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Ratings And Scheduling: I Can't Do This Alone


kimrey
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Absolutely!

If the show has a major drop next season, which is unlikely (IMO) because SPN is a very steady performer, the show would end up with a short final season (14) pickup. The CW will (almost) always give a final planned season because Netflix wants shows to have planned finales. I'm fairly confident we're getting S14 in form come, unless the Js decided to walk after 13. 

If my math is correct, 300 episodes would require 23 episodes in S13 and 13 episodes in S14. I think that's pretty much a lock at this point. Again, provided no issues during contracts negotiations.

Edited by Morrigan2575
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On 14/04/2017 at 5:40 PM, DittyDotDot said:

seems like the MoTW episodes really don't draw in the audience this time of year

I don't think we can't conclude that. We have had similar MOTW runs at this stage in previous seasons and haven't fallen to this level. There has never been any evidence that the presence or absence of Cas makes any difference to the ratings, nor that mytharc eps are any more or less good for ratings than stand alone MOTWs.

Ratings are complex beasts that react slowly over time to factors like the general popularity of a storyline or the quality of a run of eps. But those are only a couple of factors among many like timeslot (looks like 8 isn't as good for us as 9), competition (linked to timeslot obviously), time of year (Spring is often, though not always, the worst time for ratings) etc etc.

My theory is that it is a combination of 2 main factors; the new time slot and the generally lower quality of the eps this season particularly since the Guantanamo episode. 

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2 hours ago, Geordiegirl1967 said:

I don't think we can't conclude that. We have had similar MOTW runs at this stage in previous seasons and haven't fallen to this level. There has never been any evidence that the presence or absence of Cas makes any difference to the ratings, nor that mytharc eps are any more or less good for ratings than stand alone MOTWs.

Ratings are complex beasts that react slowly over time to factors like the general popularity of a storyline or the quality of a run of eps. But those are only a couple of factors among many like timeslot (looks like 8 isn't as good for us as 9), competition (linked to timeslot obviously), time of year (Spring is often, though not always, the worst time for ratings) etc etc.

My theory is that it is a combination of 2 main factors; the new time slot and the generally lower quality of the eps this season particularly since the Guantanamo episode. 

Yes, ratings are complex; I wasn't trying to say they weren't. I was just speaking to how it seems the ratings always dip this time of year and generally pick back up with the last four episodes of the season. Of course, this is a new level, but I agree with @Morrigan2575, I don't think they're bad ratings given the circumstances. 

Personally, I'm not sure the new time slot is the biggest factor as to what's going on with this show's ratings right now. To be clear, I think it's a factor, but since the ratings are down across the board on the CW, I'm not sure the show would be pulling in significantly better ratings in the later time slot either. Riverdale certainly isn't, but that's a completely different show, so... .

However, IMO, the show having a pattern of twiddling it's thumbs with a few one-off episodes this time of year and not really moving the season arcs along until the final four episodes is a big factor as to why the ratings dip this time of year. That's not to say there aren't other factors. TO BE CLEAR, I think there are many factors. But, this is a known pattern and some people view the MotW episodes as filler that can be skipped altogether or caught up on at a later date. Granted, it could be a chicken/egg scenario here...did they start twiddling their thumbs because viewers checked out for a few episodes in the spring or did the viewers start checking out because they were twiddling their thumbs? Who knows. 

Anyway, personally, I prefer their thumb-twiddling, but judging by how the one-offs this time of year seem to  be some of the lower-rated episodes, I'd say I'm in the minority on that. 

I wasn't suggesting that Cass himself makes a significant difference to ratings--although I do think he's popular and some folks do tune in just for him--but the big mystery out there right now is, where is Cass and what is Heaven doing to him, so I think that mystery will draw people back in. Plus, the return of Cass is also a sign they're moving the big arcs along, which as I mentioned I think is a big draw for most folks.

IMO, quality is in the eye of the beholder and not something that can be quantified with ratings. Overall, I don't think the quality of the episodes are any better or worse than they have been for a few years. I think it all depends on what you would define as quality, but IMO the writing on this show has been fairly uneven for years, so nothing new there. And the other parts--directing, acting and such--seem to be the same.

Actually I think the quality has improved greatly from the first half of the season, even if I'm not particularly interested in the long-reaching storylines. IMO, the episodes seem to be tighter and feel more cohesive than they did earlier in the season. That's not to say they don't have problems, but just that I think the team is starting to gel now in comparison to the first half of the season. But I'm not sure how that can be reflected in ratings because viewers don't know the quality of an episode before they watch it.

Edited by DittyDotDot
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23 minutes ago, Morrigan2575 said:

Fast-Demo-2017-Apr-27.THU_.png

Unless it drops big in the finals SPN will end the week ahead of Arrow (which seems to have been preempted)

Hopefully it will get a little adjustment up.

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Aside from the (IMO) ghastly writing and plotting of this season, it can't help ratings when the shows own so-called PR spends its off week promoting other shows on their social media. When the cw_spn Instagram first posted about the gaming thing, there was nothing but negative feedback in the comments. So instead of moving on and actually doing something to keep/maintain interest in Supernatural, they doubled down and did it again, across all their platforms. I get that CW won't spend any money promoting this show, but damnit, they can't even get the free stuff right.

All that said, I hope the showrunner gets spanked over the dismal ratings - it seems like the only way 'they' will care about what he's doing to this show.

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1 hour ago, Pondlass1 said:

 

If things don't change we could drop to 0.3 or even 0.2 next season. This "also  starring Sam and Dean" format is driving fans away in droves. ?

 

Totally agree. It is a very worrying trend. I hope the powers that be have spotted it and will do something with the writing team to address it. It can easily be put right if they had the will. I still believe the show is capable of greatness again (maybe not s1-5 level, but s11 was only last year and I loved that). But maybe they are happy to just let it fade away which would be a real shame.

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Interesting! So either no one cared about Cas' return (if you are a believer the promo videos and still for the current episode have the biggest impact on ratings) or a brother centric episode isn't enough to interest the fans (if you believe the biggest factor to the ratings is the quality of the preceding episode).

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6 minutes ago, ilovedean27 said:

Could be some people aren't enjoying any of the storylines this season, and have decided to stop watching or they record and watch later. Like me.

I kind of stopped looking for the time shifting numbers. I should do that again.

Also, I think the fact that the entire season will be available on Netflix a week after the season finale may hit the numbers too especially this close to finale time. If viewers are feeling dissatisfied for whatever reasons, they may choose binge the whole season in a few days rather than watch real time. Also basketball and hockey are in their playoff seasons and baseball is back in swing (heh).

I would love to know the netflix numbers

Edited by catrox14
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Considering that the ratings are abysmal network-wide, I hesitate to say these ratings are show and/or storyline specific. I'm not saying everything is right with the show, but there seems to be something else afoot since the network ratings in general have tanked.

Edited by DittyDotDot
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To be fair, ratings are abysmal across several networks. Several shows have had series lows this TV season. The only reason why I think enjoyment of the show and/or storylines play a role, along with there being a Spring slump and people not watching much television in general lately, is because once upon a time, while other shows would decline in ratings during the Spring, Supernatural wouldn't drop in the ratings as much.  But that seems to not be the case this time around. 

I fear the show is headed towards a .4 this season, and if not this season, next season.

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It was also LIGHT OUTSIDE when this show was airing last night. I specifically stayed home to watch it in real time, because I enjoy that, and I was still kind of weirded out.

It's supposedly a scary/creepy show for adults, about adults in their mid/late-30s. Not a good fit for a sunny late spring afternoon LOL.

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Popping in because I truly don't remember: has SPN ever been on at 8pm in the spring (or ever) before this year? Because, beyond the general ratings decline across the network or tv in general, I feel like that is impacting the show during DST in a way it probably wouldn't have (as much) before.

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1 minute ago, RandomMe said:

Popping in because I truly don't remember: has SPN ever been on at 8pm in the spring (or ever) before this year? Because, beyond the general ratings decline across the network or tv in general, I feel like that is impacting the show during DST in a way it probably wouldn't have (as much) before.

Nope. This is the first time SPN has ever been in the 8 pm slot.

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(edited)
On 4/29/2017 at 4:21 AM, nightwing877 said:

All tv ratings are dropping year to year, no surprises. Nielsen ratings are outdated. Anything getting a 0.4-0.5 is a hit for CW these days it seems. 

This list is pretty interesting. Of 93 network shows, only 9 have risen year-to-year, and of those only 4 are scripted dramas (one of which, Grimm, has ended its run). So as much and as hard as Dabb & Co. suck, and they do, Supernatural's drop (13.08% in the demo, 4.48% in total viewers) isn't the worst. It's more that they don't have that many to begin with, so losing any percentage of them is not good.

http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/2016-17-tv-show-season-ratings-week-32/?

 

(ETA: there are 147 shows on the list but by my count, 54 were new shows with no year-to-year stats)

Edited by gonzosgirrl
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(edited)

Hmm interesting! So it seems that if a viewer feels the preceding episode is the most important factor then people must have enjoyed Cas' return last week. While if you attribute the promos for the current episodes viewers must be eager to see more of the man of letters storyline and the twins xD . Whatever the reason I'm glad to see the viewers tick up a bit :)

Edited by Wayward Son
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1 minute ago, Geordiegirl1967 said:

Viewing numbers yes thank goodness. Still at 0.5 in demo though. I'd feel much happier if we were at 0.6 by the end of s12.

Supergirl has dropped to a 0.5 and Arrow has been pulling a 0.5 since February. SPN has nothing to worry about 

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(edited)

In addition to a much higher viewer count we also had an improvement in the unrounded demo this week. It was 0.51 while last weeks episode got a 0.46. I doubt it's close enough for an adjustment to occur, but at least the show seems to be heading in the right direction :)

Edited by Wayward Son
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2 hours ago, Wayward Son said:

Hmm interesting! So it seems that if a viewer feels the preceding episode is the most important factor then people must have enjoyed Cas' return last week. While if you attribute the promos for the current episodes viewers must be eager to see more of the man of letters storyline and the twins xD . Whatever the reason I'm glad to see the viewers tick up a bit :)

If it was because people were happy to see Cas, wouldn't the ratings have been higher last week? I honestly don't know why the uptick. I wonder if it was just because the CW promoted it a little more.

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(edited)
4 minutes ago, Idahoforspn said:

If it was because people were happy to see Cas, wouldn't the ratings have been higher last week? I honestly don't know why the uptick. I wonder if it was just because the CW promoted it a little more.

I'm actually a believer that it's to do with the promotion for this weeks episode :) 

However, we had a debate in here previously  about which episode had more influence the promo for the current one, or the one before receiving a good reception and thus encouraging more viewers to watch the following one live.

So I was basically covering both viewpoints :) 

Edited by Wayward Son
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I think promos mostly raise viewerships if there is something special or crowd-pleasing in them. Like big event or x-over episodes. Flash is probably the only CW show doing well for the last two weeks because they teased the reveal of the Seasonal villain, predictable as it was. Talk about being your own worst enemy.

For SPN, it would be interesting to see the half-hours of last week and this week. For whatever reason it changed, I`m glad it was for this episode because IMO this one earned some kudos. 

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The half hours for this week were 0.503 and 0.516, which suggests that the viewers who were watching liked what they saw :) . I'll see if I can find the half hours for last weeks finals, but we may have to compromise and use last weeks prelim ratings for comparison. 

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10 minutes ago, Wayward Son said:

I'm actually a believer that it's to do with the promotion for this weeks episode :) 

However, we had a debate in here previously  about which episode had more influence the promo for the current one, or the one before receiving a good reception and thus encouraging more viewers to watch the following one live.

So I was basically covering both viewpoints :) 

Oh..Thank You.

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2 minutes ago, Idahoforspn said:

I found the info:

Last week numbers were ,479 and ,450 so apparently people tuned out.  

This week they were ,503 and ,516 so people must have been enjoying the episode.

I don't blame them! Last weeks episode was awful! 

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58 minutes ago, Idahoforspn said:

If it was because people were happy to see Cas, wouldn't the ratings have been higher last week? I honestly don't know why the uptick. I wonder if it was just because the CW promoted it a little more.

I think it has more to do with people simply not knowing the show was back last week.

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I think it also has to do with these being the last few episodes.  They're usually some of the best, or at least crammed full with most of the plot resolutions.  People can miss the random MOTW episode, but I think the ratings should hold or improve through the end of the season.  At least I hope they will.

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I am interested in the 2-hour final, and how the numbers do for that. 

Unlike most shows on CW, SPN had a pretty decent schedule this season, with fewer longer breaks than most shows (most CW shows took a month off in April) With only 3 weeks off since it came back in January. That must be an all time record, although since we only got 8 episodes in the fall, that might explain why we got less weeks off in the second half.  

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(edited)

So 22 and 23 are back to back? Pizza night!

Sorry, I haven't read the entire thread, I'm all over this board! So I'll go check, but if someone would clarify, I'd sure appreciate it!

Edited by Mick Lady
because I need help...
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8 minutes ago, Mick Lady said:

So 22 and 23 are back to back? Pizza night!

Sorry, I haven't read the entire thread, I'm all over this board! So I'll go check, but if someone would clarify, I'd sure appreciate it!

Yes, 22 and 23 are airing back to back on the same night.

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21 minutes ago, DittyDotDot said:

Yes, 22 and 23 are airing back to back on the same night.

I just want to know where "Carry on Wayward Son" is going to go. Before 22? Between 22 and 23? The things this show makes me think about.

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Just now, Mick Lady said:

Thanks TripleD and Jeddah! Certainly a pizza night, with lots of beer!

I'm thinking whiskey instead if beer, could be a long night. 

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Just now, Diane said:

I'm thinking whiskey instead if beer, could be a long night. 

LOL I dunno -- if I go the whiskey route, I'm not going to get all the way through E23. Maybe not even through E22, if I'm honest.

My thought is, "Pace yourself, pace yourself" ;)

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