The Chicago Code Off to Solid Start

The series premiere of The Chicago Code drew 9.4 million viewers and a 2.4 18-49 rating which will be construed as disappointing in some circles considering the circumstances. Despite having promotion during the Super Bowl, and the entire NFL playoffs where Fox pushed the new series, it didn’t become an instant break-out hit and lost about 25% of the viewers and 44% of the critical demo from the House lead-in. Still it was easily the highest rated program to follow House in over a year and the most watched debut for a new series for Fox this season.

I really enjoyed the premiere though the heavy-handed references to Chicago became a little annoying. I’m a big fan of Shawn Ryan having come off running shows such as The Shield and Terriers and there is a similar vibe in terms of having well-constructed characters and richly conceived storylines of which there are already evident signs of them taking form.