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As we reflect on the television offerings of the past year, a selection of series emerge not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular failures. Ranging from cringe-inducing sequels to bafflingly bad documentaries, here are the productions that left us scratching our heads or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

Where to begin with this divisive follow-up? Burdened with woeful scripts, cringe-inducing arcs (we demand better for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the series fought to justify its existence. For a moment, as the third series began, it looked like it had at last hit its stride. Then came an episode centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the showrunner announced this would be the last season. It concluded on a bum note; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was just way too on-the-nose. Still, viewers undeniably found joy picking apart every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – once again single – twirled around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a small sob?

All’s Fair

‘Can Kim Kardashian act? Of course she can’t.’

But that was practically the least of this drama's issues. The subject of a very rare zero star review, it was difficult to know where to start listing the problems. The hilariously wooden dialogue? The mind-numbing veneration of affluence and consumption? The seemingly deliberate parade of cliches? Acting so bad they felt almost malicious? Suffice it to say “each and every one” and never speak of this series again. Except, a second season has been commissioned, so we’re probably going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Considering the restraining orders, abuse claims and fatherly shortcomings, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d truly have known it from this multi-part documentary which chuckled along at Sheen’s various bouts of self-destructive hedonism while struggling to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any sympathy this show might induce should be reserved for the people who have had to endure close contact with this charming but flippant narcissist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we understood it was ridiculous from the get-go: a thriller 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 admiration 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 slicing Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. That's what you call admitting defeat.

MobLand

Dodgy characters convening in empty boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its crime drama back.

Actually, that is harsh on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many seem a bit dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to indulge unconvincing dialects. But there were plenty of other issues. Mainly that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various London rogues which seemed a bit basic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the degree to which she grinds the gears of certain performatively angry commentators, it’s temptingly easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various ventures into twee homemaking as intentional provocations. But then you view them and are forced to concede that in this case, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue animated; a meme for evening drinks with ideas of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark platitudes and pointless crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by immense, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are clearly fascinating things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, self-image, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this documentary series opted not to explore them. Instead, the experience was akin to reading a sales brochure. She obviously has good reason to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she failed to do herself any helps with this cagey non-event of a series.

The Game Show

It should have been the next big hit – except even more extravagant, with a famous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality managing her inheritance. What more could you ask for? As players battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s still too confusing to explain 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 way beyond it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How do you follow a show that defined a generation? The expectation was immense for this starry romantic comedy about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a broken heart. The lead actress seized the opportunity by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Jane Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of famous cameos involved felt icky.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the shrewd recruitment of gifted emerging comics, hopes were high. But unhappily, most of it fell flat. A particular sketch was a one-note joke milked to a husk but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too willing to slip into a familiar ranting mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, meanwhile, 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 overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively presented the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an interesting drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The material needed to be treated sensitively. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right voice, lurching from oddly jaunty, somewhat mannered farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A total mess? Very much so.

Prime Target

We love the star … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius since, a man so intelligent he’s on the verge of a breakthrough that could destabilise society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services targeting – and killing off – academics frankly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator renowned for sexual escapades as she prepared for her biggest feat yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we craved was far greater interrogation of her actual psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have interviewed the legendary mum who appeared to haul her son away from the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and absolutely no critical analysis of her infamy whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.