( EW.com ) -- `` Nashville , '' the best-reviewed new drama of the fall , premiered to solid ratings Wednesday night , while The CW 's new action-drama `` Arrow '' set a record for the network . ABC 's country music drama delivered 9 million viewers and a 2.8 rating among adults 18-49 . That 's enough to win the hour in the adult demo , topping CBS ' `` CSI '' ( 10.6 million , 2.6 ) and the premiere of NBC 's new series `` Chicago Fire '' ( 6.4 million , 1.9 ) . But `` Nashville '' was down 15 percent from the launch of `` Revenge '' in this slot last year . NBC 's fire-fighting drama was largely panned by critics and had a disappointing launch , down 21 percent from the debut of `` Law & Order : SVU '' in this slot last fall . ( `` Nashville '' averaged a score of 84 on Metacritic while `` Chicago Fire '' had a 49 ) . Yet here 's something interesting : Of the three dramas in the hour , the Connie Britton series had the weakest audience retention from its first half to its second . `` Chicago Fire '' did n't shed any of its demo rating between its half hours â€ ” which is pretty rare for a show premiering this late at night . Nashville may have a bigger rating , but `` Chicago Fire '' did a better job of keeping viewers in their seat . Another key debut last night : The CW 's `` Arrow ' ( 4 million , 1.3 rating ) got off to a fine start . This may not be a huge demo rating for the network , but `` Arrow '' marks The CW 's most-watched series debut in total viewers since `` The Vampire Diaries '' in 2009 . The CW 's mission this season is to attract a broader audience than just the `` Gossip Girl '' / '' 90210 '' female 18-34 crowd , and hitting 4 million viewers certainly helps . The performance is also impressive considering the network 's numbers have been soft the past couple weeks . It 's always tougher to jump start a cold engine . `` Arrow '' also gave `` Supernatural '' ( 2.6 million , 1.0 ) a boost at 9 p.m. , spiking the veteran drama to its biggest audience in two years . 'Arrow ' debut : Its aim is true . Fox topped the night in the adult demo thanks to a steady `` The X-Factor '' ( 9.4 million , 3.4 ) . CBS was second with `` Survivor '' ( 9.6 million , 2.6 ) and `` Criminal Minds '' ( 11.4 million , 3.0 ) . ABC had `` The Middle '' ( 7.8 million , 2.4 ) , up 9 percent , and `` The Neighbors '' ( 6.3 million , 1.9 ) , steady . They were followed by a double tap of Modern Family ( 12 million , 4.7 and 12.2 million , 4.9 ) , down between 11 and 15 percent . 'Parks and Rec ' : Christie Brinkley in as ... The Neighbors has clearly emerged as the weak link in the network 's Wednesday comedy chain , but last night also suggested the show might be stabilizing since it did not drop this week . This puts ABC in a tough position . The aliens-next-door sitcom does n't have a terrible number by this fall 's standards , but you do n't want to have anything potentially dragging down your top-rated comedy , `` Modern Family . '' NBC also had `` Animal Practice '' ( 3.9 million , 1.1 ) , Guys With Kids ( 4.2 million , 1.4 ) and `` SVU '' ( 6.2 million , 1.8 ) . See the original article at EW.com . CLICK HERE to Try 2 RISK FREE issues of Entertainment Weekly . © 2011 Entertainment Weekly and Time Inc. All rights reserved .
` ` Nashville '' premiered to solid ratings on Wednesday night . ABC 's new music series averaged 10 million viewers . The network 's new action - drama ` ` Arrow '' set a record for the network .