So after a bigger song-and-dance than a Hugh Jackman number, all that fear from experts about Oscar ratings proved to be more notes than music.

As THR's James Hibberd reports over at The Live Feed, the unusual presentation, intimate setting and semi-noticeable nods to movies like "The Dark Knight" (or at least jokes about all those "The Dark Knight" fans) helped push ratings up 13% in the key 18-49 demo, and total viewers up to 36 million from the record low of 32 million last year.

That may not seem like a big gain, but in TV-land, flat is the new up (sports postseason competitions like the NBA Finals have been cut in half from their late 90's heyday) so any year when the Oscars show a bounce has to make the Academy happy.

There was a little bit of talk that while the Oscars played well in the room it didn't play as well at home — a reversal of sorts from the Jon Stewart quipfest Oscars of three years ago that played well at home but not as well in the room — but fans seemed to like the five-stars-per-acting-award onslaught and the quicker pace.

Oscar history proves that anytime a show makes gains, the stars tend to be back. So we may get a chance to see the Mark/Condon duoo again next year. Hold on to your tophat.