Red Alert for Code Black?

TVNZ 1 will pre-empt Code Black for a Mrs Brown’s Boys Easter special on April 13 but if the hospital drama’s ratings don’t improve, it may go the way of Blindspot.

Blindspot was dumped from 8.30 Thursdays to 9.30 Mondays after failing to sustain enough viewers.

And although Code Black has improved on its performance, and is scheduled to resume on April 20, its prospects are still anaemic.

Last night’s episode averaged 3.1% of the network’s target audience, 25-54 year-olds, compared to 5.8% for TVNZ 2’s Sensing Murder and 4.6% for the first hour of Three’s repeat of Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol.

Since its season premiere on March 9, Code Black’s 25-54 average has slipped from 4.2% to 3.9% to 3.0% before improving incrementally this week.

Moreover, last night’s viewership was only half a rating point higher than Blindspot’s before it was pulled.

Time slot rival Sensing Murder’s also shed viewers since it launched with 7.6% of 25-54s and 7.0% of TVNZ 2’s core viewership, 18-49s.

The second week’s instalment rated even higher — 8.7% and 8.0% of these demos respectively — but last night it averaged only 5.8% and 5.4% respectively in the face of tougher movie competition on Three.

Overall M:I averaged 4.5% of 25-54s and 3.6% of 18-49s, with its second half winning the 9.30 hour against TVNZ 1’s Coronation Street and TVNZ 2’s The Lie Detective.

Despite lower numbers from 8.30-10.30, TVNZ 2 dominated the night with Shortland Street, Police Ten 7, Motorway Patrol and Sensing Murder winning the key demos from 7.00-9.30.