Two high-powered new dramas premiered Thursday night to two different, though not entirely unexpected, outcomes.
ABC’s submarine thriller Last Resort had a disappointing launch at 8 p.m. The lavish pilot episode (one source put the price tag at $11 million) delivered 9.1 million viewers and a 2.2 rating among adults 18-49. That’s just a tick above the debut of Charlie’s Angels in this slot last year in the key adult demographic. More thoughts on Last Resort’s survival odds below...
Some more thoughts on Last Resort: One network insider just pointed out that ABC would keep this show alive for years if it managed to deliver this exact same rating every week and somehow avoided the usual post-premiere-decline trend. ABC desperately wants a strong performer in this slot to support Grey’s, and the soapy medical show returning slightly higher this fall with Last Resort as an opening act won’t go unnoticed. Plus, there’s a silver-lining in these numbers: The rating went up 15 percent from the show’s first half to its second. Now that’s practically expected of an 8 p.m. show compared to a 10 p.m. show (Elementary fell off slightly from its first half to its second). But at least the drama was gathering momentum instead of losing it. Fingers crossed…