Ratings wars: Seven Sharp trumps The Project on debut

After weeks of intrigue and rumour surrounding Seven Sharp and its new line up, it's no surprise Kiwis were keen to tune in to see what all the fuss was about.

So just how many Kiwis sat down to watch Hilary Barry and Jeremy Wells make their 7pm debut?

According to Nielsen's overnight ratings, more than 466,000 viewers aged 5+ tuned in - and an impressive 144,000 aged 25-54.

That's well ahead of Seven Sharp's ratings last year, which saw an average of 89,000 viewers aged 25-54 tune in during the first week of February.

Likewise, it's nearly three times the number of viewers who watched The Project on Three last night, where just 51,000 Kiwis aged 25-54 tuned in.

But TVNZ will know better than to start popping the champagne corks yet.

In 2013, more than half a million Kiwis tuned in for the first-ever episode of Seven Sharp, before ratings fell to a dismal 310,000 just a week later.

Reaction to the new Seven Sharp line up has been mixed with some suggesting the hosts need more time to find their groove.

Herald critic Karl Puschmann wrote: "There's pacing problems and expectation problems. Seven Sharp feels a little like they don't know what they want it to be and are still trying to figure out how to make this bold experiment work."

Viewers have also been quick to condemn the new-look set, which is a nauseating shade of pink.