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Looking back, we reflect on the TV landscape of the recent year, a selection of series emerge not for their excellence, but for their notable shortcomings. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to bafflingly poor documentaries, here are the programmes that had us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this love/hate spin-off? Burdened with woeful writing, painful character development (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the show struggled to justify its existence. For a moment, as the final series started, it looked like it had at last found its groove. Then arrived an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator announced this would be the final series. It ended on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was just way too on-the-nose. Yet, fans certainly had a hoot picking apart 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

‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? The answer is a resounding no.’

But that was almost the least of this drama's problems. The recipient 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 deliberate parade of tropes? Performances so bad they felt borderline spiteful? Let’s just say “each and every one” and never speak of this show again. Except, a new season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Given the restraining orders, abuse claims and fatherly failures, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not you’d really have gleaned it from this three-part documentary which chuckled along at Sheen’s various bouts of self-destructive hedonism while failing to tell us anything we weren't already aware of. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any pity this series might evoke should be saved for the people who have had to endure close contact with this charismatic but dismissive egotist.

The Iris Affair

Of course we knew it was ridiculous from the get-go: a thriller 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 stars … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One barely reacted when his character died, and the other ultimately hacking Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about admitting defeat.

The Gangster Drama

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

Actually, that is unfair on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many seem a little dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the embarrassment of having to accommodate unconvincing accents. But there were many other problems. Primarily that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various cockney picaresques which felt rather simplistic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Considering the extent to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s performatively enraged commentators, it’s almost tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into twee lifestyle as deliberate provocations. But then you watch them and are compelled 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, sentimental platitudes and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All supported by vast, mostly unearned wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are obviously fascinating things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, self-image, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this three-part series opted not to say them. Instead, the viewing was akin to consuming a sales brochure. She clearly has good reason to bridle at what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But sadly, she failed to do herself any helps with this cagey letdown of a series.

The Game Show

It should have been the next big hit – except even more extravagant, with a glamorous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality managing her estate. What more could you ask for? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s even now too confusing to detail what exactly was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw brief appearances of the star via prerecorded videos. The show ended up reeking of a programme that was straining desperately to live up to something way beyond it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How does one follow a show that defined a generation? The expectation was immense for this glitzy romcom about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The lead actress took her biggest role by the horns and was joyous to watch, embodying Jane Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was not enough. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity cameos involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart recruitment of gifted younger comics, expectations were high. But unhappily, most of it didn’t land. A particular sketch was a one-note joke milked to a dry pulp but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a well-known irate mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, meanwhile, 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 overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively presented the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an compelling drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be treated with care. Instead, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right tone, lumbering from strangely breezy, somewhat stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Complex? Arguably. A total mess? Very much so.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We love the lead actor … but did we buy him playing the most brilliant maths genius since, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a breakthrough that could ruin society? No! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services spying on – and eliminating – intellectuals honestly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This hagiography followed the online personality notorious for sexual exploits as she undertook her biggest feat yet. What on earth would possess her? What we craved was far greater examination of her actual psyche, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have spoken to the now-famous mum who showed up to drag her son away from the queue. What we got was disturbing shots and zero critical analysis of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a teenage daughter too.