NBC had a big night last night. The Voice premiered its second episode and its first in its regular time slot from 8-10 p.m., followed by the premiere of Smash, the new musical drama starring Debra Messing and Jack Davenport, and featuring Angelica Huston. Normally, a premiere may not garner such intense interest. However, since NBC has been flailing in the wake of such duds as The Playboy Club and Rock Center, the success of The Voice and Smash means a lot.
Last night’s episode of The Voice premiered to a 6.6 rating in viewers from 18-49. Total viewers averaged at 17.7 million—which is still a drop off from the post-Super Bowl episode, but is a wild number for NBC and for The Voice itself, compared to last year. According to Deadline, The Voice is up 29% from its very first episode in Season 1. Last night, the singing competition won the evening.
If Smash had done equally well, NBC may have found a formula that crushed. While Smash did not pull in a sick 17.7 million viewers, the new musical drama still pulled in more than respectable numbers, bringing in 11.5 million viewers and a 3.8 rating in the coveted 18-49 demographic. The only two other drama premieres this season that have beat out these numbers are ABC’s Once Upon A Time and Fox’s Touch. So, ratings are currently high for Smash and reviews have been pretty positive. The only tidbit crushing these numbers a bit is the cost of production on the show.
Smash’s episodes are costing roughly $3.5 million apiece. In week one, the numbers are looking fine, but if Smash falls somewhat, I worry we may have another Camelot on our hands—highly touted and highly reviewed, but too damn expensive to produce.
In other news, over at CBS, 2 Broke Girls beat out Two and a Half Men for the first time in the waitress comedy’s run. Between Christina, Messing, McPhee, and Dennings, Monday nights are looking pretty powerful for women.
