Good Job, Everyone: A Lot Of People Watched ‘Archer,’ Less People Watched ‘Anger Management’

We spend a lot of time bitching about our favorite shows, whether they be Happy Endings or Don’t Trust the B in Apt. 23 or Community, not getting the kind of ratings they deserve (i.e. good ones), while the televised fart noises known as The Big Bang Theory and Two and a Half Men consistently bring in numbers three times as large as Parks and Rec‘s highest rated episode. So let’s take a moment and salute AMERICA for getting something right: a whole bunch of people watched Thursday’s season premiere of Archer, and a lot less watched Anger Management.

FX’s cult favorite animated series Archer returned Thursday night to its biggest adult demo rating ever. The spy comedy’s 10 p.m. season four premiere was seen by 1.6 million viewers (its second most-watched telecast of all time) and 1.3 million adults 18-49 (a series high) at 10 p.m.

Meanwhile, Anger Management dropped sharply compared to last year’s series debut. The 9 p.m. telecast delivered 1.8 million viewers (903,000 adults 18-49) and the 9:30 p.m. airing had 1.7 million (994,000). The premiere was down 67 percent from last summer, which was FX’s biggest series debut ever. (Via)

OK, yes, Anger Management still pulled in more viewers (though I’ve yet to meet someone who actually watches the show), but it’s already on the decline from last year’s numbers, whereas Archer keeps getting bigger and bigger, especially in the key 18-49 demographic. Cheeses grilled and gummy bears all around, please. Hey, maybe people are starting to learn, and by 2056, when Anger finally goes off the air, it’ll be because everyone’s glued to Louis C.K. and Amy Poehler’s son’s show, A Shrug and a Giggle (title pending).

(Via EW)