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As we consider the TV landscape of the recent year, a selection of shows stand out not for their brilliance, but for their notable shortcomings. Ranging from cringe-inducing sequels to confusingly poor documentaries, here are the productions that left us scratching our heads or just reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

How to start with this love/hate spin-off? Burdened with woeful scripts, painful arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the show struggled to find its footing. Briefly, as the final season started, it seemed as if it had finally hit its stride. Then came an episode all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner declared this would be the final series. It concluded on a bum note; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet full of poo was simply too on-the-nose. Still, viewers certainly found joy dissecting every single “wtf?” episode. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't release a little sob?

The Kim Kardashian Drama

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

But that was almost the least of this drama's problems. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon no-star assessment, it was difficult to know where to begin listing the problems. The hilariously leaden dialogue? The tedious glorification of affluence and consumption? The almost deliberate procession of tropes? Performances so poor 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 commissioned, so we’re likely going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Considering the legal troubles, abuse claims and parental failures, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not you’d really have gleaned it from this three-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless hedonism 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 sympathy this show might evoke should be reserved for the people who have had to endure proximity with this charming but flippant egotist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Of course we knew it was preposterous from the outset: a thriller about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or destroy all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure 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 slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about giving up the ghost.

The Gangster Drama

Dodgy characters meeting in empty boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter blaring in club scenes? The late 90s called and wants its gangland drama back.

Actually, that is unfair on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many seem a bit old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t suffer the ignominy of having to accommodate unconvincing accents. But there were many other issues. Primarily that it was just profoundly dull; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various cockney picaresques which felt rather simplistic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Given the extent to which she provokes the ire of certain performatively enraged commentators, it’s almost easy to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s various ventures into twee homemaking as deliberate provocations. But then you watch them and are forced to concede that actually, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue come to life; a meme for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a parade of sleeping dogs, humming beehives, sentimental sayings and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, mostly unearned wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously interesting things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, identity, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this three-part series chose not to explore them. Rather, the viewing was akin to reading a marketing catalogue. She obviously has every right to bridle at what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she didn’t do herself any helps with this guarded letdown of a series.

The Inheritance

It had the potential to be the next big hit – except even more extravagant, with a glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a sharp-tongued personality overseeing her inheritance. What more could you want? As contestants competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too confusing to explain what exactly was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw brief appearances of the star via filmed videos. The show ended up reeking of a programme that was straining desperately to emulate something far greater than it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How do you succeed a show that defined a generation? The pressure was enormous for this starry romantic comedy about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who arrives in London with a shattered romance. The star took her biggest role by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very glossy and, ironically, was insufficient. Plus, the abundance of celebrity friends involved felt icky.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the shrewd inclusion of talented emerging comics, hopes were high. But sadly, most of it didn’t land. A recurring sketch was a single joke milked to a husk but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too willing to slip into a familiar ranting mode. The writing room sketches, meanwhile, simply inspired the thought that they should probably have stayed in there a bit longer.

The Knox Dramatisation

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively presented the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an compelling drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be handled sensitively. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right voice, lumbering from strangely breezy, somewhat stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Complex? Arguably. A total mess? Very much so.

Prime Target

We admire the star … but did we believe him playing the most brilliant maths genius since, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a discovery that could destabilise society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about government agencies targeting – and eliminating – intellectuals honestly got more absurd by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This hagiography followed the content creator notorious for explicit escapades as she undertook her biggest challenge yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was way more examination of her actual psychology, 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 critical analysis of her infamy whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the filmmaker has a teenage daughter too.