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Looking back, we reflect on the television landscape of the recent year, a selection of shows stand out not for their brilliance, but for their notable shortcomings. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to confusingly bad documentaries, here are the programmes that had us scratching our heads or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

Where to begin with this divisive follow-up? Plagued with woeful writing, cringe-inducing character development (justice for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the series fought to justify its existence. Briefly, as the final series began, it looked like it had at last hit its stride. Then arrived an installment centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner declared this would be the final season. It concluded on a low point; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet full of poo was just way too on-the-nose. Still, fans undeniably had a hoot picking apart every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – twirled 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 practically the least of this drama's issues. The recipient of a very rare no-star assessment, it was hard to know where to start listing the problems. The laughably leaden writing? The mind-numbing glorification of wealth and consumption? The almost deliberate procession of tropes? Acting so bad they felt borderline spiteful? Let’s just say “each and every one” and forget about this show again. However, a new season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Given the restraining orders, domestic violence allegations and fatherly shortcomings, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not that you’d really have known it from this multi-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless excess while failing to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Instead, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any sympathy this series might induce should be reserved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charming but flippant narcissist.

The Iris Affair

Of course we understood it was preposterous from the get-go: a thriller about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or destroy all of humanity. We persevered out of pure love 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. That's what you call giving up the ghost.

The Gangster Drama

Shady characters convening in deserted boxing gyms? The Prodigy’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 old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t endure the embarrassment of having to indulge unconvincing dialects. But there were many other problems. Mainly that it was just profoundly boring; a dispute over narcotics territory between various London rogues which felt a bit basic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Considering the extent to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s performatively angry commentators, it’s almost easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various ventures into quaint lifestyle as deliberate provocations. But then you watch them and are compelled to admit that in this case, they might have a point. It’s like watching a homeware magazine animated; a poster for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a procession of sleeping dogs, buzzing beehives, sentimental platitudes and pointless crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All supported by immense, mostly unearned wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously interesting things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, identity, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this documentary series opted not to say them. Rather, the experience was like consuming a sales catalogue. She obviously has every right to bridle at what she describes as her “stern” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any favours with this guarded 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 as a deceased benefactor and a sharp-tongued personality managing her estate. What more could you want? As players competed, there was plenty of betrayal and arguing. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s even now too confusing to detail what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via filmed videos. The series ended up smelling of a programme that was trying way too hard to live up to something way beyond it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How does one succeed a show that defined a generation? The expectation was enormous for this glitzy romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who arrives in London with a shattered romance. The star seized the opportunity by the horns and was a delight to watch, reveling in Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, ironically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity friends involved felt uncomfortable.

The Sketch Show Return

Not even good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart recruitment of gifted younger comics, hopes were high. But unhappily, most of it didn’t land. A particular sketch was a one-note joke milked to a husk but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a well-known ranting mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, in contrast, simply inspired the idea that they should probably have stayed in there a while longer.

The Knox Dramatisation

This retelling of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much solely presented the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an compelling drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this was not it. The subject matter needed to be handled sensitively. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lurching from oddly jaunty, somewhat stylised farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A complete mess? Absolutely.

Prime Target

We admire the lead actor … but did we buy him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a discovery that could ruin society? No! This globe-trotting thriller about government agencies targeting – and eliminating – intellectuals honestly got more farcical by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator renowned for explicit exploits as she undertook her most extreme challenge yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we wanted was way more examination 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 out of the queue. What we got was disturbing imagery and zero interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.