• by Wayne Friedman , April 9, 2009

Fox's "American Idol" led the way on Tuesday night -- although down a bit from the week before.

During the 8 p.m. hour "Idol" was at a Nielsen preliminary 7.9 rating/21 share among 18-49 viewers, down from the 8.5/23 of a week ago. Fox's "Fringe" returned to follow "Idol" at 9 p.m., coming in at a 3.8/9 -- about the same as its performance for its last original episode.

Fox was down week-to-week, although it easily led the night. The network was at a 6.3/16 versus a 7.6/19 -- in part due to the "Idol" drop, but also because "Fringe" was a bit lower than the "Osbournes: Reloaded" which took in a 4.1/10, running in "Fringe"s spot a week ago.

CBS's "NCIS" picked up a bit to a 3.6/10 from a 3.4/9 the week before. But the network's two other dramas for the night slipped a bit: "The Mentalist" to a 3.6/9 from a 3.8/9 and "Without a Trace" to a 2.7/7 from a 2.9/8. CBS landed in second place at a 3.3/9 - three full ratings points behind Fox.

NBC was next at a 3.2/8. Its "Biggest Loser: Couples" was strong but fell some, to an average 3.2/8 from a 3.6/9 the week before. NBC's "Law & Order: SVU" continued to pull in the best results at 10 p.m., winning the time period with a 3.2/9.

ABC drifted lower to a 2.1/5 for the night, going with a special, "Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown", at 8 p.m., which took in a 1.3/3. The network's new drama, "Cupid," lost some viewers week-to-week, rising to a 1.8/5 from a 2.3/6 at 10 p.m. Better news came from the "Dancing with the Stars: Results" show which gained some ground at 9 p.m. to a 3.3/8.

CW's "Reaper" moved south a bit -- now down to a 0.9/2 among 18-49 viewers and a 0.8/3 among its more core 18-34 audience. "90210" was bit better among 18-49 viewers, with a 1.1/3 -- but almost double the "Reaper"'s 18-34 rating, at a 1.4/4. For the night, CW was at a 1.0/3 among 18-49 viewers and a 1.1/3 among 18-34 viewers.

Univision was down two-tenths of a rating point from the week before, to a 1.8/5 among 18-49 viewers from a 2.0/5. Its best results came from its 9 p.m. show, "Mañana Es Para Siempre," which earned a 2.1/5, which was down one-tenth of a rating point from a 2.2/5.