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The networks were all finally at full strength with fresh Wednesday episodes last night; the 18-49 scores:

4.3 Modern Family
4.3 Cougar Town
4.2 Criminal Minds
4.0 CSI: NY
3.2 Dancing With The Stars
3.0 Eastwick
3.0 Glee
2.5 Law & Order: SVU
2.5 So You Think You Can Dance
2.4 Gary Unmarried
2.3 Mercy
2.3 The New Adventures of Old Christine
2.0 The Jay Leno Show
1.3 America's Next Top Model
0.5 The Beautiful Life

* ABC's "Modern Family," likely the best-reviewed new show of fall, came out on top for the night alongside slotmate "Cougar Town." The pair took out a lot of tough competition at the 9 p.m. hour, including "Criminal Minds," "Glee," and "Law & Order: SVU," which plummeted a terrifying 34% from its 10 p.m. 2008 premiere.

* In the sitcom realm, only Monday's "Big Bang Theory" (4.6) and "Two and a Half Men" (4.4) have pulled higher numbers than "Modern" and "Cougar" this autumn.

* "SVU" has been the strongest of the "Law & Orders" for years now and was, if I remember correctly, NBC's top-rated scripted show at the end of last season. Could this fourth-place finish finally signal the end of the 20-year-old franchise on broadcast television?

* "Mercy" debuted in the lower middle of the 8 p.m. pack, ahead of "Top Model" and "Old Christine" but behind "Gary Unmarried" and the two dance shows.

* "Leno's" number, better than Monday but weaker than Tuesday, left him for the third night in a row the weakest of the big-four shows.

* "The Beautiful Life" drew an abyssmal 1.1 million viewers, compared to the 2.5 million "Veronica Mars" averaged during its final year three seasons ago.