ABC freshman Revenge ran No. 2 to the second hour of CBS' 2-hour Criminal Minds finale, while continuing to beat out NBC's veteran Law & Order: SVU in the hour by wide margins with Total Viewers (+24% - 6.8 million vs. 5.5 million), Adults 18-49 (+18% - 2.0/5 vs. 1.7/5) and Adults 25-54 (+24% - 2.6/6 vs. 2.1/5).

The Disney-owned drama produced sizeable year-to-year gains in the hour, bettering original programming on the same night last year in Viewers (+100%), Adults 25-54 (+53%) and Adults 18-49 (+43%). On average, Revenge is ABC's most-watched series in the hour in 5 seasons - since Lost during the 2006-07 season.

The countdown to Revenge's highly anticipated season finale is officially on, people! The ABC hit series is closing out its breakout first season with "a major explosion" and a possible shift in the hot love triangle between Emily (Emily VanCamp), Daniel (Josh Bowman) and Jack (Nick Wechsler)! Plus, what final trick does Victoria (Madeleine Stowe) have up her sleeve?

So what can fans expect from Revenge's finale next week? And which guy will Emily be sharing "a beautiful moment" with in tonight's episode? E! chatted with Emily, Josh and Madeleine at the EW/ABC upfront party to get all the scoop...

Revenge is a dish best served on Sunday nights, when ABC's newly announced prime-time lineup will be noticeably darker this fall.

Now that Desperate Housewives has packed up and left and its ill-fated heir apparent, GCB, has been axed, the third-place network is making some big changes to television’s most-watched evening.

The successful freshman fairy tale fantasy Once Upon a Time will stay put on Sundays and lead into Revenge, which moves from its Wednesday slot. Revenge’s shift to Sunday is a vote of confidence for the soapy, vengeance-seeking drama, proudly touted by ABC execs as the No. 1 Most Buzzed About Show, whatever that means.

"Sunday night is going to be a battle between good and evil," network chief Paul Lee said Tuesday, when ABC unveiled its fall lineup to advertisers.

In advance of its upfront presentation on Tuesday, the network made the rounds today and called producers of seven shows to say, "Congratulations, you've been renewed."

One of those calls went to Mike Kelley, creator of Revenge.

Congratulations to Mike and the rest of the cast and crew. We all look forward to see what's ahead.

ABC and Yahoo will experiment on the season's last two episodes of Revenge with a smartphone and tablet application designed to encourage more people to watch television live.

There's an enticement, too. People who download and click onto the "Into Now" application during the May 16 and 23 showings of Revenge become eligible for a free summer trip to New York's Hamptons beach area, where the drama's story is based.

The companies are trying to take advantage of the growing trend of multiscreen use, or people who spend time on their phones or iPads while the TV is on. Yahoo's "Into Now" app tries to make all of that easier.

"The world changed dramatically with all the smartphones and tablets," said Adam Cahan, vice president of "Into Now." "People are multitasking while they are watching TV. We came up with a way of connecting that community."

When used, the app can identify what show a viewer is watching and immediately spot Facebook friends who are doing the same thing, Cahan said. It taps into Twitter feeds about the show, including those from actors and producers. Trivia and other details about the show are also readily available, he said.

"We know the finale is going to be big," said Victoria Chew, vice president of strategic marketing partnerships at ABC. "We know the story lines are going to be things that the fans are going to buzz about and talk about when it's over. We wanted to encourage fans to watch it live."

While most television is still viewed live, the rapid growth of digital video recorders usage and video on demand means many more fans are watching programs later than when they are aired on TV, and networks have a harder time measuring this viewership. It is considered a factor in a major ratings slump at the networks this spring.

The Nielsen company estimated that 44 percent of all U.S. homes with TVs had DVRs in April, up from 19 percent in September 2007. Nielsen said 8 percent of all TV viewing is now material recorded on DVRs.

So, for ABC other networks, anything that might encourage live viewing is considered worth a try. ABC is examining partnerships with companies that have technology similar to "Into Now," but it has no other agreements set, Chew said.

"We're really interested in learning more about the second screen-experience," she said.

For "Into Now," the ABC deal also provides an important marketing boost as it tries to establish itself in a growing marketplace.

Revenge increased ratings this week from last week, up a tenth to a 2.2 vs. 2.1 adults 18-49 rating.

"Legacy" Ratings:
18-49 Rating: 2.2
18-49 Share: 6
Viewers Live+SD (million): 6.967

Season 1 of Revenge will be released on DVD August 21, 2012. ABC/Disney will release Revenge - The Complete 1st Season as a 5-DVD set. Priced at $45.99 SRP in the USA and CA $54.99 SRP in Canada, the date isn't the only thing to change: early package art shown in our previous report has been revised to the finalized image displayed below. For bonus material you'll get "Nolan's World: An Interview With The Infamous Nolan Ross"; "Lifestyles Of The Rich And Dangerous: The Making Of REVENGE"; "Hamptons Bound: Preparing For Life At The Shore"; Deleted Scenes, Bloopers, and more!

We know from earlier episodes of Revenge that Nolan met with Emily when she was first released from jail to tell her about the recent death of her father and to deliver his infinity box. This week's episode flashes back to 2002 to show us the genesis of Emily's plan of revenge.

Back then, Emily had recently come into a fortune, as well as her father's journals. Nolan was hanging around, trying to get her to read the journals and learn the truth about the kind of man her father was. His encouragement brings her to the Hamptons shortly after Christmas, where the Grayson family is planning a reunion of the conspirators. Emily heads to the Stowaway and spots 2002 Jack, who has the most ridiculous/hilarious hairdo. She also happens to meet his current squeeze, who gets her a waitressing job at the Grayson's New Year's Eve party, thus putting her on her path.

Watch three sneak peeks below for the May 9 episode of Revenge, airing at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

Next week's episode of Revenge takes a step back to 2002. A look back at what caused Emily (Amanda) to seek revenge.

Be sure to sign up on our forums, REVENGEforums.com, and discuss tonight's episodes.

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