‘Riverdale’ Returns With Rise in the Ratings

It’s January, which means many of our favorite shows have been returning with their mid-season premieres. One of the first shows back is The CW‘s Riverdale, which returned with a nice rise in the ratings.

According to TV Line, the first episode in the second half of season three “ticked up from the fall finale” and matched “its season high in the demo” with 1.43 million viewers and a .5 demo rating.

While the show had a successful return, the big surprise of Wednesday night was Fox’s new reality singing competition, The Masked Singer, which dropped from last week but still managed 6.9 million total viewers and a 2.2 demo rating. The mystery of not knowing which celebrities are singing behind elaborate, giant furry costumes has taken the Internet by storm.

Overall, Wednesday’s most successful show was NBC’s Chicago Med. Despite dipping a tenth, the series had 8.5 million viewers and a 1.2 demo rating. The same goes for Chicago Fire, which had 8 million viewers and a 1.1 demo rating. The network’s third installment to the Chicagoverse, Chicago P.D., “ticked up” with 7.2 million viewers and a 1.1 demo rating.

The other CW return of the night was All American, the new show about a high school football player from South Central who is recruited to play for Beverly Hills. The series scored 693K views and a .2 demo rating. TV Line reports that this was a steady return for what was only the series’ ninth episode.

The new episode of Riverdale, titled “No Exit,” picked up a month after the mid-season finale, which left the small town under quarantine with Jughead and FP unable to get back in. The quarantine may have been lifted, but things are shaking up in the town. Between alcohol finally being sold at Veronica’s speakeasy, Betty housing the Sisters of Quiet Mercy, Archie living in the Canadian wilderness, and a cat-burgling Choni, things are really getting crazy in the once wholesome town.

Things got even more intense when the episode ended on a cliffhanger and potential death. For details and spoilers, click here. For fan reactions, click here.

Riverdale stars K.J. Apa (Archie Andrews), Lili Reinhart (Betty Cooper), Camila Mendes (Veronica Lodge), Cole Sprouse (Jughead Jones), and features a beloved supporting cast of parents and students alike. The series currently has an 87% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes and 74% audience score.

Riverdale airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.