8pm
So, with the one with "Friends" final episode, you'd think that it would win the timeslot, right? Think again.  Even after 8 editions, "Survivor" is still going strong, as "Pearl Islands" hit sixth in the ratings and "All Stars" broke into the top five a 4th. As for "Friends" ? Well, it was right in the middle at 5th, but was largly boosted by its final episode, seen by over 51 million viewers. As for the rest..... ABC started the season off with "Threat Matrix" (103) but then abandoned that for various repeats. Fox actually stuck with one series in the timeslot for the first time in ages, but at 125th, "Tru Calling" couldn't even stay on top of the first hour of "WWE Smackdown!" (120). As for the WB, "Steve Harvey" (144) did show some signs of life, but a rotating crop of series at 8:30pm did not. The best performing was "All About The Andersons," but at 151st, the WB certainly isn't crowing about it.

Winner:  Survivor (CBS)
Loser:  Threat Matrix (ABC)

9pm
Nobody but CBS and the UPN, both owned by Viacom, could really decide what it wanted to be at 9pm. NBC started out with sitcoms, as usual, but "Will & Grace" (15) continued to slip in the ratings, and "Coupling" (25) was an out right disaster that won't soon be forgotten. But in January, NBC decided for the first time in years to not air 4 comedies on the night, and it worked. "the Apprentice" blew onto the scene and finished its season in 7th spot, dramatically improving NBC's fortunes int he hour. ABC tried "Extreme Makeover" (73) in the hour for most of the season, but was totally lost when it switched that for "Kingdom Hospital," which failed to crack 4mil viewers. Fox, meanwhile, was a mess. Mostly it aired reality repeats here, but when it tried something new, like "Wonderfalls" (136), ratings sank even further. The WB was in the same boat too as it tried to pair "Jamie Kennedy" (149) up with various sitcoms, the lowest rated of which was "Run Of the House" (159). As for the aforementioned CBS? Well, "CSI" (1) narrowly ranked at the top of the charts for the season season in a row, despite losing a few viewers.

Winner:  The Apprentice (NBC)
Loser:  Coupling (NBC)

10pm
Nobody was too daring in this hour, in fact, it was completely left unchanged from the previous season. Early on, it looked like "Without A Trace" (11) was going to beat "ER" (8) for once and for all, but that all changed once "The Apprentice" came around. Still, "WAT" has narrowed the gap considerably and hit 20mil viewers for the first time. Left out of the competetive loop was "PrimeTime Thursday," which could only manage 81st place.

Winner:  Without A Trace (CBS)
Loser:  PrimeTime Thursday (ABC)