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As we reflect on the television offerings of the past year, a selection of series stand out not for their excellence, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to confusingly bad docuseries, here are the productions that had us scratching our heads or simply reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

Where to begin with this love/hate follow-up? Plagued with woeful scripts, painful character development (we demand better for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series struggled to justify its existence. Briefly, as the final season started, it looked like it had at last hit its stride. Then arrived an episode all about Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator declared this would be the final series. It ended on a low point; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet full of poo was just way too on-the-nose. Still, fans certainly had a hoot dissecting every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – twirled around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't release a small sob?

All’s Fair

‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? Of course she can’t.’

But that was practically the smallest of this show's issues. The subject of a very rare zero star assessment, it was difficult to know where to start listing the flaws. The laughably wooden dialogue? The tedious glorification of wealth and materialism? The seemingly deliberate procession of tropes? Acting so bad they felt borderline spiteful? Let’s just say “all of the above” and never speak of this series again. Except, a second season has been ordered, so we’re probably going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Given the legal troubles, domestic violence allegations and parental shortcomings, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not you’d really have known it from this three-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless hedonism while failing to tell us a single thing we didn’t already know. Instead, it felt as if this volatile personality was being indulged, 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 thriller about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or annihilate all of humanity. We stuck with it out of sheer admiration for its stars … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One scarcely reacted when his character died, and the other ultimately slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about 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 gangland drama back.

In truth, that is unfair on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many seem a bit old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to accommodate baffling dialects. But there were many other issues. Mainly that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over narcotics territory between various cockney picaresques which felt rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the degree to which she grinds the gears of certain performatively enraged commentators, it’s almost easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various ventures into twee homemaking as intentional provocations. But then you view them and are forced to concede that actually, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue animated; a meme for evening drinks with ideas of grandeur; a procession of sleeping dogs, buzzing beehives, sentimental platitudes and pointless crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, mostly unearned wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are clearly fascinating things to be discussed about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with vocation, identity, self-worth. But for some reason, this three-part series opted not to explore them. Instead, the experience was akin to consuming a marketing catalogue. She clearly has good reason to resent what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But unfortunately, she didn’t do herself any helps with this guarded letdown of a series.

The Inheritance

It should have been the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a glamorous 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 bewildering: it’s still too complicated to detail what precisely was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw brief appearances of the star via filmed videos. The series ended up smelling of a production that was trying way too hard to emulate something way beyond it.

Too Much

How does one follow a show that defined a generation? The pressure was enormous for this glitzy romcom about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who arrives 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, ironically, was insufficient. Plus, the abundance of celebrity cameos involved felt icky.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the shrewd inclusion of talented emerging comics, expectations were high. But sadly, most of it fell flat. A particular sketch was a one-note joke stretched 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, in contrast, simply inspired the idea that they should probably have stayed in there a while longer.

The Knox Dramatisation

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much solely presented the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an interesting drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be treated with care. Instead, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right voice, lumbering from oddly breezy, somewhat mannered farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A complete mess? Absolutely.

Prime Target

We love the star … but did we believe him playing the most brilliant maths genius in history, a man so intelligent he’s on the verge of a discovery that could ruin society? No! This globe-trotting 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 renowned for explicit exploits as she prepared for her biggest feat yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted 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 haul her son away from the queue. What we got was disturbing shots and zero critical analysis of her infamy whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.