"Chuck" returned Sunday night a little earlier than expected, but with virtually the same audience it left with.

A special weekend premiere of the show averaged a 4.1 rating/7 share, according to Fast National ratings from The Nielsen Co. That was nearly 3 percent better than its overnight average last season, and nearly 14 percent above its season finale on April 27.

In fact, it was the best outing for "Chuck" since its 3-D episode Feb. 2 that earned it a 4.9/7.

While it's provided some good news for NBC, which has had significant schedule issues for the past season and beyond, it lost 14 percent of its lead-in audience from "Dateline," and finished behind everything on the Sunday schedule in its timeslots, including "The Simpsons" 20th anniversary special and a rerun of "Criminal Minds" on CBS.

"Chuck" also is off nearly 15 percent from its average in the 2007-08 season, but slightly above its season premiere in 2008-09.

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