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As we consider the television offerings of the recent year, a handful of series emerge not for their excellence, but for their spectacular shortcomings. From cringe-inducing spin-offs to bafflingly bad documentaries, here are the programmes that had us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this love/hate spin-off? Burdened with woeful scripts, painful character development (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the series struggled to find its footing. Briefly, as the final season began, it seemed as if it had at last hit its stride. Then came an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the showrunner announced this would be the final season. It concluded on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s loo full of poo was simply too on-the-nose. Still, fans certainly found joy dissecting every single “wtf?” episode. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a small sob?

All’s Fair

‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? The answer is a resounding no.’

But that was practically the smallest of this drama's issues. The recipient of a very rare zero star review, it was hard to know where to begin enumerating the problems. The laughably leaden writing? The mind-numbing glorification of affluence and materialism? The seemingly deliberate procession of tropes? Acting so poor they felt borderline spiteful? Let’s just say “each and every one” and never speak of this show again. However, a second season has been commissioned, so we’re likely going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Considering the restraining orders, abuse claims and fatherly shortcomings, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not that you’d truly have known it from this multi-part documentary which chuckled along at Sheen’s various bouts of reckless hedonism while failing to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Rather, 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 suffer close contact with this charismatic but dismissive egotist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Of course we knew it was preposterous from the outset: a drama 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 pure admiration for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One scarcely reacted when his character died, and the other ended up hacking Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about admitting defeat.

MobLand

Shady figures convening in deserted boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its gangland drama back.

In truth, that is harsh on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many look a bit dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the embarrassment of having to indulge baffling accents. But there were plenty of other problems. Primarily that it was just really boring; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various London rogues which seemed rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Considering the extent to which she provokes the ire of certain performatively angry commentators, it’s almost easy to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into twee lifestyle as deliberate provocations. But then you watch them and are compelled to concede that actually, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine come to life; a meme for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark sayings and pointless crafting “tips” you’ll forget instantly. All supported by immense, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are obviously interesting things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, identity, self-acceptance. But for some reason, this documentary series opted not to say them. Rather, the viewing was like reading a marketing catalogue. She clearly has good reason to resent what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any helps with this cagey non-event of a series.

The Game Show

It had the potential to be the next big hit – except even more extravagant, with a glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality overseeing her inheritance. What more could you want? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too complicated to detail 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 trying way too hard to live up to something far greater than it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How do you succeed a show that defined a generation? The pressure was immense for this starry romantic comedy about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a broken heart. The lead actress took her biggest role by the horns and was joyous to watch, embodying Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of famous friends involved felt uncomfortable.

The Sketch Show Return

Not good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the smart inclusion of talented emerging comics, hopes were high. But unhappily, most of it fell flat. A particular sketch was a single 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 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 overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much solely showcased the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an interesting drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this was not it. The material needed to be treated sensitively. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lurching from oddly breezy, somewhat stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A complete mess? Absolutely.

Prime Target

We love the lead actor … but did we believe him playing the most brilliant maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a breakthrough that could destabilise society? No! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services targeting – and eliminating – intellectuals frankly got more absurd by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This hagiography followed the online personality notorious for sexual exploits as she undertook her biggest challenge yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we craved was far greater interrogation of her actual psyche, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have interviewed the now-famous mum who showed up to drag her son out of the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and zero interrogation of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.