All weekend, I’ve been seeing posts about how Once Upon a Time should be cancelled due to ratings slump.  Ratings slump?  Of course, ratings are slumping but it’s not just for Once Upon a Time.  It’s across the board.  So let me give you some insight into what I have seen.

Ratings slump:  Viewership.  I have DirecTv.  DirecTv gives a television reviewer like me an interesting feature.  I can go in at any minute and see what is being watched on Eastern time and locally.  Guess what folks!  The network television shows very rarely show up.  It’s always cable, movies, Disney or sports.  So you can’t say that Once upon a Time is in a slump unless you want to say all National shows are in a slump.

The main reason for this is because of one simple fact.  More and more people have gone to cable and satellite dish.  I admit, I went to dish back in the 1990s when cell towers ruined out outdoor antenna and while I can’t say I like ALL the shows on cable, I do have my favorites.  And guess what!  One is up against Once Upon a Time so some Sundays I struggle to choose between The Librarians and Once Upon a Time.

Why is viewership down.  I’m breaking this down into several subsections.

Sunday night football:  This right here has affected viewership.  I admit it.  If my Panthers were playing, I’m watching.  And for the foreseeable future, we’re going to have to expect sports to override everything.  With the Super Bowl approaching and teams really struggling, everyone will be watching football.  Then we have college hoops and March Madness.

The advents of shows like The Walking Dead.  Granted, I’m not a horror fan but some of the cable shows are drawing viewers away.  They say:  “We’ll catch up during the week or when the DVDs come out.”  Granted these shows are cable but more and more people are getting cable and that will always affect the National numbers.

The changing times at ABC.  Personally, I liked the old way that Once Upon a Time did their seasons.  I loved season one because it was like a book chapter with a beginning, middle, and end.  I loved the seasons that could be labeled A and B.  If one half of the season was bad, I had the second part to look forward to and hope for improvement.  If the second part of the season was bad, I knew it was only a matter of time before the new season started.

The break-up/make-up/destruction of couples.  We have the Captain Swans who aren’t happy because Emma disappeared.  We have the Rumbelle’s who are upset over everythingt that has happened to this couple.  They either want Belle to accept Rumple’s faults or move on.  Then we have the Rebel Queen group who say they will never watch again because their beloved Robin died.  I have opinions on all three but for me, this is never a determining factor on whether I will watch the show or not. Plot for me is much more important than many other reasons.

From what I’ve seen, Once Upon a Time’s ratings are good and better than some other shows.  As I have said, no network (CBS, ABC, NBC, FOX) show seems to be ruling the overall guide unless you only look at National networks.  Personally, I watch a show to be entertained or to have something to think about.  Once Upon a Time gives me both!