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Looking back, we reflect on the television landscape of the past year, a selection of shows emerge not for their excellence, but for their notable failures. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to bafflingly poor documentaries, here are the productions that left us utterly bewildered or simply reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

Where to begin with this love/hate follow-up? Burdened with dreadful scripts, cringe-inducing arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the show fought to justify its existence. Briefly, as the third series began, it looked like it had finally found its groove. Then came an episode centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator announced this would be the last series. It ended on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet full of poo was just way too symbolic. Yet, viewers undeniably had a hoot dissecting every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – once again single – twirled around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a small sob?

All’s Fair

‘Can Kim Kardashian act? Of course she can’t.’

But that was almost the least of this show's problems. The recipient of a exceedingly uncommon no-star assessment, it was difficult to know where to begin enumerating the flaws. The laughably wooden writing? The tedious veneration of affluence and materialism? The seemingly deliberate parade of cliches? Performances so bad they felt borderline spiteful? Let’s just say “each and every one” and forget about this show again. However, a second season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Considering the legal troubles, abuse allegations and fatherly shortcomings, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d truly have gleaned it from this three-part docuseries which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of self-destructive hedonism while struggling to tell us a single thing we weren't already aware of. Rather, it felt as if this volatile personality was being pandered to, so any pity this series might induce should be saved for the people who have had to suffer proximity with this charming but dismissive narcissist.

The Iris Affair

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

The Gangster Drama

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

Actually, that is harsh on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many look a bit old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were many other problems. Primarily that it was just really boring; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various cockney picaresques which seemed rather simplistic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Considering the degree to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s performatively angry commentators, it’s almost tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised forays into quaint lifestyle as intentional statements. But then you watch them and are forced to admit that actually, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue come to life; a poster for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, buzzing beehives, Hallmark platitudes and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by immense, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are obviously interesting things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her struggles with vocation, self-image, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this three-part series chose not to say them. Instead, the experience was akin to reading a marketing brochure. She obviously has good reason to bridle at what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she failed to do herself any helps with this guarded letdown of a series.

The Game Show

It should have been the next big hit – except even camper, with a famous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality managing her estate. What more could you want? As contestants competed, there was plenty of betrayal and squabbling. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too confusing to detail what exactly was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw brief appearances of the star via prerecorded videos. The show ended up reeking of a programme that was trying way too hard to live up to something way beyond it.

Too Much

How do you succeed a show that defined a generation? The expectation was immense for this starry romcom about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who arrives in London with a broken heart. The star took her biggest role by the horns and was a delight to watch, reveling in Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was not enough. Plus, the sheer amount of famous cameos involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the shrewd recruitment of gifted younger comics, expectations were high. But unhappily, most of it fell flat. A recurring sketch was a one-note joke milked to a husk but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a familiar ranting mode. The writing room sketches, meanwhile, simply provoked the idea that they should probably have remained in there a while longer.

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively 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 struggled painfully to find the right tone, lumbering from oddly jaunty, slightly stylised farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A complete mess? Very much so.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the star … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius since, a man so smart he’s on the brink of a discovery that could destabilise society? No! This international thriller about secret services spying on – and killing off – academics frankly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This uncritical portrait followed the online personality notorious for sexual escapades as she undertook her biggest challenge yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was far greater examination of her true psychology, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have spoken to the legendary mum who appeared to drag her son away from the queue. What we got was horrific shots and zero interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. And to think, the documentary-maker has a teenage daughter too.