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Looking back, we consider the TV offerings of the recent year, a selection of series stand out not for their excellence, but for their notable shortcomings. Ranging from cringe-inducing spin-offs to confusingly bad docuseries, here are the productions that had us scratching our heads or just reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

Where to begin with this love/hate spin-off? Plagued with dreadful scripts, painful arcs (we demand better for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series struggled to justify its existence. For a moment, as the final series started, 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 final series. It concluded on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s loo full of poo was just way too on-the-nose. Yet, viewers undeniably had a hoot picking apart every single “wtf?” episode. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a little sob?

The Kim Kardashian Drama

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

But that was practically the smallest of this show's issues. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon zero star review, it was hard to know where to begin listing the problems. The laughably leaden writing? The tedious glorification of wealth and materialism? The seemingly wilful procession of tropes? Performances so bad they felt borderline malicious? Let’s just say “each and every one” and forget about this series again. Except, a new season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Given the legal troubles, domestic violence claims and parental failures, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not you’d really have known it from this multi-part docuseries which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless hedonism while struggling to tell us a single thing we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this volatile personality was being indulged, so any pity this show might induce should be saved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charming but dismissive egotist.

The Iris Affair

Of course we knew it was preposterous from the outset: a drama about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or destroy all of humanity. We stuck with it out of sheer admiration for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had given up trying. One barely cared when his character died, and the other ultimately hacking Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. That's what you call admitting defeat.

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 wants its crime drama back.

Actually, that is harsh on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many look a bit dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the embarrassment of having to indulge baffling dialects. But there were many other issues. Mainly that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over narcotics territory between various London rogues which felt a bit basic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the extent to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s ostentatiously angry commentators, it’s temptingly tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised forays into twee homemaking as intentional statements. But then you watch them and are forced to admit that in this case, they might have a point. It’s like watching a homeware magazine come to life; a poster for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, buzzing beehives, Hallmark sayings and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, largely unearned wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously interesting things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with vocation, self-image, self-acceptance. But for some reason, this documentary series opted not to say them. Rather, the viewing was like reading a sales brochure. She obviously has good reason to bridle at what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But sadly, she failed to do herself any favours with this cagey letdown of a series.

The Game Show

It had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even camper, with a famous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality managing her estate. What more could you ask for? As contestants competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too complicated to detail what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via prerecorded videos. The series ended up reeking of a programme that was trying way too hard to emulate something way beyond it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How does one succeed a show that defined a generation? The expectation was enormous for this glitzy romantic comedy about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who arrives in London with a shattered romance. The lead actress seized the opportunity by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Jane Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity friends involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the shrewd inclusion of talented younger comics, hopes were high. But sadly, most of it fell flat. A particular sketch was a single joke milked to a husk but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a well-known ranting mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, in contrast, simply inspired the thought that they should probably have stayed 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 presented 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 voice, lurching from oddly breezy, slightly stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Complex? Arguably. A complete mess? Very much so.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the lead actor … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a discovery that could destabilise society? Nope! This international thriller about government agencies targeting – and eliminating – intellectuals honestly got more absurd by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator renowned for sexual exploits as she undertook her most extreme challenge yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was way more interrogation of her true psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have spoken to the legendary mum who showed up to drag her son away from the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and absolutely no interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.