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Looking back, we reflect on the television landscape of the recent year, a handful of shows emerge not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular shortcomings. From awkward sequels to bafflingly poor docuseries, here are the productions that left us scratching our heads or simply reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

Where to begin with this love/hate spin-off? Plagued with dreadful scripts, painful arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series struggled to justify its existence. Briefly, as the final season started, it looked like it had finally hit its stride. Then arrived an episode centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner declared this would be the last series. It concluded on a bum note; the closeup of Miranda’s loo full of poo was simply too symbolic. Still, viewers certainly had a hoot dissecting every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a small sob?

All’s Fair

‘Can Kim Kardashian act? The answer is a resounding no.’

But that was practically the least of this show's issues. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon zero star assessment, it was difficult to know where to begin listing the flaws. The laughably leaden dialogue? The mind-numbing glorification of wealth and consumption? The seemingly wilful procession of cliches? Performances so poor they felt almost malicious? Suffice it to say “each and every one” and never speak of this show again. Except, a new season has been commissioned, so we’re likely going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Considering the restraining orders, domestic violence claims and fatherly failures, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not that you’d really have known it from this multi-part documentary which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless excess while failing to tell us a single thing we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any sympathy this series might evoke should be saved for the people who have had to suffer proximity with this charming but flippant egotist.

The Iris Affair

Of course we understood it was ridiculous from the get-go: a thriller about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or annihilate all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure love for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One scarcely reacted when his character died, and the other ended up hacking Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. That's what you call giving up the ghost.

The Gangster Drama

Shady figures meeting in empty boxing gyms? A certain band's Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and wants its gangland drama back.

In truth, that is unfair on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many look a little old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t suffer the ignominy of having to indulge unconvincing dialects. But there were plenty of other problems. Mainly that it was just really boring; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various London rogues which seemed a bit basic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the extent to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s performatively angry commentators, it’s almost easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into twee lifestyle as intentional provocations. But then you watch them and are forced to concede that actually, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine come to life; a meme for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a parade of sleeping dogs, buzzing beehives, sentimental platitudes and pointless crafting “tips” you’ll forget instantly. All supported by immense, largely unearned wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously interesting things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, identity, self-acceptance. But for some reason, this three-part series chose not to explore them. Rather, the experience was like consuming a sales brochure. She obviously has every right to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she didn’t do herself any helps with this guarded letdown of a series.

The Inheritance

It should have been the next cultural phenomenon – except even camper, with a famous star as a deceased benefactor and a sharp-tongued personality overseeing her inheritance. What more could you ask for? As players competed, there was plenty of betrayal and squabbling. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s even now too complicated to explain what exactly was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw glimpses of the star via filmed videos. The series ended up reeking of a production that was straining desperately to emulate something far greater than it.

Too Much

How does one follow a show that defined a generation? The expectation was enormous for this starry romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a broken heart. The lead actress took her biggest role by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, ironically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity friends involved felt uncomfortable.

The Sketch Show Return

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart recruitment of gifted younger comics, hopes were high. But unhappily, most of it didn’t land. A particular sketch was a single joke milked to a dry pulp but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too willing to slip into a well-known irate mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, meanwhile, simply provoked the thought that they should probably have remained in there a bit longer.

The Knox Dramatisation

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much solely showcased the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an interesting drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be treated sensitively. Instead, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right tone, lurching from oddly jaunty, somewhat mannered farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A complete mess? Very much so.

Prime Target

We love the star … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a breakthrough that could ruin society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services spying on – and killing off – intellectuals honestly got more absurd by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator renowned for sexual escapades as she undertook her biggest challenge yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was far greater interrogation of her true psyche, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have interviewed the now-famous mum who showed up to drag her son out of the queue. What we got was horrific shots and zero critical analysis of her infamy whatsoever. And to think, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.