'Pushing Daisies' Shows Lots of Life in the Ratings

Adored by critics, ABC's forensic fairy tale "Pushing Daisies" also blossomed with viewers in its first broadcast, attracting the biggest opening audience of any scripted series on any network in the Wednesday 8 o'clock hour since ABC launched "Lost" in September '04.

"Daisies" garnered an average audience of about 13 million viewers. It had no real competition in the time slot. The nearest thing was NBC's "Deal or No Deal," with around 11 million viewers, trailed far behind by CBS's "Kid Nation" (7.5 million), Fox's "Back to You" and " 'Til Death" (6.4 mil) and the CW's "America's Next Top Model" (4.5 mil).

It was the same story among the 18-to-49-year-old viewers who are the currency of the broadcast TV business.

But the very next hour, NBC's "Bionic Woman" -- last week's Holy Cow! launch -- fumbled 30 percent of its Premiere Week audience in the 18-to-49 age bracket NBC sells, and had a similar spill among viewers overall, drawing 11 million. Reminder to ABC: It's not about how many people watch the "Pushing Daisies" premiere; it's about how many people return for Episode 2. This is known as the "Studio 60" Theorem.

"Bionic Woman" stumbled despite this week's introduction of Isaiah Washington to the cast, capping off his busy joining-the-"Bionic"-cast media blitz, a highlight of which was his interview with the New York Post in which he confided he's so hot there's already talk at NBC of a "Bionic" spinoff starring his new character.

But -- one week after "Bionic Woman's" sensational Premiere Week thumping of ABC's much-ballyhooed "Grey's Anatomy" spinoff, "Private Practice," among younger viewers -- "Practice" won the Wednesday 9 o'clock hour in the demographic group. The Reporters Who Cover Television scrambled back to their computers to craft "Private Practice" Tosses "Bionic Woman" stories when, in truth, the ABC series simply fell less, week to week, than did "Bionic Woman."

In that same 9 p.m. hour, CBS's "Criminal Minds" was the only series to grow its audience week to week. Nearly 15 million "CM" viewers, some of whom had strayed the previous week to sample "PP" and "BW," returned this past Wednesday in time to see Jason Gideon, played by show lead Mandy Patinkin, walk contemplatively away to start the next chapter of his life.