[NEWS] 'THE VOICE' RATINGS RISE

“Sure, NBC can launch a reality show,” competitors pointed out last week after The Voice debuted huge, “but then what happens? Remember The Marriage Ref, The Singing Bee, Grease: You’re the One That I Want? All premiered big, but then fell off a cliff…"

Well, last night’s second episode of The Voice not only didn’t tumble, it climbed up the mountain a little higher. The Voice was seen by 12.4 million viewers and had a 5.6 preliminary rating among adults 18-49. That’s up 10 percent from last week’s premiere, which broke NBC records. Here’s how unusual this is: The Voice is the only new show this season on a major broadcast network whose ratings rose for its second episode.

The big question now is whether The Voice will continue its winning streak when the coaches ditch the swivel chairs and start the “battle rounds” next week. (See exclusive pics of the coaches and their new teams here). Biggest Loser (7.4 million, 2.6) opened the night.

As the runner-up, CBS had NCIS (17.3 million, 3.5) glaring at spin-off NCIS: LA (14 million, 2.9). Both were down about 10 percent, followed by The Good Wife (12.2 million, 2.4), raising a nice 20 percent.

On third-place Fox, Glee (8.6 million, 3.6) rose 6 percent from last week’s season low, followed by Raising Hope (4.9 million, 1.9) and Traffic Light (3.0 million, 1.2).

Then there was ABC with Dancing With the Stars results (15.6 million, 2.9), getting crushed by The Voice in the demo, down 19 percent. At 10 p.m., Body of Proof (10.4 million, 2.0) slipped 9 percent.

The CW had One Tree Hill (1.2 million, 0.6) falling to a series low, and Hellcats (1 million, 0.4) tying its low. Both shows, along with Nikita, are awaiting word whether they will be renewed, but The CW is expected to bring at least two of them back. At this point Hellcats is the most likely to be left without a chair.