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Looking back, we consider the TV landscape of the past year, a selection of series emerge not for their excellence, but for their notable shortcomings. Ranging from cringe-inducing sequels to confusingly poor documentaries, here are the productions that left us utterly bewildered or simply reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this divisive spin-off? Burdened with woeful writing, cringe-inducing arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to find its footing. Briefly, as the final series began, it seemed as if it had at last found its groove. Then arrived an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator announced this would be the last series. It concluded on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet full of poo was simply too symbolic. Still, viewers certainly found joy picking apart every single “wtf?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't let out a little sob?

The Kim Kardashian Drama

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

But that was practically the smallest of this show's problems. The recipient of a very rare no-star assessment, it was difficult to know where to begin enumerating the problems. The hilariously wooden writing? The mind-numbing veneration of affluence and consumption? The almost deliberate parade of cliches? Acting so poor they felt almost malicious? Let’s just say “each and every one” and forget about this series again. However, a new season has been commissioned, so we’re probably going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Given the legal troubles, abuse allegations and fatherly shortcomings, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not that you’d truly have gleaned it from this three-part docuseries which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless hedonism while failing to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this volatile personality was being pandered to, so any sympathy this series might induce should be reserved for the people who have had to suffer proximity with this charismatic but dismissive egotist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we understood it was ridiculous from the outset: a drama about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or destroy all of humanity. We persevered out of pure admiration for its stars … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One scarcely cared when his character died, and the other ended up slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. That's what you call giving up the ghost.

The Gangster Drama

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

Actually, that is harsh on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many seem a little dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to indulge baffling dialects. But there were plenty of other issues. Mainly that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over narcotics territory between various London rogues which felt rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the extent 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 lifestyle as deliberate provocations. But then you watch them and are forced to concede that in this case, they might have a point. It’s like watching a homeware magazine come to life; a meme for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, buzzing beehives, sentimental platitudes and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All supported by vast, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously interesting things to be discussed about both Victoria Beckham and her struggles with vocation, identity, self-acceptance. But for whatever reason, this three-part series opted not to explore them. Instead, the viewing was like consuming a marketing brochure. 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 cagey letdown of a series.

The Inheritance

It had the potential to be the next big hit – except even camper, with a famous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality overseeing her estate. What more could you want? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of betrayal and squabbling. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too complicated to detail what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via prerecorded videos. The show ended up smelling of a programme that was trying way too hard to live up to something far greater than it.

Too Much

How does one follow a show that captured a generation? The expectation was immense for this starry romantic comedy about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The star took her biggest role by the horns and was a delight to watch, embodying 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 uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart recruitment of gifted emerging comics, expectations were high. But unhappily, 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 familiar ranting mode. The writing room sketches, meanwhile, simply inspired the thought that they should probably have remained in there a bit longer.

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively showcased the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an interesting drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The material needed to be treated with care. Rather, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right voice, lumbering from oddly jaunty, somewhat stylised farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A total mess? Absolutely.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We love the lead actor … but did we believe him playing the most brilliant maths genius since, a man so smart he’s on the brink of a breakthrough that could ruin society? Nope! This international thriller about secret services targeting – and killing off – academics honestly got more farcical by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This uncritical portrait followed the online personality notorious for sexual exploits as she prepared for her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was far greater interrogation of her actual psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have spoken to the now-famous mum who showed up to drag her son away from the queue. What we got was horrific shots and zero critical analysis of her infamy whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.