Ratings: ‘Elementary’ season 3, ‘Reign’ season 2 uncover further struggles

The final numbers are in for the Thursday-night broadcast, and they spell some okay news for some shows, and some very bad news for others.

Case in point here is “Elementary,” which is because more and more obvious by the day as a very surprising disappointment for CBS. It was just a year and a half ago that the network gave this show the spot after the Super Bowl, and for an episode featuring a cameo from NFL great Phil Simms, all they had to show was a series-low 1.4 rating in the 18-49 demographic. While “The McCarthys” (1.4) is not doing them many favors, it feels like the combination of NFL football and “How to Get Away with Murder” (2.9) are killing Jonny Lee Miller and company.

Is syndication likely going to save the show until at least season 4? Probably, but don’t expect the show to still be airing in this timeslot. We would not be shocked to see it carted over to Fridays.

The future may not be so bright at all for “Reign,” which is, with a 0.4 rating, the lowest-rated CW show of the week officially. If the show renews it for season 3, then they may as well guarantee a fourth using the same syndication criteria we mentioned earlier.

While we’d say that the royal drama is in some danger, there are two things that may save it: International popularity, and also the fact that CBS Television Studios is involved here. The tie to CBS is really what saved “Beauty and the Beast” going into a third season, and we wouldn’t be too shocked to see the same thing happen here.

There’s no real need to comment much on some other shows from Thursday night; most of them performed decently, and “The McCarthys” is probably not getting a back nine.

We’ll have some further ratings updates on these shows and many more when they become available, so be sure to keep a lookout!