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Looking back, we consider the TV offerings of the recent year, a handful of series emerge not for their excellence, but for their spectacular failures. From awkward sequels to confusingly bad docuseries, here are the productions that left us scratching our heads or simply reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

Where to begin with this love/hate spin-off? Burdened with dreadful scripts, painful character development (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the series struggled to find its footing. Briefly, as the final season started, it seemed as if it had at last found its groove. Then arrived an episode all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner announced this would be the last season. It concluded on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s loo full of poo was simply too symbolic. Yet, viewers certainly had a hoot picking apart every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t let out a little sob?

All’s Fair

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

But that was almost the smallest of this show's issues. The subject of a very rare no-star assessment, it was difficult to know where to start enumerating the flaws. The hilariously wooden dialogue? The mind-numbing veneration of wealth and materialism? The almost deliberate parade of cliches? Acting so poor they felt borderline malicious? Suffice it to say “each and every one” and never speak of this series again. However, a new season has been ordered, so we’re probably going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Given the legal troubles, abuse allegations and fatherly failures, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d truly have gleaned it from this three-part documentary which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of self-destructive excess 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 show might evoke should be reserved for the people who have had to endure close contact with this charming but dismissive narcissist.

The Iris Affair

Of course we understood it was ridiculous from the get-go: a drama about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – 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 slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about giving up the ghost.

MobLand

Dodgy figures convening in empty boxing gyms? The Prodigy’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 suffer the ignominy of having to indulge baffling dialects. But there were plenty of other problems. Primarily that it was just really dull; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various cockney picaresques which felt a bit basic.

With Love, Meghan

Considering the degree to which she grinds the gears of certain performatively enraged commentators, it’s almost tempting to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into quaint homemaking 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 homeware magazine come to life; a poster for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark sayings and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All supported by vast, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are clearly interesting things to be discussed about both Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, identity, self-acceptance. But for some reason, this three-part series chose not to say them. Rather, the viewing was like reading a marketing brochure. She clearly has good reason to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any helps with this cagey non-event of a series.

The Game Show

It had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a famous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality managing her inheritance. What more could you want? As players competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s even now too confusing to detail what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw brief appearances of the star via filmed videos. The series ended up smelling of a production that was straining desperately to live up to something way beyond it.

Too Much

How do you follow a show that captured a generation? The expectation was immense for this starry romcom about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The lead actress seized the opportunity by the horns and was a delight to watch, embodying Jane Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was not enough. Plus, the abundance of famous friends involved felt uncomfortable.

The Sketch Show Return

Not good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the smart inclusion of talented emerging comics, expectations were high. But sadly, most of it fell flat. A particular sketch was a one-note joke milked to a husk but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a well-known ranting mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, meanwhile, simply provoked the idea 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 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 handled with care. Rather, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lurching from oddly breezy, slightly mannered farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A total mess? Absolutely.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the lead actor … but did we buy him playing the most brilliant maths genius in history, a man so intelligent he’s on the verge of a breakthrough that could ruin society? Nope! This international thriller about secret services spying on – and killing off – intellectuals frankly got more farcical by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the online personality notorious for explicit exploits as she prepared for her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was far greater examination of her actual psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have interviewed the now-famous mum who appeared to haul her son away from the queue. What we got was disturbing shots and absolutely no critical analysis of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.