• Media Life, Friday, January 20, 2006 11:30 AM

It lifted off to a terrific start, with great ratings and a fusillade of rave reviews, but ABC's "Commander In Chief" seems to be in trouble. Still in its first season, the series is fading, picking up a measly 2.4 ratings on Tuesday night. Some of that can be attributed to Fox's "American Idol" premiere, which smashed all comers. But Commander has been drifting downward ever since its second outing. ABC's widely publicized dissatisfaction with the show's creator and original executive producer, Rod Lurie, certainly did not help matters, but when the network recruited Steven Bocho to take over for Lurie, most everyone thought better days--or at least more compelling ones-- were ahead. They have not been. The series plainly is in distress. However, reports Media Life, "at least one media buyer thinks the show could still rebound, especially after Fox's 'Idol' moves to 8 p.m. and 'House' returns to the 9 p.m. timeslot. And 'Commander's' 3.9 rating through 10 episodes is even with ABC's average in the timeslot last season for 'According to Jim' and 'Rodney.'

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