My 2013-2014 Ted Marshall Open Picks

Although the 2013-2014 television season started months ago, I realized that I never shared my picks for this year's Ted Marshall Open TV Death Pool. I going to blame CW and Oh Sit for this since we still don't have a winner for the 2012-2013 season. JUST CANCEL THE SHOW ALREADY, CW!

Anyway, if you're not familiar with the Ted Marshall Open, it is a contest to see who can guess which TV shows will be canceled during the 2013-2014 season. As someone who has participated in the Open for several years, it completely changes the way you watch and think about television.

Here are the basic rules:
- Eligible shows include all first-run comedies, dramas, prime-time news, daytime and late-night shows running on the five major networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, CW), except for weekend non prime-time shows.

- Certain shows, such Dancing with the Stars, have multiple airings per week. For a show to earn points, all airings of the show must be canceled.

- Each canceled show you selected earns 20 points, plus bonus points for where it was ranked. Your top ranked show earns 10 bonus points, your second 9 all the way down to 1. The maximum score possible is 255 points.

- A show is considered canceled when it is determined that there will be no more first run episodes of the selected show on any of the six major networks after September 8, 2014.

- A show must air at least one first-run episode between September 9, 2013 and September 8, 2014 on the five major networks for any points to be awarded. Shows like Law and Order: Criminal Intent are not eligible since the first-run episodes do not air on NBC.

And now, here are my picks:

10 - How I Met Your Mother (CBS)
9 - American Dad (FOX)
8 - Nikita (CW)
7 - Super Fun Night (ABC)
6 - We Are Men (CBS) - Already canceled!

5 - Dads (FOX)
4 - Ironside (NBC) - Already canceled!
3 - Reckless (CBS)
2 - Trophy Wife (ABC)
1- Sean Saves the World (NBC)

Overall, I feel pretty good about my picks. This is the final season of HIMYM, American Dad is scheduled to move to TBS next year, and this should be the last season of Nikita. The remaining shows are all new this season and don't appear to be doing well in the ratings. Reckless hasn't appeared yet, and while I don't remember what it is about, it seemed (to me) like a show that wouldn't last.

Finally, although Trophy Wife didn't look terrible and has actually received decent reviews, the show fell into my "Knights of Prosperity" rule this year. Several years ago, I selected The Knights of Prosperity, a show that featured Donal Logue and a not-yet famous Sofia Vergara, that was originally titled Let's Rob Mick Jagger (I believe). Although Jagger appeared in the first episode, the network wanted him to be a series regular. That didn't happen, so they changed the show's name. Basically, it appeared to be a mess, so I picked it for cancellation. While I ended up being right, I watched all of the episodes and found it to be a funny show. Therefore, while Trophy Wife might be good, I now refuse to watch new shows that I slated for cancellation.

Wish me luck!