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As we reflect on the television offerings of the past year, a handful of series emerge not for their excellence, but for their spectacular shortcomings. From awkward spin-offs to bafflingly poor docuseries, here are the productions that left us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this love/hate spin-off? Plagued with dreadful scripts, painful arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to find its footing. For a moment, as the final series began, it seemed as if it had at last found its groove. Then came an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner announced this would be the final series. It concluded on a low point; the lingering shot of Miranda’s loo flooded with poo was just way too on-the-nose. Yet, fans certainly had a hoot picking apart every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t let out a small sob?

The Kim Kardashian Drama

‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? Of course she can’t.’

But that was almost the least of this show's problems. The recipient of a exceedingly uncommon zero star review, it was hard to know where to begin listing the flaws. The hilariously wooden dialogue? The tedious veneration of wealth and materialism? The almost wilful parade of cliches? Performances so poor they felt borderline malicious? Suffice it to say “all of the above” and never speak of this show again. However, a new season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Given the legal troubles, domestic violence claims and fatherly shortcomings, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not that you’d really have gleaned it from this multi-part documentary which chuckled along at Sheen’s various bouts of reckless excess while struggling to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Instead, it felt as if this volatile personality was being indulged, so any sympathy this series might induce should be reserved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charismatic but flippant narcissist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we knew it was preposterous from the get-go: a drama about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or annihilate all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure love for its stars … but by the end, it felt like even they had given up trying. One scarcely cared when his character died, and the other ended up slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about giving up the ghost.

MobLand

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

In truth, that is unfair on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many look a little dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were many other issues. Primarily that it was just really dull; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various London rogues which seemed rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Considering the extent to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s ostentatiously enraged commentators, it’s almost tempting to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into twee homemaking as intentional statements. But then you view them and are forced to concede that actually, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine animated; a poster for wine o’clock with ideas of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, sentimental sayings and pointless crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All supported by immense, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously fascinating things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her journey with vocation, self-image, self-acceptance. But for some reason, this documentary series chose not to explore them. Instead, the experience was akin to consuming a marketing catalogue. She obviously has every right to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she failed to do herself any favours with this guarded non-event of a series.

The Inheritance

It should have been 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 ask for? As players competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s even now too complicated to detail what exactly was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw brief appearances 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 far greater than it.

Too Much

How does one succeed a show that defined a generation? The pressure was enormous for this starry romcom 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 a delight to watch, embodying Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very glossy and, paradoxically, was not enough. Plus, the abundance of celebrity cameos involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the smart recruitment of gifted emerging comics, hopes were high. But sadly, most of it fell flat. A particular sketch was a one-note joke milked to a husk but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too willing 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 bit longer.

The Knox Dramatisation

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much solely showcased the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an interesting drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this was not it. The material needed to be handled with care. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lumbering from strangely breezy, slightly mannered farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A total 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 brink of a breakthrough that could destabilise society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about government agencies targeting – and killing off – intellectuals frankly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the online personality notorious for explicit exploits as she undertook her biggest challenge yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we craved was far greater examination of her true psyche, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have interviewed the legendary mum who appeared to haul her son out of the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and zero critical analysis of her notoriety whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.