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As we reflect on the television landscape of the past year, a handful of series stand out not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to confusingly bad docuseries, here are the programmes that left us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

Where to begin with this love/hate spin-off? Plagued with woeful scripts, cringe-inducing arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the show fought to justify its existence. For a moment, as the third series started, it seemed as if it had at last hit its stride. Then arrived an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the creator announced this would be the final season. It concluded on a bum note; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was simply too on-the-nose. Yet, fans undeniably had a hoot dissecting every single “what on earth?” 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 issues. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon zero star assessment, it was hard to know where to start listing the problems. The laughably leaden writing? The tedious veneration of wealth and materialism? The seemingly wilful procession of tropes? Acting so poor they felt borderline spiteful? Suffice it to say “each and every one” and never speak of this show again. Except, a second season has been commissioned, so we’re probably going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Given the legal troubles, abuse allegations and fatherly failures, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not that you’d really have known it from this multi-part docuseries which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of self-destructive excess while struggling to tell us anything we weren't already aware of. Instead, it felt as if this volatile personality was being indulged, so any pity this series might evoke should be saved for the people who have had to endure close contact with this charming but dismissive narcissist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we understood it was preposterous from the get-go: a drama about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or annihilate all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure love for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had given up trying. One barely reacted when his character died, and the other ended up hacking Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. Talk about admitting defeat.

MobLand

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

In truth, that is harsh on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many look a bit dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the embarrassment of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were many other problems. Primarily that it was just really boring; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various cockney rogues which felt rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the degree to which she grinds the gears of certain performatively enraged commentators, it’s temptingly easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various forays into quaint lifestyle as deliberate statements. But then you watch them and are compelled to concede that actually, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue animated; a meme for wine o’clock with ideas of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark platitudes and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by immense, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are obviously fascinating things to be discussed about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, identity, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this documentary series opted not to explore them. Rather, the viewing was like reading a sales brochure. She clearly has every right to resent what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any favours with this cagey non-event of a series.

The Inheritance

It had the potential to be the next big hit – except even more extravagant, with a glamorous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality overseeing her estate. What more could you want? As contestants competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s still too complicated to explain what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses 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 starry romantic comedy about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The lead actress took her biggest role by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, ironically, was not enough. Plus, the sheer amount of famous friends involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart recruitment of talented emerging comics, expectations were high. But sadly, most of it didn’t land. A recurring sketch was a one-note joke stretched to a husk but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a familiar ranting mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, in contrast, simply provoked the thought that they should probably have remained in there a while longer.

The Knox Dramatisation

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much solely showcased the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an compelling drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be handled with care. Rather, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right tone, lumbering from strangely jaunty, slightly mannered farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A complete mess? Very much so.

Prime Target

We love the star … 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 ruin society? Nope! This international thriller about secret services targeting – and eliminating – intellectuals frankly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This hagiography followed the content creator renowned for sexual exploits as she undertook her most extreme challenge yet. What on earth would possess her? What we craved was way more examination of her true psychology, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have interviewed the legendary mum who showed up to haul her son away from the queue. What we got was horrific shots and zero interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.