Action shows are hard to pull off, and any overly brutal scenes that could be perceived as gratuitous will turn off female viewers, network executives say.
As for the rest of the programs last night, well ... only the most masochistic of TV showrunners and networkexecutives even look at ratings during a holiday week (which is to say, pretty much all of them).
Correspondents say NBC executives were concerned a rival late-night show hosted by Jimmy Kimmel on the ABC network would make gains among the crucial younger audience if Fallon's move did not happen quickly.