Ratings: ‘Scandal’ season 3 return huge; ‘Backstrom,’ ‘American Idol’ slide

The return of Shonda Rhimes’ #TGIT lineup on ABC Thursday did just about what we predicted it would do, and that is cause the majority of the other shows to suffer in their wake.

The big winner on the night was clearly “Scandal.” Buoyed in part possibly by the capture of Olivia Pope, the show drew a whopping 3.6 rating in the 18-49 demographic that, if it rises in the finals, will come close to matching its series high. “Grey’s Anatomy” (2.7) and “How to Get Away with Murder” (3.0) were also very impressive in their own way, and higher than everything on the night other than “The Big Bang Theory” (which won with a 4.4, as we expected it to do).

So how badly were other shows hurt? “American Idol” lost a big chunk of its audience in sliding down to a 2.2 rating. Meanwhile, “Backstrom” scored a 1.4 with its second episode, which is a decrease of half of a demo point from where it premiered. When you remember here that the show next week has to also compete against “The Blacklist,” we don’t think we’re exaggerating here when we say that another TV crime-solver may need to investigate the murder of this character at some point very soon.

One of the nice warm-and-fuzzy winners on the night was “Parenthood,” which scored a 1.7 for its series finale. This marks its highest rated in years, and it is nice to see that this show managed to really establish a nice win for itself on its way out the door. This show was always an underdog, but we cannot forget in the process all who loved it.

What did you watch Thursday night? Let us know in the comments, and head over here to get some other TV updates on all we cover, sent right to you via our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: ABC.)