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Looking back, we reflect on the television offerings of the recent year, a handful of shows stand out not for their brilliance, but for their notable shortcomings. From awkward sequels to confusingly bad docuseries, here are the productions that had us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

Where to begin with this love/hate follow-up? Burdened with dreadful scripts, cringe-inducing character development (we demand better for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to justify its existence. For a moment, as the third season began, it looked like 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 lingering shot of Miranda’s loo flooded with poo was just way too symbolic. Still, viewers undeniably had a hoot dissecting every single “wtf?” episode. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a small sob?

All’s Fair

‘Can Kim Kardashian act? The answer is a resounding no.’

But that was practically the smallest of this show's problems. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon zero star review, it was difficult to know where to begin listing the flaws. The laughably leaden writing? The tedious veneration of affluence and materialism? The seemingly deliberate procession of cliches? Acting so bad they felt almost malicious? Let’s just say “each and every one” and never speak of this show again. However, a new season has been commissioned, so we’re probably going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Considering the restraining orders, abuse allegations and fatherly failures, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not that 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 a single thing we didn’t already know. Instead, it felt as if this volatile personality was being indulged, so any sympathy this show might induce should be reserved for the people who have had to endure proximity with this charismatic but dismissive narcissist.

The Iris Affair

Of course we understood it was ridiculous from the get-go: a thriller about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or destroy 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 barely reacted when his character died, and the other ended up hacking Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. That's what you call admitting defeat.

MobLand

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

Actually, that is unfair on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many seem a little old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t suffer the ignominy of having to accommodate unconvincing accents. But there were plenty of other problems. Mainly that it was just really dull; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various cockney rogues which felt a bit basic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Given the degree to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s performatively angry commentators, it’s almost tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised forays into twee lifestyle as deliberate provocations. But then you watch them and are compelled to admit that in this case, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine animated; a meme for evening drinks with ideas of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, buzzing beehives, Hallmark sayings and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by immense, mostly unearned wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are clearly interesting things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, identity, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this three-part series opted not to explore them. Instead, the viewing was akin to consuming a sales catalogue. She clearly has every right to bridle at what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But unfortunately, she failed to 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 playing dead and a well-known personality managing her inheritance. What more could you want? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of betrayal and arguing. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s still too confusing to explain what exactly was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw brief appearances of the star via filmed videos. The show ended up reeking of a production that was straining desperately to live up to something far greater than it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How does one follow a show that captured a generation? The expectation was immense for this glitzy romantic comedy about Jessica, a hopeful 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, reveling in Jane Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the abundance of celebrity friends involved felt icky.

The Sketch Show Return

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart recruitment of talented younger comics, hopes were high. But unhappily, most of it didn’t land. A recurring sketch was a one-note joke milked to a husk but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too willing to slip into a familiar irate mode. The writing room sketches, in contrast, simply provoked the thought that they should probably have remained 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 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. Rather, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right voice, lurching from oddly breezy, slightly stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A total mess? Absolutely.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the star … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius since, a man so intelligent he’s on the verge of a discovery that could ruin society? No! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services targeting – and eliminating – academics frankly got more farcical by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the online personality notorious for explicit escapades as she prepared for her biggest challenge yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we craved was far greater interrogation of her true psyche, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have spoken to the now-famous mum who appeared to drag her son away from the queue. What we got was disturbing imagery and zero interrogation of her notoriety whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the filmmaker has a teenage daughter too.