Overnights in the 18-49 Demo
Traffic's light for ABC's new 'Traveler'
Delayed action drama averages a 3.6 in 18-49s
By Toni Fitzgerald
MediaLifeMagazine.com staff writer Friday, May 11, 2007
ABC's Traveler received generally good reviews from critics, who wondered why the network had waited so long to debut what was supposed to be a midseason drama. They may have their answer: Despite airing in the cushy post-Grey's Anatomy timeslot last night, the show's premiere drew only so-so ratings.
Traveler averaged a 3.6 rating in adults 18-49, according to Nielsen overnights, losing 52 percent of its Grey's lead-in. The action drama was third in the 10 p.m. timeslot, though not by a lot, behind CBS's Without a Trace at 3.9 and NBC's ER at 3.8.
It fell 20 percent from its first half hour to its second, never a good sign. The show, in which two recent graduate students become suspects in a terrorist bombing after their friend disappears, won't air again until May 30, when it begins a summer run Wednesdays at 10 p.m.
Some media people, too, had tabbed the drama as promising when ABC announced it as a midseason replacement at last year's upfront. That's led to some speculation that later episodes of the show weren't as strong as the pilot, prompting the network to hold it back until summer.
Traveler had a lower-rated debut than several other new shows in the post-Grey's timeslot this year, including October Road and Six Degrees, though Grey's also pulled a higher rating airing before those shows.
Last night, a week after a two-hour episode that included the pilot for a potential spinoff averaged a 9.0, the show fell to a 7.5.
http://www.medialifemagazine.com/art...icle_12047.asp
