Better Call Saul Posts Strong Ratings in Debut

It's looking like AMC's decision to renew Better Call Saul before the first season even kicked off was a good one, as the series posted strong ratings in its two initial outings.

The big news Sunday night was that Saul crushed the ratings record for a cable premiere, but those numbers proved to be inflated due to the episode airing immediately following Sunday night juggernaut The Walking Dead. The real test for the series came on Monday, when the show was up against network stalwarts, including ABC's Castle and CBS's NCIS: Los Angeles. Against the entrenched network fare, Better Call Saul managed to tie both those veteran series in the much coveted 18-34 age group. The switch from Sunday night to Monday did result in the loss of about half the show's viewing audience from the premiere, but the number that turned in still are enough to classify the series as a hit out of the gate. It will be interesting to see if the series can manage to maintain and build viewers throughout it's initial run, or if comparisons to Breaking Bad will dull the shine on Saul.