Ratings: ’30 Rock’ Finale Jumps; CBS Wins Night

"30 Rock" swan song surges in key demo and grabs largest audience in two years

The series finale of NBC's "30 Rock" on Thursday gave the show a ratings boost on its way out the door, while CBS won the night overall with a slate that included the top-rated "The Big Bang Theory," according to preliminary numbers.

"30 Rock," airing at 8 p.m., posted a 1.9 rating/5 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic — up 36 percent from last week's episode and last season's finale in May 2012, which both drew a 1.4/4. Thursday's finale posted the show's best ratings since March 2012.

Also read: "30 Rock" Finale: 30 Funcooking Moments of Living Every Week Like Shark Week

The "30 Rock" finale also drew 4.8 million total viewers, its largest audience since January 2011.

Even so, the night belonged to CBS, which took first place in ratings with a 3.4/9 and in total viewers with 14 million. "The Big Band Theory" at 8 took the night's best numbers in ratings and total viewers with a 5.3/15 and 17.5 million, while "Two and a Half Men" at 8:30 took second place in ratings and total viewers with a 3.9/11 and 13.7 million. "Person of Interest" at 9 posted a 3.2/9 and 15.6 million total viewers, and "Elementary" the following hour posted a 2.2/6 with 10.8 million total viewers.

Fox took second place in ratings and total viewers with a 3.3/9 and 9.6 million. "American Idol" dipped 12 percent from last Thursday — when it faced less original competition from the rival networks — and had 13.7 million total viewers, while "Glee" the following hour dropped off 19 percent from last week with a 2.1/6 and had 5.5 million total viewers.

ABC came in third in ratings and total viewers with a 2.2/6 and 7.2 million. After a "Shark Tank" repeat at 8, "Grey's Anatomy" the following hour ticked down 7 percent to a 2.8/7, tying a series low, and had 8.8 million total viewers. "Scandal" at 10 inched up to a 2.7/8 and had 8 million total viewers.

NBC tied Univision for fourth place in ratings with a 1.6/4 and edged Univision out of fourth in total viewers with 4.1 million, compared to Univision's 4 million. After the "30 Rock" finale, "The Office" at 9 inched up 5 percent from last week for a 2.1/5 and took 4.4 million total viewers, while a special airing of "The Office" at 9:30 posted a 1.9/5, tying a series low, and had 4 million total viewers. The network's new drama "Do No Harm" got off to a rough start with its series premiere, drawing a 0.9/5 — down 55 percent from last March's premiere of the network's short-lived "Awake"  — and took 3.1 million total viewers.

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