Ratings Bubble Report: Why NBC’s ‘Timeless’ should receive season 2 renewal

Let it be known: “Timeless” is one of our favorite new shows on the schedule. It combines a few different things that we love: Time-travel, action, and a little bit of lighthearted comedy mixed in there.

With that, of course we’re going to fight to see the show get a second season, and there’s no better time than the present to start with that! Sometimes, if you wait until May, you can find yourself in a situation when it’s hard to convince a network to do anything. They’ve already got their new pilots, and with the show already over, it’s hard to prove that you can produce some strong ratings by rallying the fans together Given that this is a show that will be over for the season by the time we get around to March, now is the time to get the campaign going.

Where it stands right now – Through 11 episodes, “Timeless” is averaging a 1.3 rating in the 18-49 demographic (live+same day ratings), which puts it right in the thick of many of the other bubble series on NBC such as “Blindspot,” “The Blacklist,” and “Chicago Med.” It performs well in DVR ratings, and given the subject matter, this is the sort of show that can develop over time a strong international following.

The main cause for concern right now is that on this past Monday night, the show slipped to a series-low 0.9 rating. It didn’t have the same strong lead-in in “The Voice” that it had previously, and unfortunately there may have been some viewers out there who didn’t realize that it was on the air. (If you’re a diehard viewer, make sure that you tell everyone you know that the show is back!) It’s going to need to put up some strong numbers over the next five episodes to convince executives that this is a show that can stand on its own and deliver an audience no matter what is airing before it.

Why it should be renewed – This is a show with tremendous potential in terms of picking up viewers even after it concludes. Because it has the serialized journey following Garcia Flynn, there’s great potential for this to be a binge-worthy show once the season is over. If viewers catch up on it over the summer, it could draw even better numbers in the fall.

Also, you have to just look at this from the vantage point of quality, and of the unlimited potential that it provides both in terms of time periods and guest stars. There’s almost nothing that this show has to avoid — Rufus, Lucy, and Wyatt can travel almost anywhere and experience almost anything, and there are so many different ways that the show can market that to appeal to history buffs. It’s fun, well-acted, and heart-wrenching when it needs to be.

One final thing we’ll say here is that there is an amazingly inspirational quality to this show that many others out there lack. If you look at our heroes, Lucy is a historian and Rufus is a tech geek. These are not the sort of people you imagine kicking butt and saving the world from someone as dangerous as Flynn. They’re the ultimate underdogs, and there’s something about this that is incredibly relatable to viewers at home. Even a character like Wyatt, who does have that badass resume as someone used to taking on bad guys, still has a vulnerability that is appealing.

In the end, we hope everyone continues to watch “Timeless” live, and encourages many of their friends to do the same. It’s a show that brings so much adventure and heart to every episode, and next season’s lineup would be missing something without it.

Do you think that “Timeless” should be renewed for a second season? Be sure to vote in the poll below, and head over here to get some additional news when it comes to the show. (Photo: NBC.)