed the pilot in part because it knew exactly what it wanted to be and didn't try to do too muc...

ABC 8:00 The Middle Viewers: 8.2 million, 18-49 demo: 2.1 8:30 The Goldbergs Viewers: 7.6 million, 18-49 demo: 2.4 9:00 Modern Family Viewers: 9.5 million, 18-49 demo: 3.2 9:30 Black-ish Viewers: 7.3 million, 18-49 demo: 2.4 10:00 Nashville Viewers: 4.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 CBS 8:00 Survivor Viewers: 9.7 million, 18-49 demo: 2.5 9:30 Big Brother Viewers: 6.5 million, 18-49 demo: 2.2 NBC 8:00 The Mysteries of Laura Viewers: 7.1 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 9:00 Law & Order: SVU Viewers: 8.3 million, 18-49 demo: 1.8 FOX 8:00 Rosewood Viewers: 7.5 million, 18-49 demo: 2.4 9:00 Empire Viewers: 16.2 million, 18-49 demo: 6.7 As expected, Wednesday night was all about Empire . FOX's smash drama returned to huge numbers though it couldn't quite top the season finale numbers back in March. Still, it posted an insane 16.2 million viewers and 6.7 demo. It's truly in a class all its own. Will it last? Who knows, but this start at least shows the hype...

THE MUPPETS Starring: Bill Barretta, Dave Goelz, Eric Jacobson, Peter Linz, David Rudman, Matt Vogel, Steve Whitmire Based on characters created by Jim Henson Developed by Bill Prady and Bob Kushell Written by Bill Prady & Bob Kushell, Directed by Randall Einhorn THE PREMISE Yes, it's those characters you know and love but it's in a brand new format. This show is done with a more adult approach and in the mockumentary style that The Office and Modern Family made famous. Kermit and Miss Piggy have broken up but are still working together as Kermit is the executive producer for Miss Piggy's late night show "Up Late with Miss Piggy." All the others are there too: Electric Mayhem is the late show band, Fozzie Bear is the warm-up announcer, Gonzo is the Head Writer, and the Swedish Chef does craft services among many others. A new character is Kermit's new girlfriend, a different pig named Debbie. THE RE VIEW It is great to see these g...

ABC 8:00 The Muppets Viewers: 9.0 million, 18-49 demo: 2.9 8:30 Fresh Off the Boat Viewers: 6.1 million, 18-49 demo: 1.9 9:00 Dancing with the Stars Results Viewers: 9.6 million, 18-49 demo: 1.5 CBS 8:00 NCIS Viewers: 18.2 million, 18-49 demo: 2.5 9:00 NCIS: New Orleans Viewers: 12.6 million, 18-49 demo: 1.7 10:00 Limitless Viewers: 9.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.9 NBC 8:00 The Voice Viewers: 12.3 million, 18-49 demo: 3.5 10:00 Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris Viewers: 5.9 million, 18-49 demo: 2.1 FOX 8:00 Scream Queens Viewers: 4.0 million, 18-49 demo: 1.7 On the second night of the season, every network had something to smile about except for FOX, which suffered a second night with an extremely disappointing premiere. ABC got the best news for a new show as The Muppets proved to be a self-starter with an impressive nine million viewers and 2.9 demo. Some people were predicting a huge start for this but this actually exceeded my prediction. It was a huge ...

LIMITLESS Starring: Jake McDorman, Jennifer Carpenter, with Hill Harper, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio Based on the Film "Limitless" Written by Craig Sweeny, Directed by Marc Webb THE PREMISE Limitless is a new drama based on the 2011 film starring Bradley Cooper. In the TV version, set after the events of the movie, Brian Finch (Jake McDorman) is a man struggling to find his way until he discovers a mysterious drug called NZT-48, which gives him recall of everything he has ever read, seen, and heard. Hot on his trail is FBI agents Rebecca Harris (Jennifer Carpenter) and Spellman Boyle (Hill Harper). Rounding out the main cast is Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio as the special agent in charge of the division, Nasreen Pouran. Cooper himself will make recurring appearances in the same role he played in the movie. THE REVIEW I will start by saying that I have never seen the movie. What is with the remaking of non-iconic films this season, anyway? I don't k...

SCREAM QUEENS Starring: Emma Roberts, Skyler Samuels, Lea Michele, Glen Powell, Diego Boneta, Abigail Breslin, Keke Palmer, Nasim Pedrad, Lucien Laviscount, Oliver Hudson, Billie Lourd, and Jamie Lee Curtis Created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, and Ian Brennan Written by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, & Ian Brennan, Directed by Ryan Murphy THE PREMISE Scream Queens has been quite accurately described as a slasher version of Mean Girls . Set at the fictional Wallace University, the show centers on a Kappa sorority. Their queen bee leader, Chanel (Emma Roberts) battles with Dean Cathy Munsch (Jamie Lee Curtis) as a murder mystery from twenty years ago reignites with the return of the mysterious Red Devil and the killing of sorority members. Other sorority members include Chanel's minions, #5 (Abigail Breslin) and #3 (Billie Lourd). Grace Gardner (Skyler Samuels) is a new freshmen pledging because her mother was in the sorority. Other girls pledging include misfit...

ABC 8:00 Dancing with the Stars Viewers: 11.5 million, 18-49 demo: 1.8 10:00 Castle Viewers: 6.8 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 CBS 8:00 The Big Bang Theory Viewers: 18.2 million, 18-49 demo: 4.7 8:30 Life in Pieces Viewers: 11.3 million, 18-49 demo: 2.6 9:00 Scorpion Viewers: 11.1 million, 18-49 demo: 2.2 10:00 NCIS: Los Angeles Viewers: 7.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2 NBC 8:00 The Voice Viewers: 12.4 million, 18-49 demo: 3.5 10:00 Blindspot Viewers: 10.6 million, 18-49 demo: 3.1 FOX 8:00 Gotham Viewers: 4.6 million, 18-49 demo: 1.6 9:00 Minority Report Viewers: 3.1 million, 18-49 demo: 1.1 Premiere Week is here but Monday night's results didn't get things off to a great start for many shows. NBC had the most to smile about after one night as The Voice returned at a pretty good 3.5 demo. Its best days are behind it, but it's still one of TV's top shows and was down 15% from last year. Given how other shows dropped year to year, that's not too ba...