RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Glee’ Rises With Cory Monteith Tribute, ‘Once Upon A Time In Wonderland’ Soft In Debut, NBC Fades

Last night’s Glee episode, an emotional send-off of tragic star Cory Monteith‘s character Finn, drew a 2.8 rating in adults 18-49, 2.9 in 18-34 and 7.4 million viewers. That was up +75% from last week in 18-49, up 81% in 18-34 and up 68% in total viewers. Written by Glee creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan, “The Quarterback” was the series’ highest-rated episode in 18-49 and 18-34 in more than a year. In 18-49, it tied ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy in the 9 PM hour. At 8 PM, The X Factor (1.9) was down a tenth.

Related: Ryan Murphy Exclusive On Cory Monteith Memorial Episode

The Wonderland rabbit hole was no match for the black hole the ABC 8 PM slot has become, swallowing a slew of newcomers over the past few years. In its debut, spinoff Once Upon a Time In Wonderland (1.7 in 18-49) couldn’t conjure the magic of the original series, down 23% from the premiere of new defunct Last Resort in the Thursday 8 PM hour last fall and just above the opener of fellow casualty My Generation in fall 2010 (1.6). Grey’s Anatomy (2.8) was down 7% from its fast national last week. Scandal (3.1) was down 14% from its record-setting season premiere last week and again the top-rated Thursday drama.

NBC’s Thursday lineup is flat-lining with an average 1.1 rating. Parks And Recreation (1.2) was down a tenth from its fast national last week (flat with the final) for the best retention on the network by a mile. Its 1.2 actually was the highest rating of the night on NBC, tied by The Michael J. Fox Show (down a big 29%) and Parenthood (down 20%). In their second week, Welcome To The Family (0.8) and Sean Saves The World (1.0) tumbled from their underwhelming premieres, down 27% and 29%, respectively. (more…)