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Looking back, we consider the TV landscape of the past year, a selection of series emerge not for their excellence, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to bafflingly bad docuseries, here are the programmes that had us scratching our heads or simply reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

Where to begin with this love/hate spin-off? Burdened with dreadful scripts, painful arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the show struggled to justify its existence. Briefly, as the third season began, it seemed as if it had finally found its groove. Then came an episode all about Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator announced this would be the final series. It concluded on a low point; the lingering shot of Miranda’s loo full of poo was simply too on-the-nose. Still, viewers certainly had a hoot dissecting every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t let out a small sob?

The Kim Kardashian Drama

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

But that was practically the smallest of this show's issues. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon zero star review, it was hard to know where to start enumerating the problems. The hilariously wooden writing? The tedious veneration of affluence and consumption? The almost deliberate procession of cliches? Acting so poor they felt borderline malicious? Let’s just say “all of the above” and never speak of this series again. Except, a new season has been commissioned, so we’re probably going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Considering the legal troubles, abuse claims and fatherly shortcomings, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not that you’d really have gleaned it from this multi-part docuseries which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless excess while struggling to tell us a single thing we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being indulged, so any sympathy this series might evoke should be saved for the people who have had to endure proximity with this charming but dismissive egotist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we knew it was ridiculous 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 sheer love for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had given up trying. One barely cared when his character died, and the other ultimately slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. That's what you call admitting defeat.

The Gangster Drama

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

Actually, that is unfair on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many seem a little dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to indulge unconvincing accents. But there were plenty of other issues. Primarily that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over narcotics territory between various cockney picaresques which felt rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Considering the extent to which she grinds the gears of certain ostentatiously angry commentators, it’s almost easy to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s televised forays into quaint homemaking as deliberate provocations. But then you view them and are forced to admit that in this case, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine come to life; a meme for evening drinks with ideas of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark platitudes and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll forget instantly. All underpinned by vast, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously interesting things to be discussed about both Victoria Beckham and her journey with vocation, self-image, self-acceptance. But for whatever reason, this documentary series opted not to say them. Instead, the experience was like consuming a marketing catalogue. She clearly has good reason to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But sadly, she failed to do herself any helps with this cagey non-event of a series.

The Game Show

It should have been the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a famous star as a deceased benefactor and a sharp-tongued personality overseeing her estate. What more could you want? As players competed, there was plenty of betrayal and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too complicated to detail what exactly was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw glimpses of the star via prerecorded videos. The show ended up reeking of a programme that was trying way too hard to live up to something far greater than it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How does one succeed a show that captured a generation? The expectation was immense for this starry romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The lead actress seized the opportunity by the horns and was a delight to watch, embodying Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the abundance of celebrity cameos involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart recruitment of talented emerging comics, expectations 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 ready to slip into a well-known irate mode. The writing room sketches, meanwhile, simply inspired the idea that they should probably have stayed in there a while longer.

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively showcased the perspective 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 sensitively. Rather, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lumbering from strangely breezy, slightly mannered farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A complete mess? Absolutely.

Prime Target

We love the lead actor … but did we buy him playing the most brilliant maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a discovery that could ruin society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services targeting – and killing off – intellectuals frankly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator notorious for explicit escapades as she prepared for her biggest challenge yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we wanted was way more examination of her actual psyche, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have spoken to the legendary mum who showed up to haul her son out of the queue. What we got was disturbing shots and zero critical analysis of her notoriety whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the documentary-maker has a teenage daughter too.