Soaring. Against weak competition, CBS' The Big Bang Theory (19.3 million viewers Thursday) and NBC's Chicago Fire (8.5 million Wednesday) scored series highs. Ditto the third-season opener of PBS' Downton Abbey (7.9 million, way up from 4.2 million last January), the return of Lifetime's Dance Moms (2.8 million Tuesday), and TLC's Honey Boo Boo "holladay" special (3.1 million Sunday).
Not losing. NBC's The Biggest Loser lured 7 million viewers in a special Sunday premiere, up from last year. But the premiere of MTV's Buckwild was modest with 2.6 million Thursday, below even Jersey Shore's recent, depressed total. Four of Fox's Mobbed specials managed an average 2.9 million Wednesday and Thursday.
Rockin'. Helped by a two-hour Dick Clark retrospective (9.4 million), the prime-time portion of ABC's New Year's Rockin' Eve rung in 13.3 million viewers, its biggest in 12 years. And NBC had a massive 30.3 million viewers for Saturday's prime time NFL wild-card game between Minnesota and Green Bay, which handed the network another weekly win, likely its last for a while.
