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As we reflect on the TV landscape of the recent year, a selection of shows emerge not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from cringe-inducing sequels to confusingly poor docuseries, here are the programmes that had us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this divisive spin-off? Plagued with woeful writing, painful character development (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to justify its existence. For a moment, as the final season started, it seemed as if it had finally hit its stride. Then arrived an installment centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the showrunner declared this would be the last series. It ended on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was just way too on-the-nose. Yet, fans certainly found joy dissecting every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a little sob?

All’s Fair

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

But that was almost the least of this show's issues. The subject of a very rare no-star review, it was hard to know where to start listing the problems. The hilariously leaden dialogue? The mind-numbing glorification of affluence and consumption? The seemingly deliberate parade of cliches? Acting so poor they felt borderline malicious? Let’s just say “all of the above” and never speak of this show again. However, a second season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Given the legal troubles, abuse claims and fatherly failures, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d really have known it from this multi-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various bouts of reckless excess while failing to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Instead, it felt as if this loose cannon was being indulged, so any sympathy this series might induce should be saved for the people who have had to endure close contact with this charismatic but dismissive egotist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we knew it was preposterous 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 sheer admiration 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. That's what you call giving up the ghost.

The Gangster Drama

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

In truth, that is unfair on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many look a bit old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t suffer the ignominy of having to indulge baffling accents. But there were plenty of other problems. Mainly that it was just really dull; a conflict over narcotics territory between various London picaresques which felt a bit basic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Given the extent to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s performatively angry commentators, it’s temptingly easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various ventures into twee homemaking as intentional provocations. But then you view them and are compelled to concede that in this case, they may have a point. It’s like watching a homeware magazine animated; a poster for wine o’clock with ideas of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, buzzing beehives, Hallmark sayings and pointless crafting “tips” you’ll forget instantly. All underpinned by immense, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are obviously interesting things to be discussed about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with vocation, identity, self-worth. But for some reason, this documentary series opted not to explore them. Instead, the experience was like consuming a marketing brochure. She clearly has every right to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she didn’t do herself any helps with this guarded non-event of a series.

The Game Show

It had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality overseeing her estate. What more could you ask for? As players battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too confusing to explain what precisely was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw glimpses of the star via prerecorded videos. The series ended up smelling of a programme that was straining desperately to emulate something far greater than it.

Too Much

How does one succeed a show that defined a generation? The pressure was immense for this starry romantic comedy about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who arrives in London with a broken heart. The lead actress took her biggest role by the horns and was joyous to watch, embodying Jane Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, ironically, was not enough. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity friends involved felt icky.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the shrewd recruitment of talented younger comics, expectations were high. But unhappily, most of it fell flat. A recurring sketch was a one-note joke milked to a dry pulp but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too willing to slip into a well-known ranting mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, meanwhile, simply provoked the idea that they should probably have stayed in there a while longer.

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

This retelling of the story of Amanda Knox was overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively showcased the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an interesting drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The material needed to be handled sensitively. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lumbering from strangely breezy, slightly mannered farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A total mess? Absolutely.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We love the star … but did we buy him playing the most brilliant maths genius since, a man so intelligent he’s on the verge of a discovery that could ruin society? No! This international thriller about government agencies targeting – and eliminating – academics frankly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator renowned for sexual escapades as she undertook her most extreme challenge yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was way more interrogation of her actual psychology, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have interviewed the now-famous mum who appeared to haul her son away from the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and zero interrogation of her notoriety whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the filmmaker has a teenage daughter too.