Despite its most recent episode pulling in the lowest ratings of the season so far, the drama Shades of Blue is considered a successful hit over at NBC. So much so that the network has put in an order for Season 2, which means we probably won’t have to worry about Jennifer Lopez’s Harlee Santos getting arrested in the Season 1 finale and then heading to a maximum security prison for the next 30 years.
Regardless of Thursday night’s numbers, Shades of Blue has proven itself to be dependable in bringing audiences in since its series premiere just under a month ago, which was apparently enough to justify this speedy renewal order. Over the course of its first five episodes, Shades of Blue has pulled in an average audience of 11.2 million people when Live + 3 results are added up, with a key 18-40 demo rating of 2.5. It’s hard to tell whether people are watching because they’re generally interested, or if Ray Liotta’s Lt. Matt Wozniak has visited each person’s house and “convinced” them to tune in.
Both of those numbers are definitely solid, both in general and for NBC specifically. Thursday nights haven’t been amazing for the network after it left behind its Must See TV comedy scheduling, particularly when it’s football season. But in the post-Blacklist spot, Shades of Blue has managed to become the first regular programming to beat out ABC and CBS in the 10-11 p.m. ET timeslot since March 2010 in the key demo, and since March 2008 in overall viewers. (What, The Player wasn’t enough for people?) Turns out more folks are interested in seeing Jennifer Lopez risk her life as an informant over whatever is happening on Elementary and How to Get Away With Murder. And as evidenced by the numbers in the preceding paragraph, the show is a hit in time-shifted viewing, with its Live+7 numbers nearly doubling the show’s audience on the night it airs.
Shades of Blue has received mostly mixed reviews, though more on the positive side than the negative one. Created by Adi Hasak, the show centers on a squad of Brooklyn detectives led by Liotta, who has no problem working beyond the law in order to do what needs to be done. When Lopez’s Detective Santos gets snagged by the FBI, she is forced to join the Bureau’s anti-corruption task force in order to stay out of jail, but she also wants to keep her job family as safe as possible.
NBC didn’t state just how many episodes of Shades of Blue were being ordered for Season 2, so it’s not yet clear if this will return during the fall season, or if it will remain a midseason mainstay. Considering NBC will be handling Thursday Night Football for five games next season, it’s hard to say what the network’s plan will be. Are you guys jazzed for more?
