Stargate SG-1 led off the new SCI FI Friday line-up with a 2.0 household rating in its new timeslot (8 p.m. Eastern/Pacific), drawing 2.5 million viewers for “Gemini.” This was an improvement of over 80 percent from the same timeslot’s first quarter average a year ago, and an increase of two-tenths of a point from the last original episode (“Endgame,” September 17) and even with the season average to date.
Stargate Atlantis built on the audience at 9 p.m. Eastern/Pacific with a 2.1 household rating. About 2.6 million viewers tuned in for “The Eye,” a 24 percent improvement over the timeslot a year ago. Atlantis also gained two-tenths of a ratings point from the summer finale (“The Storm,” September 17). This week’s rating is slightly down from the show’s 2.3 average rating to date, boosted by the record-setting, 2-hour premiere last July.
Finally, the third episode of SCI FI’s new Battlestar Galactica took the crown for the night with a 2.3 household rating at 10 p.m. Eastern/Pacific, down three-tenths of a point from the previous week. 2.9 million viewers tuned in for “Bastille Day,” a whopping 109 percent ratings improvement over the timeslot’s first quarter 2004 average.
It is the first time that new episodes of a Stargate series have aired on SCI FI and not been the network’s highest-rated show since SG-1 relocated from Showtime in 2002.
The success of the network’s new SCI FI Friday line-up made The SCI FI Channel number one in primetime among cable channels for the evening in several key demographics. SCI FI also ranked third overall (among viewers age two and older). January 21 was also the most-watched Friday ever in SCI FI’s first quarter.
All-new episodes continue this Friday, January 28, beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern/Pacific!