"Grey's" Goes to Summer School

Tue., Aug. 1, 2006 4:00 PM PDT by Joal Ryan

Summer is not fall, which is a good thing for Grey's Anatomy. It's still learning how to compete with CSI.

Last week, in the latest preview of the new season's most anticipated matchup, CBS' Las Vegas forensic experts outdrew ABC's Seattle M.D.s by more than 4 million viewers in the 9 p.m., Thursday hour.

In the Nielsen Media Research rankings, the contest didn't look like much of one: CSI ranked second for the week ended Sunday, with 10.4 million viewers; Grey's Anatomy ranked 38th, with 6 million.

Grey's Anatomy, however, is closing the gap. The first time it went scalpel-to-scalpel with CSI, during the week of July 9, it got beat by nearly 6 million viewers. So far, all of the battles have been dress rehearsals: Both shows are in reruns.

ABC, which is gambling by moving a Sunday hit to Thursday, has been prepping audiences for the change by airing Grey's almost as much as According to Jim.

This week, as last, Grey's will air three times, twice on Thursday and once on Sunday. According to Jim airs four times on Tuesday, apparently as part of a test of human endurance.

The 2006-07 season kicks off in September.

Elsewhere:

Grey's Thursday night rerun performance is catching up with its Sunday night rerun performance--31st place, 6.5 million. It is Hannah Montana's world; 7 million Disney Channel devotees just watch it. The tween comedy topped TNT's The Closer (6.6 million) for bragging rights as cable's most watched show of the week. Rappin' Granny won't be denied, and neither will America's Got Talent (third place, 10.4 million--Wednesday; 16th place, 7.6 million--Thursday). Among the other summer reality shows: The Wednesday edition of Fox's So You Think You Can Dance (sixth place, 9.2 million) claimed a Top 10 spot; the Thursday edition of Dance (11th place, 8.4 million), Hell's Kitchen (18th place, 7.46 million), Last Comic Standing (19th place, 7.45 million) and Tuesday's Big Brother (20th place, 7.3 million) claimed Top 20 spots. NBC's Treasure Hunters (68th place, 4.5 million) claimed a Top 70 spot. MTV's The Hills (2.2 million) has been renewed for a second season of hook-ups. The second-season premiere of E!'s The Girls Next Door (1.7 million) "delivered the [network's] highest rated telecast since 2003 among households" not exclusive of the Playboy Mansion. (E! Online is a division of E! Networks.)

Overall, CBS was the week's most watched network. It averaged 7.3 million viewers, and was trailed by NBC (6.3 million), Fox (5.5 million) and ABC (5 million).

Here's a look at the 10 most watched prime-time shows for the week ended Sunday, according to Nielsen Media Research:

1. Without a Trace, CBS, 10.5 million viewers
2. CSI, CBS, 10.4 million viewers
3. America's Got Talent, NBC, 10.35 million viewers
4. CSI: Miami, CBS, 10.2 million viewers
5. House, Fox, 10 million viewers
6. So You Think You Can Dance (Wednesday), Fox, 9.2 million viewers
7. Two and a Half Men, CBS, 8.9 million viewers
8. Law & Order: SVU, NBC, 8.8 million viewers
9. CSI: NY, CBS, 8.7 million viewers
10. Criminal Minds, CBS, 8.6 million viewers