The Walking Dead Scores 9.5 Million Viewers in Second Episode

If the cable-viewership records didn't keep being broken, mostly, by AMC's The Walking Dead, over [...]

By Russ Burlingame

Zombies in Riot Gear

If the cable-viewership records didn't keep being broken, mostly, by AMC's The Walking Dead, over the last year or two, last night's second episode of the hit series's third season may have been the highest-rated drama in basic cable history. The episode drew 9.5 million total viewers, 6.5 million adults 18-49 and 5.5 million adults 25-54 at its first run at 9 PM, where it played against against Sunday Night Football on NBC and Major League Baseball playoffs on Fox. That's down 13% from the hugely rated Season 2 premiere; in adults 18-49, the drop was 11%. It's the second comics-based series to hold onto spectacular numbers this week, following news that Arrow carried over about 90% of its four million viewers just before being officially picked up for its back nine, rounding out the 13-episode deal to 22. Of course, some people are still painting those impressive numbers as a disappointment since Dish Network added AMC and its sister networks back to its lineup. If there is a bump to be seen from that move, though, it will likely be next week, as Dish just re-added the AMC networks to its lineup hours before The Walking Dead aired last night and many subscribers probably did not know.

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