Today begins the 28 days of May Sweeps. When it ends on May 23, so ends the regular TV season.
Last week Robert California fired Andy Bernard, but Ed Helms is still on “The Office.”
NBC says of tonight’s “Fundraiser”:
Unemployed Andy crashes a fundraiser for the Senator (guest star Jack Coleman) and winds up adopting twelve disabled dogs. Dwight discovers that winning an auction means losing money, and Darryl teaches Nellie how to eat a taco.
If Andy keeps those disabled dogs, he is the hands-down the most lovable TV character ever.
Spoilers regarding future episodes lurk in the text invisible.
* Robert California will soon and drunkenly shut down a nearby branch.
* Jim and Dwight will join forces against a third salesman.
* Dwight will try to collect DNA from Angela’s baby’s diaper, thus precipitating a car chase.
* Andy will learn an important secret about Robert California.
* In James Spader’s final episode airing May 10, California will find himself pursuing a new job opportunity. Jenna Fischer describes California’s exit to E! Online as “surprisingly sexual.”
“30 Rock” tonight airs its second live show in Studio 8H, longtime home to “Saturday Night Live.” Last season’s first live show, featuring loads of guest stars, elevated “30 Rock” to a 3.1 in adults 18-49. Three weeks ago "30 Rock" hit a 1.2.
Tonight’s “Community” is a parody of “Law & Order.” I’ve seen it and am saddened to report it is not one of the series’ stronger efforts.
Get More: Punk'd, Full Episodes
Premiering tonight:
Don’t Be Tardy For The Wedding (9pm Bravo) follows " Real Housewives of Atlanta" star Kim Zolciak and Atlanta Falcons defensive end Kroy Biermann as they prepare to tie the knot.
7 Days of Sex (10pm Lifetime) challenges couples “to have sex for one week straight with the hope of saving their marriage.” I don’t know if they get real bathroom breaks, or have to incorporate these into their lovemaking.
The Conversation With Amanda de Cadenet (11pm Lifetime) is a celebrity interview program hosted by the “British television personality and renowned photographer.”
* The Thursday edition of “Idol” matched its season low of 3.9. Last year its low was 5.7.
* “The Office” matched its season low of 2.2 last week. Its low last season was 3.3.
* Tim Kring’s “Touch” hit another new low last Thursday. Even though its lead-in is TV’s most popular series, “Touch” is doing much worse than the final season of “24,” Kiefer Sutherland’s last Fox series (which did NOT follow “American Idol”). Here are the 18-49 ratings for the first six nights of “24’s” final season two years ago:
2.8 (3.3) (3.1) (3.4) (3.5) (3.9)
* “Scandal,” ABC’s latest Shonda Rhimes hourlong, rose for the first time to match the last Thursday rating of 2.1 posted by Rhimes’ “Private Practice.” “Practice” meanwhile hit a 2.2 this week in its new Tuesday timeslot after “Dancing With The Stars.”
* “Parks And Recreation” fared rather better than recent episodes of “Up All Night” in the same post-“Office” timeslot. “Parks” returned as NBC’s third-highest scripted show in primetime last week, behind “The Office” and “Smash.”
* Even with “Idol” weakened and “Big Bang” a repeat, “Community” matched its season low of 1.3.
* “Awake” hit a new low of 0.8 last Thursday. That matches the Thursday low hit by the cancelled “The Firm.” The cancelled “Prime Suspect” never went below 0.9 in the same timeslot.
* The CW’s top series, “The Vampire Diaries,” hit last Thursday a series low of 1.0. Two seasons ago “Diaries” peaked with a couple of 2.0s. A little over a decade ago, the sixth season premiere of UPN’s “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” hit a 4.3 in adults 18-49. Whatever happened to that Joss Whedon fellow?
* "Eagleheart" jumped up to a 0.8!
Thursdays, Feb. 2-April 19, 2012
(18-49 finals; repeats in grey; prior weeks in parentheses)
3.9 (4.3) (3.9) (4.4) (4.2) (4.6) (4.9) (5.4) (4.5) (5.1) (5.8) (5.5) American Idol
3.2 (2.9) (2.8) (1.2) (1.2) (3.0) (1.4) (1.1) (3.1) (3.2) (4.0) (3.6) Grey’s Anatomy
2.5 (3.0) (4.4) (4.7) (---) (---) (5.1) (3.2) (5.3) (5.1) (5.6) (5.5) Big Bang Theory
2.2 (2.2) (1.0) (1.2) (---) (2.4) (2.6) (2.5) (2.6) (2.3) (2.5) (2.8) The Office
2.2 (2.7) (2.7) (2.7) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Rules of Engagement
2.1 (2.0) (2.0) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Scandal
2.1 (2.3) (2.3) (2.7) (3.3) (2.2) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (3.9) Touch
1.8 (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (1.8) (1.7) (1.7) (1.7) (---) (1.7) Parks and Recreation
1.5 (---) (2.4) (2.7) (---) (---) (2.8) (1.7) (2.6) (2.7) (3.0) (2.9) The Mentalist
1.5 (1.6) (1.0) (1.7) (---) (1.5) (0.9) (1.0) (2.2) (0.9) (1.2) (0.9) NBA Basketball
1.5 (1.8) (3.0) (3.3) (---) (---) (3.4) (1.8) (3.1) (2.8) (3.3) (3.3) Person of Interest
1.5 (1.8) (1.7) (1.6) (0.8) (2.0) (1.9) (1.8) (1.7) (1.6) (1.9) (---) Swamp People
1.5 (1.4) (1.2) (1.5) (1.6) (2.0) (1.4) (1.4) (1.5) (1.5) (1.6) (1.3) 30 Rock
--- (1.5) (1.2) (1.3) (1.5) (1.7) (1.7) (1.6) (1.7) (1.5) (1.7) (1.8) Up All Night
1.3 (1.4) (1.3) (1.7) (1.7) (2.2) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Community
1.3 (1.4) (1.5) (1.5) (1.6) (2.1) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Missing
1.0 (0.4) (0.4) (1.2) (1.3) (1.2) (0.4) (0.4) (0.5) (1.4) (1.3) (1.2) Vampire Diaries
0.9 (0.8) (0.7) (0.7) (0.4) (0.7) (0.5) (0.7) (0.8) (0.6) (0.4) (0.8) The Daily Show
0.8 (0.9) (0.9) (1.0) (1.2) (1.6) (1.6) (2.0) (---) (---) (---) (---) Awake
0.8 (0.8) (0.7) (---) (---) (---) (0.4) (---) (---) (0.7) (---) (0.7) Impractical Jokers
0.8 (0.8) (0.8) (1.6) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Pauly D Project
--- (---) (---) (0.8) (0.8) (2.1) (---) (---) (2.1) (2.6) (2.2) (2.3) Private Practice
0.8 (0.6) (0.5) (0.6) (---) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) (0.7) (0.4) (---) (0.7) Colbert Report
0.8 (0.6) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Eagleheart
0.7 (0.5) (0.6) (0.5) (0.4) (---) (0.5) (0.6) (0.6) (0.6) (0.6) (0.6) Conan
0.7 (0.7) (0.6) (0.6) (0.7) (0.6) (0.8) (0.5) (0.4) (0.5) (0.4) (0.6) The First 48
0.7 (0.9) (0.9) (1.6) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Punk’d
0.6 (0.7) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (0.5) (---) (---) (---) (0.4) After The First 48
0.6 (0.8) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Sold!
0.5 (0.5) (0.4) (0.5) (0.5) (0.4) (0.4) (0.4) (0.3) (0.3) (0.3) (0.4) House Hunters
0.5 (0.5) (0.4) (0.4) (0.4) (0.4) (0.4) (0.4) (0.3) (0.3) (0.4) (---) House Hunters Intl
0.5 (0.5) (0.5) (0.4) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) (0.5) Impact Wrestling
0.5 (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Kathy
0.5 (0.3) (0.4) (0.6) (0.7) (0.7) (---) (---) (---) (0.7) (0.8) (0.7) Secret Circle
0.5 (0.5) (0.5) (0.4) (0.5) (0.4) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Sweet Genius
0.4 (---) (---) (---) (0.3) (---) (---) (---) (0.3) (0.5) (0.4) (0.5) Chelsea Lately
0.4 (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) (---) Not Safe For Work
0.4 (---) (---) (---) (---) (0.4) (---) (0.3) (---) (---) (---) (0.4) Watch What Happens
0.4 (0.5) (0.4) (---) (0.4) (---) (0.5) (0.4) (0.5) (0.4) (0.4) (0.5) World’s Dumbest
0.3 (0.4) (0.3) (0.3) (0.3) (0.2) (0.4) (0.3) (0.2) (0.3) (0.4) (0.3) O’Reilly Factor
0.3 (0.3) (---) (0.4) (0.3) (0.3) (0.3) (0.4) (0.4) (---) (0.3) (0.4) Selling New York
0.2 (0.3) (0.2) (0.3) (0.2) (---) (0.2) (0.2) (---) (---) (0.3) (0.2) Hannity
