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Looking back, we consider the TV landscape of the past year, a handful of series stand out not for their excellence, but for their spectacular failures. Ranging from cringe-inducing spin-offs to bafflingly poor documentaries, here are the productions that left us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this divisive spin-off? Plagued with dreadful writing, cringe-inducing character development (justice for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the show 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 episode centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator announced this would be the final series. It ended on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was just way too on-the-nose. Yet, fans certainly found joy picking apart every single “wtf?” episode. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who didn’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 issues. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon zero star assessment, it was hard to know where to start listing the problems. The hilariously wooden dialogue? The mind-numbing veneration of affluence and materialism? The seemingly wilful procession of cliches? Acting so bad they felt borderline spiteful? Let’s just say “all of the above” and forget about this show again. However, a new season has been ordered, so we’re probably going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Given the restraining orders, abuse allegations and parental failures, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d truly have gleaned it from this multi-part docuseries which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless hedonism while struggling to tell us anything we weren't already aware of. Instead, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any pity this series might evoke should be reserved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charming but dismissive narcissist.

The Iris Affair

Of course we knew it was preposterous from the get-go: a drama about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or destroy all of humanity. We stuck with it out of sheer 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 hacking Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. Talk about giving up the ghost.

The Gangster Drama

Shady figures convening 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 gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many seem a bit dated now, but at least they didn’t suffer the ignominy of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were many other issues. Primarily that it was just profoundly boring; a dispute over narcotics territory between various cockney picaresques which seemed rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the extent to which she grinds the gears of certain performatively angry commentators, it’s almost easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into quaint homemaking as intentional statements. But then you watch them and are compelled to concede that in this case, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine come to life; a poster for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a parade of sleeping dogs, humming beehives, sentimental sayings and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll forget instantly. All supported by immense, largely unearned wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously interesting things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with vocation, identity, self-worth. But for some reason, this documentary series chose not to say them. Instead, the viewing was like consuming a marketing brochure. 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 letdown of a series.

The Game Show

It had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even camper, with a famous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality managing her inheritance. What more could you want? As players 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 disappointingly, we only saw brief appearances of the star via prerecorded videos. The series ended up smelling of a production that was trying way too hard to live up to something far greater than it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How does one follow a show that defined a generation? The pressure was immense for this starry romantic comedy about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who arrives in London with a shattered romance. The star seized the opportunity by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very glossy and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity cameos involved felt uncomfortable.

The Sketch Show Return

Not good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the smart inclusion of talented younger comics, hopes were high. But sadly, most of it didn’t land. A particular sketch was a single joke milked to a husk but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a well-known ranting mode. The writing room sketches, meanwhile, simply provoked the thought that they should probably have stayed 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 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 material needed to be treated sensitively. Rather, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lurching from oddly jaunty, somewhat stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A total mess? Very much so.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We love the star … but did we buy him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so intelligent he’s on the verge of a discovery that could destabilise society? No! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services targeting – and eliminating – intellectuals honestly got more farcical by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator notorious for sexual exploits as she prepared for her biggest challenge yet. What on earth would possess her? What we craved was far greater interrogation of her actual psyche, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have spoken to the now-famous mum who appeared to haul her son out of the queue. What we got was disturbing shots and absolutely no critical analysis of her infamy whatsoever. And to think, the documentary-maker has a teenage daughter too.