Ratings: ‘NCIS,’ ‘The Flash’ hit lows; ‘Containment’ has okay start

The ratings are in for Tuesday night’s primetime lineup, and there is one clear sentiment that we can point to more than anything else: There is no longer a breakout hit on the night like there once was.

The winners – Let’s start here with “Containment,” which we think was a relative winner on the night in posting a 0.6 rating in the 18-49 demographic. This is better than “iZombie” performed in this same timeslot for most of the season, but we want to caution you that this is the premiere. Shows always lose steam after their first episode. If the show maintains a 0.5 rating throughout the entirety of season 1, we’d say that it has a pretty good shot of getting renewed.

Meanwhile, NBC had a pretty victorious night. “The Voice” (1.8) tied “NCIS” for #1 on the night, while both “Chicago Med” (1.6) and “Chicago Fire” (1.7) both improved on their recent outings. These ratings may not have been that impressive years ago, but at the moment they’re better than much of what’s out there.

The losers – Do you want to figure that viewers forgot that “The Flash” returned last night? The 1.1 rating, which tied its season low, suggests so. It’ll improve, so there’s really not any reason to be concerned about that at the moment.

Now, let’s go back over to “NCIS,” since that 1.8 rating is the lowest for a regular episode to date. What’s going on? At this point, we’re willing to concede that it’s a combination of viewer fatigue plus people recording the show yet. Sure, there’s some unhappiness over Michael Weatherly’s impending exit, but it’s not like it is a “Castle” – Stana Katic situation where he’s being forced out. The fact that this show stayed at a 2.0 for as long as it did was remarkable.

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