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Looking back, we reflect on the television offerings of the recent year, a handful of shows emerge not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular failures. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to confusingly bad docuseries, here are the productions that had us scratching our heads or simply reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this love/hate follow-up? Burdened with dreadful writing, cringe-inducing character development (we demand better for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to find its footing. Briefly, as the final series began, it looked like it had at last found its groove. Then came an installment centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the creator declared this would be the last series. It ended on a bum note; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was just way too on-the-nose. Yet, viewers certainly found joy picking apart every single “wtf?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't let out a little sob?

The Kim Kardashian Drama

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

But that was almost the smallest of this drama's problems. The subject of a very rare no-star assessment, it was hard to know where to start listing the problems. The laughably leaden writing? The tedious veneration of affluence and consumption? The seemingly deliberate procession of cliches? Acting so bad they felt borderline malicious? Suffice it to 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

Considering the restraining orders, abuse claims and parental shortcomings, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d really have gleaned it from this multi-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless hedonism while failing to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Instead, it felt as if this volatile personality was being indulged, so any pity this series might induce should be saved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charismatic but dismissive egotist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Of course we understood it was preposterous from the outset: a thriller about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or destroy all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure admiration for its stars … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One barely cared when his character died, and the other ended up slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. That's what you call giving up the ghost.

MobLand

Dodgy figures meeting in deserted boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its gangland drama back.

In truth, that is harsh on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many seem a bit old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t suffer the ignominy of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were many other problems. Primarily that it was just really boring; a conflict over narcotics territory between various London rogues which felt rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the extent to which she provokes the ire of certain ostentatiously angry commentators, it’s almost tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various forays into quaint homemaking as deliberate provocations. But then you view them and are compelled to concede that in this case, they might have a point. It’s like watching a homeware catalogue animated; a meme for evening drinks with ideas of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, sentimental platitudes and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll forget instantly. All underpinned by vast, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are obviously fascinating things to be discussed about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, self-image, self-acceptance. But for whatever reason, this documentary series chose not to explore them. Rather, the viewing was like reading a sales catalogue. She clearly has every right 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 had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality overseeing her inheritance. What more could you want? As players battled it out, there was plenty of betrayal and squabbling. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s even now too complicated to detail what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via filmed videos. The series ended up reeking of a programme that was straining desperately to emulate something way beyond it.

Too Much

How do you succeed a show that defined a generation? The pressure was immense for this glitzy romcom about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The lead actress took her biggest role by the horns and was joyous to watch, embodying Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very glossy and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity friends involved felt icky.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘uneven’.

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

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

This retelling 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 probably is an compelling drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be handled with care. Rather, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right tone, lumbering from oddly jaunty, slightly mannered farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A total mess? Absolutely.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the lead actor … but did we believe him playing the most brilliant maths genius in history, a man so intelligent he’s on the brink of a discovery that could destabilise society? Nope! This international thriller about secret services targeting – and eliminating – intellectuals frankly got more farcical by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator notorious for sexual exploits as she prepared for her most extreme challenge 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 line. They could at least have spoken to the now-famous mum who showed up to haul her son out of the queue. What we got was disturbing shots and zero interrogation of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.