Friday, February 23, 2007

Overnight TV Ratings -- Goodbye "OC"

"Grey's Anatomy" clearly was NOT hurt by the brouhaha over the bigoted comments of one cast member. The show has now definitely solidified its lead over "CSI." "My Name Is Earl" and "The Office" were both especially good last night. Oprah's first Oscar special won the 10 p.m. slot. And oh how I teared up for the finale of "The OC." I was a very faithful watcher in season one, but drifted away by the end of season two. So here I was watching people reunite when I had no idea who they were. SPOILER ALERT. I saw the Cohens invade the home of a gay couple in Berkeley. They gave up their home and sold it to them once it became clear that this was where the Cohens belonged -- besides, gay men don't have REAL lives, so how could they feel an attachment to their home? By the way, one of them proved to be a midwife while the other was a wedding planner. At least the show meant that to be funny instead of a given. At the very end, Ryan wandered through their empty OC mansion, in a clear echo of the finale of "Upstairs, Downstairs" complete with echoing voices from the past and glimpses of early episodes. Boy, nothing dates faster than the appearance of a soap star -- Benjamin McKenzie was only wearing a t-shirt in glimpses from the pilot, but somehow that looked out of style too. We see that Seth and Summer ultimately do get married and in a very silly finale, Ryan years later is leaving a construction site, sees a troubled but handsome kid on a bike who looks lost, remembers how he was taken in by the Cohens and asks the kid if he needs any help. I thought the kid -- who might just have been waiting for his friends ----- might say, "Get away from me, you perv," but in fact he really was troubled but good-looking, just like Ryan. (Does anyone ever rescue the troubled but fat kids?) Ah, the circle of life. For a complete ratings breakdown, go to MediaWeek's Marc Berman.

8 p.m.
1. American Idol -- 24.18 million viewers
2. Survivor: Fiji -- 13.59 million
3. Grey's Anatomy (r) -- 9.73 million
4. My Name Is Earl -- 8.70 million/The Office -- 8.24 million
5. Smallville (r) -- 2.93 million

9 p.m.
1. Grey's Anatomy -- 27.29 million
2. CSI -- 21.59 million
3. Scrubs -- 5.69 million/30 Rock -- 4.58 million
4. The OC (series finale) -- 6.68 million
5. Supernatural (r) -- 1.73 million

10 p.m.
1. The Oprah Winfrey Oscar Special -- 15.78 million
2. Shark -- 14.27 million
3. ER -- 9.93 million

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