Well, it looks like there’s at least one thing the Inhumans‘ Terrigen Mist can’t do, and that’s best the mutants in a popularity contest. Actually, there are probably a couple other jabs I could take, but this isn’t a review or an op-ed. Still, one can’t help but wonder how two of Marvel’s most talked about premieres this fall stacked up against each other, with the other being The Gifted.
As you may recall, last Friday saw Inhumans post a soft 0.9 in the key 18-49 demo during its first hour, before dropping to 0.8 for the final hour. In terms of viewers, 3.94 million sat through the opening episode, while only 3.63 million stuck around for the next. All things considered, that’s not bad for a show that’s already been relegated to the Friday night graveyard.
When it comes to The Gifted, it fared a bit better, pulling in 4.9 million viewers for a 1.5 demo rating. Granted, airing on Monday nights helps out considerably, but this show has the X-Men thing in its favor, something the mainstream has been well familiar with since the first film’s release back in 2000.
Now, week two drop-offs are to be expected and will provide the real litmus test, but one could argue that The Gifted has more going for it when it comes to long term survival. Truth be told, Inhumans has been bemoaned by critics and there are already rumors of cancellation. Not to mention that we know that word of mouth counts for a heck of a lot these days. Regardless, both series have the Marvel brand backing them up, so let’s not count out anyone just yet.