"Fringe" Premiere & "90210" Week #2 Ratings

Has all the hype paid off? "Fringe" series premiere ratings have arrived, along with week #2 of "90210" and the series premiere of CW's new soap "Privileged."

The 90-minute premiere of "Fringe" pulled in 9 million viewers, generating a 3.2 rating among adults 18-49.

Although that is a somewhat decent start for the series, I do believe FOX expected higher figures. Even 2005 premiere of "Prison Break" did a little better with less hype.

The ratings should however improve in the coming weeks with FOX's #1 scripted hit "House" giving the new drama a little lead-in push.

Over on The CW, one third of viewers who watched last week's premiere of "90210" were gone, as the redux took a big plunge from 4.9 to only 3.3 million viewers, with a very modest 1.7 rating among adults 18-49.

Perhaps CW executives should have waited before boasting about its record-breaking figures last week. Given the original show's cult status, last week's solid sampling was a sure shot.

Finally, the new soap "Privileged" got a modest 2.9 million viewers for its 9pm series premiere, leading out of "90210."

Perhaps, CW prexy Dawn Ostroff (a.k.a. Everwood-killer) was not on the mark with her strategy of programming similar shows every day after all. Then again, there's always a way to spin everything.

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FOX's "Fringe": Best New Show of Fall 08?

With only 14 new shows premiering on broadcast TV this fall (down from an average of 30), a handful of premieres such as last week's "90210" on The CW or tonight's "Fringe" on FOX have generated quite a bit of pre-air buzz. Do they live up to the hype?

Most critics agree "Fringe" certainly does with many calling it the best new show of the fall. Created by JJ Abrams, the man behind such genre gems as "Alias" and "Lost," "Fringe" is a crime show solving science-based mysteries.



It all begins tonight with a 95-minute pilot in which an international flight lands at Boston's Logan Airport with no signs of life.

An unlikely trio of FBI Special Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv); brilliant but formerly institutionalized scientist Walter Bishop (John Noble, "Lord of the Rings"); and his scheming, reluctant son Peter ("Dawson Creek's" Joshua Jackson) uncovers a deadly mystery involving a series of unbelievable events and realizes they may be a part of a larger, more disturbing pattern.




Unlike other Abrams hits which struggled to build ("Alias") or maintain audience ("Lost), "Fringe" is expected to do well as it may be easier to follow.

The show is a blend of horror, science fiction and thriller involving conspiracies and extended car chases, all artfully packaged with abundant special effects.



As always, 13 episodes have been ordered, the first 4 air before the MLB playoffs. Encore telecast of tonight's pilot airs Sunday at 8.

The show will then air Tuesdays at 9:00pm, after an all-new "House."

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'Life on Mars', 'Fringe' Leaked on Bit Torrent

Two of the most anticipated pilots this fall, FOX's "Fringe" from J.J. Abrams, the creator of "Lost," as well as the original pilot for ABC's adaptation of the British sci-fi/police drama "Life on Mars" are now available for anyone to download off the Internet.

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Every summer, a number of high-profile US pilots get onto the file-sharing service prior to their premiere in the fall.

Matt Le Blanc's failed NBC sitcom "Joey" (2004), FOX's action drama "Prison Break" (2005), Aaron Sorkin's NBC dramedy "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" (2006) and ABC's fantasy procedural "Pushing Daisies" (2007) were just some of the many pilots available on the Internet in recent years.

This year, "Fringe" is one of the two hottest new shows from FOX. The net spent $10 million to produce the 2-hour pilot which premieres September 9.

FOX was said to be very careful not to mail out DVD screeners of its other buzzworthy series, Joss Whedon's "Dollhouse," which premieres in January 2009.

In related news, ABC honcho Steve McPherson says production on "Life on Mars" will go ahead as planned, despite reports to the contrary.

The original show runner David E. Kelley has left the series and some cast members have been let go. The series also moved production from L.A. to New York, but McPherson insists the scripts are ready to film.

Fall 2008: FOX's "Fringe" (Preview)

FOX's buzzworthy rookie drama "Fringe" from J.J.Abrams (the creator of "Alias" and "Lost") starring "Dawson's Creek" alum Joshua Jackson will premiere with a 2-hour episode, according to a revised schedule, Tuesday, September 9 at 8/7c. Take a look at what the show is about, after the jump.



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When an international flight lands at Boston's Logan Airport and the passengers and crew have all died grisly deaths, FBI Special Agent OLIVIA DUNHAM (newcomer Anna Torv) is called in to investigate.



After her partner, Special Agent JOHN SCOTT (Mark Valley, "Boston Legal"), is nearly killed during the investigation, a desperate Olivia searches frantically for someone to help, leading her to DR. WALTER BISHOP (John Noble), our generation's Einstein.



There's only one catch: he's been institutionalized for the last 20 years, and the only way to question him requires pulling his estranged son PETER (Joshua Jackson, "Dawson's Creek") in to help.



When Olivia's investigation leads her to manipulative corporate executive NINA SHARP (Blair Brown), our unlikely trio will discover that what happened on Flight 627 is only a small piece of a larger, more shocking truth.