Dollhouse

The numbers are disheartening, if not entirely surprising.

The second episodes of Fox’s "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" and "Dollhouse" failed to improve on their premieres last week, even though Friday’s biggest usual competitor from a numbers standpoint — CBS’ crime dramas — aired repeats.

"Dollhouse" (4.2 million viewers, 1.7 preliminary adults 18-49 rating/7 share), fell 15% in the ratings. This is an almost-typical second-episode slip and the show placed second in its 9 p.m. hour, topped by "Supernanny" (5.2 million, 1.8/5).

At 8 p.m., "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" (3.8 million, 1.3/5) was roughly steady, falling a tenth of a point from last week’s midseason return to tie a repeat of "Wife Swap" to place second in the hour.

Given it’s a Friday night, neither "Terminator" or "Dollhouse" pop out as a jarringly low rating on the grid. But Fox’s shows are relatively expensive scripted dramas that typically require higher numbers than a competitor’s repeats or newsmagazines such as "Dateline" and "20/20," regardless of what night they’re on.