LAW & ORDER: LOS ANGELES MAKES SOLID DEBUT

NBC drew solid numbers Wednesday night for the series debut of Law & Order: Los Angeles, which attracted 10.52 million viewers in the 10:00 p.m. time slot, to edge out CBS’s new drama The Defenders with 10.38 million. The opening episode of the NBC series even topped lead-in Law & Order: SVU, which drew 9.25 million viewers. CBS, however, won the night both in total viewers and adults 18-49 as Survivor: Nicaragua continued to produce ratings in the Wednesday slot significantly higher than it did when it aired on Thursdays. With 12.16 million viewers, it outperformed the two comedies that previously aired in the time slot, The New Adventures of Old Christine ad Gary Unmarried. But it was the veteran Criminal Minds that topped all other programs on Wednesday, as it landed 14.41 million viewers.