The American Idol juggernaut officially kicks off it’s live performances tonight while the competitors all scramble to get out of the behemoths way. NBC likes to use a Star Wars analogy, comparing Idol to the Death Star, but I like to think of them more like the Borg as the show continues to assimilate the TV landscape. Unfortunately for the networks, resistance does appear to be futile and there’s no rag tag group of freedom fighters smuggling secret plans to destroy the monstrostity Fox has created.
Every year American Idol get bigger and arguably better, and while it’s started off somewhat differently, this year doesn’t appear to be the year it will begin to slow down. In comparison, last year at the five week mark, Idol was averaging a modest 31.7 million viewers, up from 28.3 in season four and was the most watched program on television. Most network execs will say that a show, even a popular one, will begin to decline after the third or fourth year. Not in the case of Idol. This year, after five weeks, the show is averaging 33.5 million viewers. To put that in perspective, Idol could lose 15 million viewers and still be one of the top 10 most watched shows.
One senior network executive said the shadow “American Idol” casts was so formidable that “we have ‘Idol’ strategy sessions.” The executive asked not to be identified because the network did not want to acknowledge openly the impact “Idol” was having. “We realize we’ve got to be very, very practical” in dealing with the threat that “Idol” poses to new and promising shows, the executive said.
This has proved especially true, the executive noted, with comedy, a genre that has become especially fragile on television. The prospect that “American Idol” will arrive every January on Tuesday and Wednesday nights means that any show introduced on those nights in September is living on borrowed time — and ratings.
I guess this what the other networks get for passing on the show in the first place, all saying at one point in time it would never work. So what do you guys think, when will Idol finally top out? Will it top out or can it keep gaining momentum for the next several years?