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Looking back, we reflect on the television landscape of the past year, a selection of series stand out not for their brilliance, but for their notable shortcomings. From cringe-inducing sequels to confusingly bad documentaries, here are the productions that had us scratching our heads or just reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

How to start with this divisive follow-up? Burdened with dreadful scripts, cringe-inducing arcs (we demand better for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series struggled to find its footing. For a moment, as the third season began, it looked like it had at last hit its stride. Then arrived an episode centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner announced this would be the last series. It concluded on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was simply too symbolic. Yet, fans certainly had a hoot picking apart every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't release a small sob?

All’s Fair

‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? Of course she can’t.’

But that was almost the smallest of this drama's problems. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon zero star assessment, it was difficult to know where to begin listing the flaws. The laughably wooden writing? The mind-numbing glorification of affluence and consumption? The seemingly wilful procession of tropes? Acting so poor they felt almost spiteful? Let’s just say “all of the above” and forget about this series again. However, a second season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Considering the legal troubles, domestic violence allegations and fatherly shortcomings, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d really have known it from this multi-part documentary which chuckled along at Sheen’s various bouts of self-destructive hedonism while struggling 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 induce should be reserved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charming but flippant narcissist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Of course we knew it was ridiculous from the get-go: a drama about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or annihilate all of humanity. We persevered out of sheer love for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One barely cared when his character died, and the other ended up hacking Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about giving up the ghost.

The Gangster Drama

Dodgy characters convening in empty boxing gyms? A certain band's Firestarter blaring in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its gangland drama back.

Actually, that is unfair on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many look a bit old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to indulge unconvincing dialects. But there were plenty of other issues. Primarily that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over narcotics territory between various London picaresques which seemed rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Considering the degree to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s ostentatiously enraged commentators, it’s temptingly tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into twee homemaking as deliberate provocations. But then you view them and are forced to concede that in this case, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue animated; a meme for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark platitudes and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll forget instantly. All underpinned by immense, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously fascinating things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, self-image, self-acceptance. But for whatever reason, this three-part series opted not to explore them. Instead, the viewing was akin to reading a sales brochure. She clearly has every right to resent what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But unfortunately, she failed to do herself any helps with this guarded non-event of a series.

The Game Show

It should have been the next cultural phenomenon – except even camper, with a glamorous star playing dead and a well-known personality managing her inheritance. What more could you ask for? As players battled it out, there was plenty of betrayal and squabbling. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s still too confusing to explain what precisely was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw brief appearances of the star via filmed videos. The series ended up reeking of a programme that was straining desperately to emulate something way beyond it.

Too Much

How does one follow a show that captured a generation? The pressure was immense for this glitzy romantic comedy about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who arrives in London with a broken heart. The lead actress seized the opportunity by the horns and was joyous to watch, embodying Jane Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity friends involved felt icky.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the shrewd recruitment of talented younger comics, expectations 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 familiar irate mode. The writing room sketches, in contrast, simply inspired the thought that they should probably have remained in there a bit longer.

The Knox Dramatisation

This retelling of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively presented the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an compelling drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this was not it. The material needed to be treated sensitively. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right voice, lumbering from oddly breezy, slightly stylised farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A total mess? Very much so.

Prime Target

We admire the star … but did we believe him playing the most brilliant maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a discovery that could ruin society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about government agencies spying on – and eliminating – academics frankly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This hagiography followed the content creator renowned for explicit exploits as she prepared for her biggest feat yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we craved was far greater examination of her actual psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have spoken to the legendary mum who showed up to haul her son out of the queue. What we got was disturbing imagery and zero interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.