HDTV Ratings: November 12-15

Is Homeland, which continues tonight (TV3, 8.35), on the verge of blowing itself up?

That’s the question The Hollywood Reporter posed after last week’s episode.

“Homeland Red Flags: Will It Crash and Burn or Soar to Greatness?” was the headline for critic Tim Goodman’s review.

He went on to argue “several plot developments threaten to destroy the Emmy-winning show’s momentum …

“Television is littered with series that aspired to greatness but crashed and burned into mediocrity (or worse).

“Right now, Homeland is a gem.

“Manipulative storytelling already has destroyed the reputation of The Killing, and if Homeland gets 24-ish or ends season two with some unbelievable cliffhanger, we might witness the fastest decline of greatness and biggest waste of potential in some time.”

While the show has been popular enough in the US to be renewed for a third season midway through the second, the NZ ratings continue to see-saw.

Last week’s episode was one of the season’s most-watched yet, partly thanks to weaker opposition on TV One, which has succeeded top-rating Beyond the Darklands with the less appealing Australian series, The Suspects.

It still out-rated Homeland but the race was closer, with TV3’s HD drama averaging 7.3% (versus 10.1%) of the demographic both networks covet, 25-54 year-olds.

It averaged 4.3% – 6.8% of the other key demographics compared to 9.8% – 14.6% for TV2’s HD rival, Grey’s Anatomy.

The season-four premiere of Homeland’s HD stablemate, Nurse Jackie, rated disastrously, averaging only 1.3% – 2.5% against Private Practice’s 7.5% – 12.6% and Unforgettable’s 3.2% – 5.8%.

TV2’s Tuesday night HD dramas, The Mentalist and Body of Proof, also continue to dominate their slots, with last week’s episodes averaging 8.2% – 14.4% and 4.9% – 9.4% respectively.

On Wednesday, TV2’s The Walking Dead rated an astonishingly high 7.4% of household shoppers in its new 10.30pm slot, compared to 7.7% for lead-in Revolution (the two were further apart in other demos: 3.0% – 4.1% for Dead, 4.3% – 6.7% for Revolution).

TV One’s Wednesday re-run of Criminal Minds averaged 1.8% – 5.4%, which was well down on HD lead-in Is Modern Medicine Killing You? (4.5% – 8.6%) and no match for TV2’s HD comedies or TV3’s SD re-run of Bad Boys 2.

TV One’s Thursday re-run of Person of Interest (3.5% – 6.5%) was crushed by TV3’s The X Factor USA (8.5% – 11.0%).

But the latter and HD lead-out Rove LA (2.9% – 5.0%) were still out-rated by TV2’s three-hour reality block.