Save Your New Fave: We Have a Winner!

By Kristin Veitch Oct 26, 2006 4:41 PMTags
Studio 60, Matthew Perry, Lauren GrahamNBC/Paul Drinkwater

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip is a winner.

Seriously.

That might be the first time you've seen the word "winner" linked together with Studio 60 all season long, but I'm here to tell you, it's about time somebody said it.

The results are in for our first annual Save Your New Fave campaign—in which thousands of TV fans voted for their favorite endangered newbie—and Studio 60 is the clear winner. Not only did Aaron Sorkin's new NBC drama garner the most votes—38 percent—but it also inspired hundreds of fans to write impassioned pleas via email to help save it.

Simply put: Those who love this show, really, really love it.

If you don't love Studio 60, chances are you haven't been keeping up on it—because in case you hadn't heard, this show is so much better now.  

It's a shame, really, that Studio received such hype before it even began (though it was pretty unavoidable, with names like Sorkin, Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford on board), because many of the 17 million viewers who tuned in for the ho-hum pilot didn't stick around to see that Studio's potential has paid off—tenfold. In fact, Monday's episode was just about the best dang hour of television—anywhere—all season long. Sorkin's signature style is finally coming through and making the scripts zing, with stories and lines that evoke nearly every emotion (like laughing out loud when Perry calls his pal Lauren Graham's show Calico Girls).

So, here it is, the almighty plea to NBC. On behalf of the thousands of fans who voted for Studio 60 in the Save Your New Fave campaign, the millions of fans who are watching each week and the millions more who will watch when they hear how good this show has become: Please don't give up on Studio 60. With a little patience, Studio could become the next big ratings great. It just needs a little time to get there.

Now, to those of you who voted for other shows: The list was long, and there were many good contenders. Here's how it all came down and where each show currently stands in the ratings.

SAVE YOUR NEW FAVE: FINAL RESULTS

The Winner: Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, with 38% of the vote. Monday night, 7.74 million viewers tuned in. (Note: Friday Night Lights will be taking Studio's spot this coming Monday—hopefully for one week only.)

Runner-up: The Nine, 26%. ABC's new action thriller has about half the audience of its lead-in, Lost, but it did attract 100,000 new viewers last week.

Third Place: Men in Trees, 18%. Even by ABC standards, 6.24 million viewers is actually not too shabby for Friday night. Which is good news, 'cause this show is way better than you'd think it is.

Fourth Place: Six Degrees, 8%. Another newbie that's gotten better with age, but, sadly, ABC's Six is pulling in fewer viewers every week. Last week, it attracted only 8.36 million viewers, which is pretty piddly with a lead-in like Grey's Anatomy.

Fifth Place: Friday Night Lights, 7%, with 6.3 million viewers. The big test will be how NBC's Lights fares on Monday in Studio's slot. Hopefully there's room for both!

Sixth Place: Justice, 3%. Right now, 6.2 million viewers is just enough to make Justice Fox's number one promotional priority.

*Note: 'Til Death, Happy Hour, Twenty Good Years, Vanished and Standoff all received less than 1 percent of the total vote.

Surprised by the vote? Think your show was robbed? Sound off in the comments below.