TV Ratings: ABC's "Dancing With The Stars" Shatters Competition

ABC's blockbuster competition "Dancing with the Stars" roared back on air last night with the highest rated season premiere ever (21,65 million) making many of its competitors hit season lows.

The effects of the "Dancing" blast were felt across the board, but the casualties were most severe on the previously unbeatable CBS network which ended the night in a distant second place.

CBS's comedy line-up of "How I Met Your Mother" (7,59 million), Old Christine (6,86 million), Two and a Half Men (11,62 million) and Rules of Engagement (9,32 million) hit season lows for all four shows.

"Prison Break" on FOX lost over a million viewers (8,26 million), while its lead-out "24" hit another season low with 11,88 million total viewers. The drama did however manage to beat "Men" on CBS.

The reality program that used to dominate Mondays NBC's "Deal Or No Deal" did pretty well pulling in over 14 million viewers, although it also took a strong hit.

The only good news for CBS was that CSI: Miami was still the top show at 10pm, although no longer the most watched telecast of the evening. The drama scored 17,43 million.

Elsewhere, "What About Brian" benefited from its "Dancing" lead-in with the best performance in 5 months (7,38 million). "The Black Donnellys" on NBC however remains a dud with only 5,84 million in the last place.

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