TV Ratings: Winners ('Walking Dead,' 'Nashville') and Losers ('666 Park Avenue,' 'Gossip Girl')

The third official week of the 2012-13 television season has come and gone, and NBC was once again the highest-rated network in 18-49 (averaging a 2.9), while CBS won in total viewers (averaging 9.67 million). More on that as well as other winners (particularly one from outside the broadcast networks) and losers from premiere week as Indiewire offers up highlights from the just-in ratings: 

Winner: The Walking Dead
The mammoth season-three debut of AMC's "The Walking Dead" overshadowed all other network successes this week. 10.9 million viewers watched the 9 pm premiere, with 15.1 million total when you include the two encore showings. That's a 50% increase over last year's premiere and the highest-rated episode for any drama series in basic cable history among all viewers. That's indeed a feat.

Loser: 666 Park Avenue
On the same night that "The Walking Dead" triumped, ABC's "666 Park Avenue" continued to move closer to its grave. With 4.8 million viewers, it was the least-viewed show airing on any broadcast network that night, dropping off big time from successful sophomores "Once Upon a Time" and "Revenge." Its 1.5 rating in the 18-49 demo is just as bad, down 12% from the week prior. "Park Avenue" should be evicted in the next week or two.

Winners: Nashville, Revenge and Once Upon a Time
There was some good news at ABC, despite the fact that it's now the fourth-place network in 18-49. It expectedly had the number-one scripted show in 18-49 yet again with "Modern Family," but it's also proving the most successful network in terms of primetime soap operas (other than "Park Avenue," of course). "Revenge" and "Once Upon a Time" joined newcomer "Nashville" as the only non-"Modern Family" ABC shows to break the overall top 20 in 18-49 viewers, and they are three of only six dramas on that list. The series premiere of "Nashville" scored a 2.8 rating in that demo (second only to "Revolution" in terms of new dramas), while "Time" and "Revenge" had 3.0 and 2.6 ratings, respectively -- the latter impressively up 4% from the week prior.

Loser: Made in Jersey
While "666 Park Avenue" is hanging in there (for now), the season's first casualty came last week in the form of CBS's legal drama "Made in Jersey." After just two episodes, CBS is now replacing the series with reruns of "NCIS" and "Hawaii Five-O" until "Undercover Boss" takes over completely starting Nov. 2. Its final episode managed a dismal 0.8 rating in 18-49.

Winners: Arrow and Beauty and the Beast
The long-struggling CW got some very good news care of its ambitious new series "Arrow" and "Beauty and the Beast." Perhaps benefiting from being the only network series that aired opposite the vice presidential debate, "Beast" debuted to a strong (for the CW) 1.2 in the 18-49 demo. "Arrow," meanwhile, is even stronger. It nabbed a 1.3 rating in 18-49 and an impressive 4 million viewers overall, making it the most-watched CW premiere in three years.

Losers: 90210 and Gossip Girl
The ratings lords giveth, the ratings lords taketh away... The CW got awful numbers from veteran series "90210" and "Gossip Girl," both of which managed 0.4 ratings in 18-49, both considerably down from last year. "Gossip Girl" is already confirmed to be ending this year, but "90210" can't be far behind.

Winner: The Voice
Ending things on a high note -- no pun intended -- is NBC's "The Voice," which continued to dominate for NBC. The network impressively was once again the overall 18-49 winner last week after years of consistent third- or fourth-place finishes (and #2 in overall viewers). "The Voice" definitely contributed, placing 4th and 7th on the 18-49 weekly chart (with 4.8 and 4.5 ratings, respectively), and 8th and 10th in overall viewers (with 12.9 and 12.2 million). That far outpaced Fox's "X-Factor," and should even rival "American Idol" when it returns in early 2013.