The Return Of THE WALKING DEAD Earns Highest Ratings Yet

The Return Of THE WALKING DEAD Earns Highest Ratings Yet

Season three's midseason premiere of AMC's The Walking Dead collected an incredible 12.3 million total viewers last night, easily topping the record breaking numbers set by the season three premiere last October. Hit the jump for details!

News
By JoshWilding - Feb 11, 2013 12:02 PM EST
Filed Under: The Walking Dead
Source: Deadline


The Walking Dead finally returned last night after its mid-season break with a record 12.3 million viewers. This is a series high for the AMC show and these figures easily beats the massive record breaking 10.9 million who tuned in last year for the first episode of the third season. Last night's numbers were better than all other telecasts, both on cable and broadcast. The fact that the Grammys were also on yesterday at the same time makes these numbers all the more impressive. There are still another seven episodes to go yet, but the fourth season of The Walking Dead will begin this October. It seems fair to say that a fifth season won't be far behind...

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JoshWilding
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A lifelong comic book fan who grew up on Spider-Man: The Animated Series in the '90s, Josh Wilding has been contributing to ComicBookMovie.com since 2009.

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IIIAdamantiumIII
IIIAdamantiumIII - 2/11/2013, 12:36 PM
and the episode was " meh "
Canon108
Canon108 - 2/11/2013, 12:40 PM
Season two was better, lol jk. Seriously though, still not liking the fact that they ruined the biggest payoff of the prison arc from the comics. I just don't feel invested in season 3 anymore, the comic's 1000x better.
Luminus
Luminus - 2/11/2013, 12:48 PM
@Canon108: What was the payoff?
LAXtremest
LAXtremest - 2/11/2013, 12:51 PM
I agree last nights episode was whatever.
PsyGuy
PsyGuy - 2/11/2013, 12:52 PM
I like how much momentum the plot is building, but I'd like to see it slow down at some point, season 1 style.
GUNSMITH
GUNSMITH - 2/11/2013, 12:59 PM
I LIKE HOW THINGS BUILD..THERES REAL THOUGHT INTO WHY THINGS ARE AND EACH INDIVIDUALS MIND SETS AND WHY THEY WOULD THINK OR BEHAVE THAT WAY DEPENDING ON THE SITUATION THAT HIT THEM...
Mercurius
Mercurius - 2/11/2013, 1:01 PM
I'm happy it's getting this much attention but the episode was unworthy of record breaking numbers.
Canon108
Canon108 - 2/11/2013, 1:10 PM
Lori's death in the show was forced...if they had waited till the end of the season, Rick would have more to lose throughout the 16 episodes. There's no payoff now...yeah, he has Carl but we know the kid is capable. There's nothing to lose in the final anymore...they could've fleshed out Lori without forcing the message down the viewer's throat. Yeah, there's tons of action...but the narrative's a mess.
Paragon79
Paragon79 - 2/11/2013, 1:18 PM
I thought the episode was really good, liking forward to the rest.
drellik
drellik - 2/11/2013, 1:19 PM
i couldn't stand watching Lori anymore, so i was glad when her exit came. but this episode was pretty bland. all except for the end, which totally freaked me out.

i do think we're setup for an interesting 2nd half of the season, though. rick's gone crazy, the governor is coming, glenn wants blood, they're sleeping with a mini-battle-guest in the same cell block, and we still haven't seen Michonne go nuts with her sword. we'll see.
StrangerX
StrangerX - 2/11/2013, 1:34 PM
Down with the Rictatorship
Luminus
Luminus - 2/11/2013, 1:36 PM
@Canon108: But you already knew that stuff was going to happen, so how can that be a payoff? It's anti-climatic. Now, you have no idea what's coming, except for the fact that those 2 white guys with Tyrese are going to die. lol.
tazmaniak
tazmaniak - 2/11/2013, 1:49 PM
It's crazy how this show gains so many viewers during the hiatuses. The second season finale had 8.9 million viewers, but the third season premiere had 10.87 million. That's about 2 million viewers between seasons.

The most recent midseason finale had 10.48 million viewers, while the midseason premiere had 12.3 million. That's another gain of 2 million between breaks.

Since the end of last season, the show has gained over 3 million viewers.

People don't jump in during the season, as the numbers always remain steady, but after a break, it returns with a much larger audience. I guess people hear the buzz, wait until it goes on hiatus, watches the back episodes and joins the show when it returns.
Luminus
Luminus - 2/11/2013, 1:58 PM
^Yes, my wife is one of those people.
LoudLon
LoudLon - 2/11/2013, 2:12 PM
I've been enjoying the season so far, but I think the show hasn't yet recovered from the loss of Jon Bernthal. I'me one of the few viewers who loved every second of season 2, so the trade off of drama and interpersonal conflict for splattery zombie action has left me wanting. Once you've seen one zombie's head blown-off, you've seen 'em all, and that kind of thing can get tiring really quick, IMO. I much preferred the tension of season 2.
Gary8264
Gary8264 - 2/11/2013, 2:37 PM
I hadn' watched a episode 'til the marathon leadin' up to the 3rd season. So I caught the marathon then the first episode of season 3. Then didn' watch another episode 'til yesterday, and I watched all the episodes of season 3, then the new one. It might be wise of me to actually watch the show each week... haha
I like the show, and the killin's are as good as any zombie movie out there.
TheIconicMan
TheIconicMan - 2/11/2013, 2:58 PM
@Canon108 What hell man!? You can't judge an entire season just because of one episode.. Idiot.


@KnightofSteel I think it's because AMC can't show nudity. But I think they should show it as well, at least Maggie.. haha
marvel72
marvel72 - 2/11/2013, 3:15 PM
love this show,its the only decent show based on a comic book series on our screens.
Canon108
Canon108 - 2/11/2013, 3:17 PM
Umm, actually I can make a judgement call based on a major plot point...that's the beauty of free speech. The decision to kill Lori so early is also likely the reason Mazzara was asked to step down. If they had gone with killing off Lori at the end when everything is in chaos and Rick and Carl escape the viewers would've gone crazy and more viewers would come after the break.

Oh, and AMC does show nudity on occasion...Breaking Bad's gone there once or twice.
Canon108
Canon108 - 2/11/2013, 3:23 PM
Oh, and if the source material is what got the show greenlit in the first place...and if the 'landmark moments' are what drew the fans in, why ruin the ending of the series most iconic, and heartbreaking arc?
AsianVersionOfET
AsianVersionOfET - 2/11/2013, 3:33 PM
I loved last night's episode. What's the matter with you people?
CrimsonReign
CrimsonReign - 2/11/2013, 3:47 PM
Great episode, great show. Idiots will complain about anything but they are clearly in the minority.
ChillBill66
ChillBill66 - 2/11/2013, 3:50 PM
The numbers aren't that surprising. Its all because of the weekend marathon that the new episode was such a success. I wasn't able to catch it from the beginning originally and watched all the episodes leading up to the new one. I'm freakin hooked!!! I don't care what some of you overly critical people think, it's an amazing show!
Facade
Facade - 2/11/2013, 4:02 PM
Highest ratings for a very redundant episode.
Canon108
Canon108 - 2/11/2013, 5:12 PM
http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/02/the-state-of-walking-dead.html

Great article...100% right, definitely worth the read.
Canon108
Canon108 - 2/11/2013, 5:24 PM
Episode 10 summary - spoilers

http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/02/the-walking-dead-episode-310-home.html
marcvader1
marcvader1 - 2/11/2013, 7:27 PM
While I love this show and anticipate every Sunday night this episode was a bit meh. I expected something more worthy of a big return. Nothing other than Ricks return to insanity was expected. I really hope they don't dwell on this the remainder of this season.
lurch313
lurch313 - 2/11/2013, 8:26 PM
I love the show. I've enjoy all the seasons and hope it keeps going strong.
bobbo68
bobbo68 - 2/12/2013, 6:16 AM
I appreciate the show I have to say its my favorite on TV right now. I thought it was a good episode I hope they keep getting the ratings. Along with Supernatural and True Blood it makes it worth turning the TV on instead watching stale reality shows and crap like Glee.
sameoldthing
sameoldthing - 2/12/2013, 6:28 AM
Sorry fans of the show..those ratings will fall,word of mouth was good for this season but boy did the opening episode coming into this mid season break was pretty bad.

Andrea's speech to Woodbury's people was stupid as was their reaction to cheer as if it was the greatest thing they ever heard.

Daryl & Merle's fight / escape was a complete joke,just awful & Rick's flip out at the end was truly ridiculous.

They could not have crafted a worse episode to come back on..& I love this show!
Bucht
Bucht - 2/12/2013, 10:47 AM
Why does CBM always have to put an image on the top of the main-page with the biggest spoiler of the episode that just launched.
Not everyone lives in the US you know...
DumbledoreCalrissian
DumbledoreCalrissian - 2/13/2013, 4:50 PM
no surprise here
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