After the strong launch of rookie law drama Suits last week, USA Network’s other new show Necessary Roughness continued its summer hot streak.
Necessary Roughness, starring Rescue Me‘s Callie Thorne, kept nearly all of Royal Pain‘s audience in viewers (93 percent) and the adult demographics. To compare, Suits‘ premiere held 90 percent of Burn Notice‘s viewership last Thursday.
Launching to 4.7 million viewers at 10 p.m., the expanded Roughness pilot improved 20 percent compared with the premiere of Sarah Shahi‘s Fairly Legal earlier this year. Versus Legal, the therapy drama was up 29 percent (2 million) and 28 percent (1.8 million) in the 25-54 and 18-49 categories, respectively.
Veteran medical drama Royal Pains, set in the Hamptons, returned for its third season on Wednesday, improving 13 percent from its winter premiere with 5 million viewers tuning in at 9 p.m. The Mark Feuerestein-starrer improved 16 percent in the 25-54 (2.1 million) and 23 percent in the 18-49 (1.8 million) demos.
But, versus the season opener last June when Pains attracted 5.8 million, the hourlong is down slightly in the ratings.
No official decision has been made yet on when Psych will launch later this fall and whether it will serve as a lead-in or a lead-out.
