Ratings All-Stars: Week of January 10th 

A ratings juggernaut tops itself; a canceled comedy returns to the airwaves and scores big; and in the dead of winter, a spray-tanned reality show heats things up Jersey-style. Here are the three ratings all-stars for the week of January 10th.

1. NCIS, CBS

The mid-season premiere of CBS’ NCIS was a good one. “Ships in the Night” featured a great guest star appearance from former Law & Order SVU-er Diane Neal, who once again played Gibbs’ Coast Guard counterpart, CGIS Special Agent Abigail Borin. Plus, the dialogue was funny; the episode featured a team-oriented case; and you can’t beat Michael Weatherly doing his best Albert Finney doing Hercule Poirot impression. But who knew the January 11th installment would reel in just under 22 million viewers? This is a series high for the show, which is incredible considering the hit drama is in its eighth season. Sure, “Ships in the Night” didn’t have much in the way of competition since a lot of shows haven’t returned from winter hiatus yet, but you still can’t discount just how huge this really is. And not only did NCIS post its best numbers in overall viewers, but it also pulled in a great number in the Adults 18-49 demo. On top of that, it provided a great lead-in for the rest of the CBS lineup which included NCIS: LA and The Good Wife. And Mark Harmon was just voted America’s Favorite TV Personality. NCIS is truly the gift that keeps on giving. Now that American Idol has wisely removed itself from the strong Tuesday night competition, the military drama may not even be subjected to the sizable ratings drop that usually coincides with the FOX reality phenomenon returning to primetime TV. Congrats, NCIS!

2. The Game, BET

After the CW canceled The Game and it went off the air in May 2009, there was a sense the story wasn’t over for this show. Fans weren’t ready to say goodbye to the comedy that featured football players and their significant others (and ex-significant others). Just a few months after the show went off the air, it was announced that BET would resurrect it. And finally this week, a little under two years after its cancellation, it returned to primetime and basic cable. But there was nothing basic about the show’s debut. I was ecstatic when I heard that The Game‘s one-hour premiere scored 7.7 million viewers. Wow. What a coup for BET, huh? When the CW originally announced the sitcom’s cancellation, I just didn’t understand it. I get that the half-hour comedy format didn’t fit in with the network’s new direction. My friends and I had hoped that they would flip the switch on The Game, turn it into a one-hour (melo)drama they’re so good at producing and let the show live on. So, I really appreciated the fact that The Game kicked off Season 4 with a one-hour episode. It showed me that it could be done. The drama was over-the-top in a good way, even as one character was taking part in her own Real Housewives-esque reality show. Things happen for a reason. If The Game had stayed on the CW, it probably wouldn’t have had the same kind of success and become BET’s highest-rated original series. Now, let’s see if future episodes can keep up the momentum and score a ratings touchdown week after week.

3. Jersey Shore, MTV

All right, I’ll admit it. I’ve never seen an episode of Jersey Shore. I know, where have I been? It’s just something that’s never happened for me. I can’t explain it because I usually try to watch everything once. I know names like The Situation and Snookie. I know this show is MTV’s biggest hit. I just didn’t know how massive a hit it was; it’s breaking records big. Roughly 8.6 million viewers tuned in Thursday night. And even better, the reality phenom snagged a 4.4 rating in the Adults 18-49 demo. This means that at least demo-wise, which seems to be the only number that anyone cares about these days, Jersey Shore did better than Grey’s Anatomy! A friend at work told me that the January 13th episode was the continuation of a cliffhanger from the Season 3 premiere the previous week, so that probably helped contribute to the success of this particular Jersey Shore. Oh and it did even better than that premiere, which earned a gigantic 8.45 million viewers. Seriously, this over 8 million thing boggles my mind. Jersey Shore definitely earned its all-star stripes this week.