Fox's ''Glee'' got some of its groove back Tuesday with a Michael Jackson-themed episode that resulted in a ratings surge, teaming with ''New Girl'' to lift the net to victory in key demos on a night when CBS aired repeats.
According to preliminary nationals from Nielsen, ''Glee'' (3.6 rating/10 share in adults 18-49, 9.0 million viewers overall) improved by 16% over its most recent episode two weeks ago, standing as Tuesday's top-rated program in 18-49 and logging its best score in the demo since early October. It was followed by ''New Girl'' (3.5/9 in 18-49, 7.2 million viewers overall), which was up a tick week to week and ruled as the evening's No. 1 show in 18-34 (3.7/11). Not so hot is 9:30 p.m. half-hour ''Raising Hope'' (2.1/5 in 18-49, 4.7 million viewers overall), which was down 9% from its last episode.
CBS hung in there with encores of its crime dramas ''NCIS'' (2.0/6 in 18-49, 12.9 million viewers overall), ''NCIS: Los Angeles'' (1.7/4 in 18-49, 11.1 million viewers overall) and ''Unforgettable'' (1.4/4 in 18-49, 7.8 million viewers overall), ranking second in adults 25-54 while winning easily in total viewers.
ABC, whose drama ''The River'' premieres next Tuesday, went with repeats of ''Last Man Standing'' at 8 (1.5/4 in 18-49, 5.6 million viewers overall) and 8:30 (1.7/5 in 18-49, 5.7 million viewers overall), followed by the finale of ''Celebrity Wife Swap'' (1.9/5 in 18-49, 5.6 million viewers overall) and a repeat of ''Body of Proof'' (1.1/3 in 18-49, 5.4 million viewers overall).
At NBC, ''The Biggest Loser'' (2.1/6 in 18-49, 6.1 million viewers overall) rated second among young adults from 8 to 10 p.m., but was on the low side. A repeat of ''Parenthood'' closed out the night (0.7/2 in 18-49, 2.4 million viewers overall).
CW's ''90210'' (0.7/2 in 18-49, 1.4 million viewers overall) was up week to week in some categories, while the return of ''Ringer'' (0.6/1 in 18-49, 1.4 million viewers overall) was in line with its previous performances.
Preliminary 18-49 averages for the night: Fox, 3.2/8; CBS, 1.7/5; ABC, NBC and Univision, 1.6/4; CW, 0.6/2.
In total viewers: CBS, 10.6 million; Fox, 7.5 million; ABC, 5.5 million; NBC, 4.8 million; Univision, 3.6 million; CW, 1.4 million.
Contact Rick Kissell at
rick.kissell@variety.com