HD Ratings: Sons Steps on the Gas

TV3’s Sons of Anarchy is accelerating in the ratings, with Wednesday’s episode largely winning the 9.30 hour.

It averaged 5.6% – 10.0% of the key demographics, overtaking TV2’s Hell’s Kitchen, which out-rated it the previous week, and only losing ground to TV One’s Undercover Boss in the 18-39 demo.

Sons of Anarchy’s Katey Sagal and Jimmy Smits

The bikie gang drama’s escalating popularity coincides with news from the US that Jimmy Smits, who joined the series this season, will reprise his role as brothel owner Nero Padilla in season six.

Meanwhile, Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter and former Hell on Wheels showrunner John Shiban are developing Lucas Stand, a dark action/horror drama series for the FX network.

In other HD ratings news, Anarchy lead-in Wild Colombia ended its four-week run on a high, averaging 4.4% – 6.2%.

It wasn’t enough to challenge the supremacy of TV2’s HD comedies The Big Bang Theory (13.4% – 18.6%) and 2 Broke Girls (10.0% – 15.2%).

But it was more popular than Winners and Losers except with household shoppers.

TV One did better Thursday with its two-hour comedy block dominating most of the demos.

Agent Anna ended its run more popular with viewers than real estate agents, on a season high of 5.8% – 12.6%.

While TV2’s Once Upon a Time could only win its first quarter hour outright, its overall average of 7.6% – 12.2% was ahead of Bones’ 4.8% – 8.2%.

Incidentally, Bones creator Hart Hanson has a crime drama pilot in the works for the 2013/14 season called Backstrom, starring The Unit’s Dennis Haysbert as a self-destructive detective.