ABC's Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. More Than Doubles Young Adult Lead-In

More than doubling its young adult lead-in at 9:00 p.m. (+128% over an encore "Repeat After Me"), ABC's "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." built week to week in Total Viewers (+13% - 4.3 million vs. 3.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (+7% - 1.6/5 vs. 1.5/4).

The show also spiked 22% week to week with Men 18-34. "S.H.I.E.L.D." ran a strong second in the hour in Adults 18-49 (nearly tying NBC's "The Voice"-led comedy premieres - 1.6/5 vs. 1.8/5) and was No. 1 in its slot across all key Men demos (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54).

For the 3rd-straight week since its mid-season return, the ABC drama improved its hour by double digits year to year in Adults 18-49 (+23% over original comedies on 3/18/14). And on average season to date, "S.H.I.E.L.D." is growing the time slot for ABC by 27% in the key young adult sales demo (2.8/8 vs. 2.2/6) over the comparable weeks last season.

A note about DVR penetration: DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample is currently at 49% in U.S. TV Homes. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which are increasingly not reflected in the overnight Live + Same Day numbers. As a result, the Live + 7 Day ratings are the most accurate measure to gauge the size of the TV audience