Ratings for “Meet Kevin Johnson” Are In
It’s been strange to watch Lost steadily decline in the ratings over the past eight weeks, and I wish there was some kind of sensible explanation for it. The show has been keeping up the same high quality as always, so that’s not the problem. Are people just busy on Thursday nights and DVRing the show for a later date? Is Lost’s lack of a popular lead in hurting it? Who knows.
"Meet Kevin Johnson" brought in 11.28 million viewers, which is the lowest tally for the season. Maybe the show will do better when it moves to 10pm after Grey’s Anatomy next month. Surely a few people must enjoy wacky medical love triangles and time traveling mysteries.
"The Beginning of the End" — 16.07 million
"Confirmed Dead" — 15.06 million
"The Economist" — 13.62 million
"Eggtown" — 13.53 million
"The Constant" — 12.9 million
"The Other Woman" — 13.0 million
"Ji Yeon" — 11.87 million
"Meet Kevin Johnson" — 11.28 million
Eh, just as long as the show is not cancelled, or forced to make concessions like adding a rap artist to the cast or something, I’ll be cool
Comment by Haloedbmyname — March 21, 2008 @ 1:59 pm
Most Lost fans that I know and converse with ideally enjoy watching the dvd’s for the sole fact that there is NO break in the action, i.e. no commercials. These same people, and there are many, also do not watch Lost at the exact time it airs. Most wait until 9:20 so that they can watch and fast fwd through all the commercials (there’s usally 20-22 min of commercials for an hour episode). So being that Lost is that encapsulating, I imagine that as the season goes on and the suspense builds within the story line, more people are going to do what I just referenced.
thoughts?
Comment by Charlie's Ghost — March 21, 2008 @ 2:03 pm
Most Lost fans that I know and converse with ideally enjoy watching the dvd’s for the sole fact that there is NO break in the action, i.e. no commercials. These same people, and there are many, also do not watch Lost at the exact time it airs. Most wait until 9:20 so that they can watch and fast fwd through all the commercials (there’s usally 20-22 min of commercials for an hour episode). So being that Lost is that encapsulating, I imagine that as the season goes on and the suspense builds within the story line, more people are going to do what I just referenced.
thoughts?
Comment by Charlie's Ghost — March 21, 2008 @ 2:03 pm
Most people I know DVR the show. And, there’s quite a few that download it or watch it online at abc.com. Not that any of this matters in the rating game, because if you watch it “live”, you get to enjoy all of the commercials. Frankly, I almost never watch it live, since I get get so much more TV in when I fast forward that impatiently dealing with the latest Pepsi commercial. I think there’s enough of a buzz about the show that there isn’t a risk. It was still number 3 overall in the Network top 20, behind the two AI shows for the week. So, it’s not doing too shabby…
Comment by Don — March 21, 2008 @ 4:02 pm
Do ratings really matter for this show anymore? It is a top show for ABC reputation wise and we know they have only 2 more seasons after this so there is no danger of it being canceled. Many people I work with watch the show on Friday or over the weekend via DVR or ABC.com as they have things to do. Last night it was up against the NCAA Tournament so of course “live viewing” rating would be down. It’s not a big deal!
Comment by JD — March 21, 2008 @ 5:09 pm
Hey take it easy on pepsi my man…i work for em and well whats better than lost and pepsi so slow your roll.. this ratings thing doesnt mean anything to me cuz the show is not getting cancelled so it doesnt matter.
Comment by Michael Turner — March 21, 2008 @ 5:43 pm
I personally think that the show continues to have the problem it had last season–not enough character & relationship development among the major characters. For instance, how often have we seen Sawyer this season? I like the mysteries of the show but I think it was the array of characters that made the show so compelling. I want more scenes like the ones with Hurley & Sawyer or Danielle & Alex (I’m hoping we’ll see more of Rousseau).
Comment by JG — March 21, 2008 @ 6:05 pm
I just hate the way ABC handles the show. I honestly think that they have no respect for this show and the real fans.Its obvious that they favor all the other shows on their TV network. Each weeks ratings go down. I just hope it wont continue like this.
Comment by Sw0rDMaN — March 21, 2008 @ 7:53 pm
The network isn’t to blame. The pace of the show has not always been consistent and concrete answers are difficult for the average casual viewer to follow and thats what counts really. The writers need to start wrapping things up, solving mysterious and giving easily accessible answers or more viewer friendly interaction. I know people will say, well screw them if they cant figure it out or its their own fault that they can’t devote the proper attention and brainpower to understanding the show but unfortunately it does matter when ratings are considered.
Comment by Mick — March 21, 2008 @ 8:21 pm
It’s foolish for anyone to say Lost’s ratings aren’t important, especially considering they were the very thing that garnered the show its reputation in the first place. It was high-profile. It had stories that moved more than they shocked. And they had one…burning…question. Obviously we can’t expect the show to maintain that same kind of formula throughout its duration and I’m happy that it has changed its pace, but the simple truth is that its initial mammoth ratings gave the producers the ability to negotiate a series endpoint with the network, AND that subject to further, lower ratings the number of remaining episodes can be, shall we say, shortened. That contract isn’t set in stone. Don’t make the mistake of thinking it is.
So if you are in the boat that thinks “Lost isn’t going to get cancelled, just let the die-hard fans watch this show and everything will turn out all right”, you could not be more wrong. I point you straight at a show this week: Jericho. These fans broke their pocketbooks to get it back on the air, and it’s just been cancelled. Fans are not enough, especially for a serialized show whose audience will always be dwindling due to lost interest. We need to get more new viewers. LIVE viewers. I’ve already got almost my whole dormitory floor watching now, we all caught up with the series first semester and make it an appointment every Thursday to be in front of that HDTV. And it needs to happen on a larger scale.
Nobody can discount ratings when it’s what advertisers AND network executives want more than anything. Start converting new fans, people.
Comment by MizuNoHane — March 21, 2008 @ 9:17 pm
“It’s been strange to watch Lost steadily decline in the ratings over the past eight weeks, and I wish there was some kind of sensible explanation for it.”
You answer your own question in this article.
“and time traveling mysteries”
^^^What happened to the time when Lost was about developing an amazingly intriguing and diverse body of characters. What happened to the time when there was mysterious people roaming through the jungle, or a smoke monster, or the mysterious Jacob, or the Dharma initiative, or th strange healing powers.
APPERENTLY NOT EVERYONE IS THRILLED THAT THE SHOW IS NOW SOME WACKY SCI-FI TIME TRAVELING SHOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Comment by Matt — March 21, 2008 @ 11:03 pm
Actually I look more fondly to the time when the monster wasn’t revealed to be some stupid big fat smoke with AI all equiped with a people’s flashbacks scanner. …The hell?
I really liked those down to the ground explanations of the weird stuff, such as Jack’s seeing ghosts cause the loss of his father was recent AND also he hasn’t slept for days.
Then came the button season and the tailies fiasco and ruined it all.
Comment by Garret — March 21, 2008 @ 11:45 pm
I love Lost and appreciate it for all it’s perplexities, and plot twists. From what I’ve heard from people who used to watch Lost and stopped, it’s that the plot is too perplexed and complex. Let’s face it, Lost is not a show for those who like to “zone out” in front of the idiot box. Only those who think outside the box are going to appreciate it. That knocks out half of the population right there. Also, some people want the plot to unfold the way they want it to. Some people complain and say, ” I don’t want any ghost or supernatural theories to materialize” or “I don’t want any time travel, purgatory, sci fi or nanobot theories to materialize.” Well, if the writers listen to everybody, then they won’t have much to choose from, in terms of plot development. I say let’s just support the show, and appreciate the creativity of the writers, regardless how the plot unfolds.
Comment by Ra-Ra — March 22, 2008 @ 9:34 am
First, I’m a big, big Lost fan. I appreciate that this show is bascially a six year novel told in televised form. However, I think Season Four has some major issues.
1 - The new characters have not been written so as to advance the plot. They are vague and unknown. After half a season, this translates into boring and/or uninteresting. The actors are fine but there are now too many characters and not enough time to examine them. The Boat People needed to be a real threat to create tension in the characters and plot.
2 - The Locke of Season 4 is just about clueless. I know he will find his way back, but still.
3 - No Sawyer. Almost no Jack. Like them or hate them, these two have been nearly ignored this season. Some complain that Sawyer’s backstory is finished. He’s still fun to watch on the island with his humor. This season, he’s quiet and only reads for his action. Jack exists, but he’s doing nothing and is not the least bit curious about anything.
4 - Where’s the action and adventure? The locations are interiors and that is getting dull.
5 - If Jin has, in fact, been killed off, then it could have been done better. The show had a wonderful twist, but Jin’s death did not need to be yet another mystery. This is a major character. A likable one. Better that one of the Boat People (Charlotte?) killed Jin and the tension will mount as Sawyer oils his weapons for revenge.
6 - Kate, Sun, and Juliett. The actresses are great, but there’s been too much emphasis on these three.
7 - Some really decent acting by HP as Michael. But the show is treading water. Move it forward some. Libby’s part was too little.
In short, too little action and not enough Sawyer and Jack has made the first part of Season Four less than it should have been. That said, Lost tends to finish strong. I think it just needs to be a little more lean.
Comment by CK — March 22, 2008 @ 12:12 pm
The sole reason a show does worse, is simple. The network. It constantly screws with the days and times the show is on. Casual watchers have no patience for this, and will just say ’screw it’ and wont bother to watch. I’ve done it too with other shows. People want consistency. Another thing is, the ratings system is a complete farce. And yes, most people record the show to bypass the idiotic amount of commercials shown during a show. So.. the blame falls on the network.
Comment by Scourge — March 22, 2008 @ 1:55 pm
i dvr it and don’t watch it until 10 C but i make sure that my tv is on ABC so that way it counts the ratings
Comment by lost815 — March 22, 2008 @ 3:55 pm
I am a new viewer. I started watching last season (mid season) and I can’t get enough. I’ve watched season 1,2 and 3 on abc.com. I am the biggest advocate for the show even getting my parents to watch it. I can’t understand how it’s declining in the ratings. I do agree that we haven’t seen enough of Jack and Sawyer this season, but I think the shows are still great-my favorite this season was “The Constant”. There is no way this show would get canceled.
Comment by Kathy — March 22, 2008 @ 6:29 pm
I agree with many about the pacing and over-populated cast this season dragging the ratings down. I think that, with the strike looming and an already shorter-than previous season, they crammed a LOT (read: too much) mythology into it, which hurt the character-interaction (three exceptions being Juliet/Ben/Jack, Jin/Sun and Desmond/Penny).
But, and here’s the thing with LOST: they always end the season (pretty much starting from a break like this) with renewed vigor and excitement. The first part of seasons 2-4 have struggled for pacing and mythology/character balance. The endings of all completed seasons have been epic, moving and overwhelmingly good. I think they have a bunch of seemingly unconnected ingredients on the kitchen counter. In the end, it will make a delicious dish!
Comment by tomfishstory — March 23, 2008 @ 4:47 am
JD is right… this is exactly the kind of numb skull reactionary thinking that has marginalized this site… just a little bit of research would have shown you that all shows were down due to the NCAA, if you put those percentages back on LOST was actually up a little. This is beside the fact that was number one for the hour, even with the NCAA biting in. Christ, get a clue
Comment by DripDry — March 23, 2008 @ 8:36 am
More people than ever are LOST fans where I work. I believe the writers’ strike, good reviews of the 1st episode of the season, some good marketing, and word of mouth attracted many people who weren’t watching in the past. Some even bought or rented the DVDs of the prior seasons in order to catch up. The people I work with are a pretty representative group. That’s why I don’t understand the ratings being down.
Comment by Nanci — March 23, 2008 @ 12:51 pm
This is why networks and people have to stop putting so much into these so called ratings as it does not show the complete picture anymore. With Tivo, DVR, free internet downloads and things like iTunes and Xbox Live. Rarely people watch an episode live anymore they are watching it on the weekend when they have more time. For most people staying up until 10 or 11pm is to late to watch an episode of TV with having to get up early for work or getting kids off to school.
This is the reason Jericho has been cancelled twice lots of people were watching it they just weren’t watching it when it aired and CBS couldn’t grasp that concept.
Comment by seeweda — March 25, 2008 @ 11:43 am
I think the DVR is the culprit. I don’t start watching the show until 9:20. That way I can still be done watching @ 10, and not have to watch all the commercials. It is too easy. In the mean time, I get a load of laundry or the dishes done.
Comment by Ron — March 26, 2008 @ 10:09 am
Youre nuts.. the ratings have steadily declined because the content has steadily declined. This is a filler season that I’m thinking is going to backfire on the shows producers. In there attempt to bilk out all the money they can out of the show they will lose 2 seasons. I so wish all shows could be like the wire, know when to hold and when to fold.
Comment by Dan — March 26, 2008 @ 6:47 pm
I’m stil an avid LOST viewer, but it is starting to get predictable. As another earlier post mentioned, there’s a LOT less character development, and too many tangential stories are out there that aren’t being answered in any logical order.
It’s also becoming more and more “Steven Kingy,” and for those of us who prefer less metaphysical theories for LOST, this is troubling.
Comment by Chris — March 27, 2008 @ 11:54 am
I’m not going to post some long, drawn out description of all of the aspects of LOST that I have grown to dislike. My quick and dirty: We waited all of this time without Fall episodes to now have to wait until the end of April for a new episode!!!
Comment by Matt — March 27, 2008 @ 7:16 pm
When will they learn that ratings don’t mean anything anymore? People can’t watch Lost then they catch it the next day on ABC.com, why not check the ratings from TIVOed, internet and Nielson ratings? Not to mention bittorrent.
Comment by Sean — March 31, 2008 @ 9:05 pm