Call it morbid curiosity, the Imp of the Perverse as Edgar Allen Poe would have said, or just call it ... WINNING! Whatever you call it, Two and a Half Men posted the best ratings of their on-air history with nearly 28 Million viewers tuning in to either learn the fate of Charlie Sheen's character Charlie Harper, or to re-sample the comedic wares of his replacement Ashton Kutcher. For the record, Two and a Half Men's highest average was 16.5 Million viewers during its second season.
The big question now is whether viewers were more interested in Sheen's departure, or Kutcher's arrival. The latter would be fantastic news for CBS and Warner Brothers, the former not so good for Two and a Half Men - since Charlie can only SPOILER ALERT die once.
It should also be noted that the Two and a Half Men premiere came at the end of an unrelenting publicity campaign that came to a buzz worthy climax at the Emmy Awards just a day earlier with Charlie Sheen contritely settling his feud with the Two and a Half Men stars and producer on stage. The operative word he might be "settling" since it has been reported that Sheen is the recipient of a pretty hefty settlement from WB over his Men firing. Oh how money heals all wounds.
All eyes will be on Two and a Half Men's ratings next week when the series returns with Charlie Sheen in the rear view mirror. Will Two and a Half Men retain a meaningful share of these new viewers, or will this epic ratings win turn into a tragedy?
From the looks of Sendlove.to up there, Kutcher is WINNING over Charlie Sheen…
I am so happy with the ratings for Season 9 1st episode i hope we get more ratings for the 2nd episode and this could mean more seasons. Well done Chuck Lorre.
It'll be fun to watch the drop-off on episode 2 and see if it's minimal or huge.
I love hearing that ashton was replacing sheen..turns out they made him a fool and don't like the part he is playing..hoping that hes the slapstick fool and will miraculously turn into a very cool guy or I will stop watching….Sorry, love the show but I can't watch an adult not is two and half man act like a fool…