The Kids in the Hall saw boffo numbers for their return to television 15 years after their sketch comedy series ended on CBC.

The first episode of the eight-part mini The Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town debuted to one million viewers on Tuesday at 9 p.m., with 600,000 of those in the 25-54 demographic. (All numbers 2+ unless otherwise indicated.)

The comic murder mystery series features the original five troupe members, Dave Foley, Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald, Mark McKinney and Scott Thompson.

‘Wow, if we had numbers like this the first time around, we may not have stopped!’ commented exec producer McCulloch in a release. The original Kids in the Hall aired on CBC from 1988 to 1994, and also on HBO, beginning in 1989.

The numbers are impressive considering the competition, as Kids aired in part opposite the two-hour season premiere of CTV’s top-rated reality American Idol, which returned with 3.2 million viewers at 8 p.m., despite the absence of judge Paula Abdul, who left the Fox show last year.

Idol‘s season nine opener increased viewership by 25% compared to last January’s season eight premiere. CTV says Idol garnered 1.6 million viewers in its key 25-54 demo. The premiere featured guest judge Victoria Beckham, while Abdul’s replacement, Ellen DeGeneres, will join the panel later this season.

The singing competition nabbed nearly 30 million viewers in the U.S., according to Variety. It remains to be seen if Idol will remain on top when popular judge Simon Cowell exits the show. Cowell announced earlier this week that season nine would be his last.