The second installment of CBS’ supernatural thriller Under the Dome suffocated the competition Monday night, stifling the premiere of NBC’s scripted series Siberia while keeping the struggling ABC drama Mistresses in check.
According to Nielsen live-plus-same-day data, Under the Dome last night retained 88 percent of its opening deliveries, averaging 11.8 million viewers and a 2.9 rating in the adults 18-49 demo. That falls well within the expected drop-off between a new series’ first and second episodes.
Monday’s broadcast also averaged a 3.9 in the adults 25-54 demo, marking a drop of 13 percent versus the preliminary 4.3 rating of a week ago.
Bowing against Dome in the 10 p.m. slot, NBC’s found-footage thriller Siberia failed to break the ice with viewers. The series opener drew 3.07 million total viewers and notched a 1.1 in the dollar demo. Siberia now stands as the second lowest-rated new summer drama premiere, topping only the Peacock’s imported procedural Crossing Lines (0.7).
As much as broadcasters no longer seem content to concede the sultry months to the cable networks, most of the new scripted efforts have belly-flopped into a drained pool. Other low-rated summer series openers include ABC’s Motive (1.3) and Mistresses (1.2).
Last night, the fifth installment of Mistresses averaged a 1.1 in the demo, flat versus the show’s June 24 broadcast.
Siberia began streaming on Hulu and NBC.com on June 25, a week before its TV premiere. The series was fully financed by Sierra/Engine Television, creators of NBC’s midseason pirate drama Crossbones, and Infinity Media founder and CEO Michael Ohoven.
NBC ordered the 13-episode standalone series on May 20, a week to the day after the network unveiled its 2013-14 upfront schedule in New York.
While the DVR ultimately could prove to be a shot in the arm for Siberia, it’s unlikely that the show will get the sort of lift Dome enjoyed in the three days immediately following its June 24 premiere. Per Nielsen live-plus-three-day data, time shifting raised the pilot’s overall deliveries to 16.7 million viewers (up 24 percent from 13.5 million live-plus-same-day viewers), while the 18-49 crowd grew 30 percent to a 4.3 rating and adults 25-54 were up 27 percent to a 5.7.