Fantasy TV League

Two of my favorite things are fantasy sports leagues and television. Thanks to JQ, I learned that both of these interests can be combined through The Alison LaPlaca Open Television Death Pool. Now in it's seventh year, the LaPlaca Open is a contest to see who can guess how many TV shows will be cancelled during the 2006-2007 season. To be eligible, a show must air sometime between September 1, 2006 and August 31, 2007 on any of the big five commercial networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, CW), and presumed not to air a first-run episode after August 31, 2007.

Here are my picks:

10-pointer: What About Brian (ABC)
9-Kidnapped (NBC)
8-Happy Hour (FOX)
7-The Singles Table (NBC)
6-Men in Trees (ABC)
5-Runaway (WB)
4-The Knights of Prosperity (ABC)
3-The O.C. (FOX)
2-Seventh Heaven (WB)
1-The War at Home (FOX)

What About Brian had 6 episodes in the spring and had poor ratings. However, since this show is produced or created by J.J. Abrams (of Lost), I think ABC decided to give it another try in part to keep Abrams happy. I think the ratings have spoken, and there is no chance it will make it to the 2007-2008 TV season.

Of the picks above, I'm a little worried about Kidnapped and The Knights of Prosperity. Kidnapped looks exactly like the movie "Ransom" with Mel Gibson but NBC seems to be hyping the show and it looks decent. The Knights of Prosperity was originally going to be called "Let's Rob Mick Jagger" (or something like that) and still has a terrible title. The show stars Donal Logue (who I like) and, in seeing a preview tonight, looks funny.

I really, really, really hope The War at Home gets cancelled. This may be the worst show on TV.