One Chicago has turned NBC into the place to be on Wednesday nights for one solid block of shared universe programming. Thanks to Chicago Fire Season 8, Chicago P.D. Season 7, and Chicago Med Season 5, NBC has been crushing the ratings throughout the 2019-2020 TV season, even up against the Masked Singer juggernaut and long-running Survivor. All three Chicago shows are hits, but which is the most successful for NBC?
First, let's break down what the shows have going for them. Each of the three series has factors for and against. Chicago Med claims the enviable first hour of primetime at 8 p.m. ET, but it also faces the fiercest competition on Wednesday nights. Chicago Fire is the longest-running with the most established characters in One Chicago, but it has arguably gotten tired in recent years. Chicago P.D. has been running nearly as long as Fire and gets to go darker than the two other series, but it also airs late and crosses lines.
Together, the three shows of One Chicago made NBC the home of the first, second, and third most-watched dramas during the week of February 3. Although the "most-watched drama" category does mean The Masked Singer's numbers aren't factored into the calculations, Chicago Med at 8 p.m. ET, Chicago Fire at 9 p.m. ET, and Chicago P.D. at 10 p.m. ET giving NBC the top three most-watched drama broadcasts of the week is a very big deal.
Now, let's dive into which of the three shows won the biggest audience in the week of February 3.
Chicago Med
The big winner is none other than Chicago Med, which ranks as Wednesday's most-watched show of the night over Fox's The Masked Singer, CBS' Survivor, and the special bonus episode of ABC's The Bachelor. The February 5 episode of Med scored a 1.1 rating in the key 18-49 age demo and 8.7 million viewers overall in the 8 p.m. slot.
These numbers prove that Med stayed even with its numbers from the previous broadcast and actually bumped up by 3% in total viewership, from 8.4 million to 8.6 million. These numbers made the February 5 broadcast the most-watched episode of Med since the big "Infection" crossover crushed in the fall. Way to go, Chicago Med! So, which One Chicago series came in second behind Med?
Chicago Fire
That would be Chicago Fire! The longest-running Chicago series airing at 9 p.m. came in as the second biggest drama of the night of February 5 with a 1.1 rating and 8.2 million viewers. These numbers aren't too shabby, especially considering Fire was up against some stiff competition, if not quite The Masked Singer.
Chicago Fire went up against the series premiere of Fox's LEGO Masters (which likely got a boost from the Super Bowl on the previous Sunday), the second hour of the bonus Bachelor broadcast, and one of the final episodes of Criminal Minds' final season. Like Chicago Med, Fire remained steady with the 1.1 rating in the 18-49 demo from the week before and grew in overall viewership, from 8.1 million to 8.2 million.
Were Fire's numbers lower than Med? Yes. Still awesome for NBC? Absolutely. All of this of course means that Chicago P.D. comes in third of the three One Chicago series, but that doesn't mean its numbers were bad.
Chicago P.D.
Chicago P.D. scored a 1.1 demo rating to match Med and Fire on the night of February 5, and P.D. easily won the 10 p.m. time slot. In fact, P.D.'s 1.1 beat the rest of its 10 p.m. competition put together, with Criminal Minds winning 0.5 for CBS and Stumptown winning 0.4 for ABC. Like Med, the February 5 broadcast delivered the best numbers since the "Infection" crossover.
As for viewership, Chicago P.D. attracted an overall audience of 7.1 million. Astonishingly, the February 5 episode means that P.D. has won or tied the Wednesday 10 p.m. time slot for NBC vs. regular competition from ABC and CBS for the last 73 straight telecasts in the 18-49 demo, going all the way back to October 2016. NBC isn't going to be shedding any tears over P.D. coming in behind Med and Fire when it's soundly winning the 10 p.m. slot and even matched Med and Fire in the ratings for the week of February 3.
Based on last week's numbers for One Chicago, Med was first, Fire was second, and P.D. was third. That said, the latest numbers for One Chicago placing NBC in the top three slots for drama viewership is a pretty big deal. Of course, One Chicago was coming off of a mini hiatus with its February 5 episodes, so it should be interesting to see how the numbers compare for the February 12 broadcasts.
Be sure to drop by CinemaBlend on Fridays for new TV ratings rundowns, and find new episodes of One Chicago on NBC Wednesday nights, with Chicago Med at 8 p.m. ET, Chicago Fire at 9 p.m. ET, and Chicago P.D. at 10 p.m. ET in the 2020 midseason TV lineup.
