The Question, Thursday 1/29/15: Will ABC Be Thankful for TGIT's Return Ratings?

To borrow a joke from last year, ABC sure is glad to get the bad Taste out of its mouth. Tonight, the three-hour lineup of Shonda Rhimes-produced dramas known as "TGIT" is back on the air, and unlike last year (when they were held due to the Olympics) ABC gets to count the block in its February sweeps ratings. Since TGIT ended before Thanksgiving in 2014, though, the length of the hiatus was similar - just a week less than in the 2013-14 season. And these shows lost their "story of the season" status without even airing thanks to a Fox drama called Empire. Will ABC be thankful for TGIT's return ratings? That's The Question for Thursday, January 29, 2015.

TGIT This Season

3.1/2.53/2.4 (Grey's Anatomy premiere/avg/fall finale) 3.8/3.14/3.1 (Scandal premiere/avg/fall finale) 3.8/3.04/3.1 (HTGAWM premiere/avg/fall finale)

This three-hour block thoroughly dominated the Thursday entertainment landscape in the fall, but it will find a tougher slate of competitors for its return. Even if Backstrom tanks in week two, an American Idol-led Fox will be far stronger than it ever was in the fall. NBC figures to have one of its best Thursdays of the season with a two-hour The Biggest Loser finale and the Parenthood series finale. And The Big Bang Theory is back in original business. These shows aren't so overwhelming that TGIT can't increase from the fall finales, as Grey's and Scandal did last year. But I don't see them making serious runs at the fall premiere numbers.

Grey's Anatomy PLUS Scandal PLUS How to Get Away with Murder Over/Under: 9.35.

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