TV ratings: ‘Rudolph’ wins in key demographic; ‘DWTS’ finale falls

ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” finale lost a step from last year as “Glee” star Amber Riley won the Mirror Ball Trophy.

While it was the most-watched telecast of the night, drawing 14.6 million viewers, according to early numbers from Nielsen, “DWTS” it was down by 20% from last year’s closer to a rating of 2.4 in the key 18-49 demographic. It was the show’s lowest-rated finale ever.

Other than “DWTS,” ABC aired “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,” which increased slightly in the advertiser-desired demographic for the second week in a row, this time scoring a 2.5 rating. Its total viewership, though, spiked 35% to 9.3 million.

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Still, “S.H.I.E.L.D.” couldn’t top CBS’ annual telecast of the classic “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,” which drew a 3.0 in 18-49, up 3% from last year, and 11.4 million viewers. In fact, the 8 p.m. holiday special was the highest-rated show of the night in the demo, beating NBC’s “The Voice.” Following “Rudolph,” “NCIS: Los Angeles” fell a tad to a 2.4 and “Person of Interest” rose slightly to a 2.1.

While ABC had the biggest overall audience for the night, CBS had a small edge in the 18-49 demo (2.5 versus 2.4).

“The Voice” is down week-to-week, dropping by 9% to a 2.9. Elsewhere on NBC, “Biggest Loser” gained 5% for a 2.0 and “Chicago Fire” bumped up 11% to a 2.1.

Fox posted single-digit gains from “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “New Girl” and “Mindy Project,” while “Dads” lost a tenth.

On the CW, “The Originals” returned with a 1.1 in 18-49, flat with its most recent first-run episode two weeks ago, and “Supernatural” rose to a 1.0.

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ryan.faughnder@latimes.com