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Looking back, we reflect on the TV landscape of the past year, a handful of series stand out not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular shortcomings. From cringe-inducing sequels to bafflingly poor docuseries, here are the programmes that left us utterly bewildered or simply reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

Where to begin with this love/hate spin-off? Burdened with woeful writing, cringe-inducing character development (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the series fought to justify its existence. Briefly, as the third series started, it seemed as if it had finally hit its stride. Then arrived an episode all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner announced this would be the last season. It ended on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was simply too on-the-nose. Still, viewers certainly found joy picking apart every single “what on earth?” episode. 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 practically the smallest of this show's problems. The subject of a very rare zero star assessment, it was hard to know where to begin listing the problems. The hilariously leaden dialogue? The mind-numbing glorification of wealth and consumption? The almost deliberate parade of cliches? Performances so bad they felt almost spiteful? Let’s just say “each and every one” and forget about this series again. However, a second season has been ordered, so we’re probably going to have to.

The Charlie Sheen Documentary

Given the legal troubles, domestic violence allegations 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 smirked its way at Sheen’s various bouts of self-destructive hedonism while failing to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Instead, it felt as if this loose cannon was being indulged, so any sympathy this show might induce should be reserved for the people who have had to endure close contact with this charismatic but dismissive narcissist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we knew it was ridiculous from the get-go: a drama about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or annihilate all of humanity. We persevered out of sheer admiration for its stars … but by the end, it felt like even they had given up trying. One barely reacted when his character died, and the other ended up hacking 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 blaring in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its gangland drama back.

Actually, 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 embarrassment of having to indulge baffling accents. But there were many other problems. Primarily that it was just really boring; a dispute over narcotics territory between various cockney picaresques which seemed a bit basic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Given the degree to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s ostentatiously enraged commentators, it’s almost easy to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s various forays into twee lifestyle as deliberate statements. 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 magazine come to life; a meme for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, buzzing beehives, Hallmark platitudes and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously fascinating things to be discussed about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, identity, self-acceptance. But for some reason, this documentary series opted not to say them. Instead, the experience was like consuming a marketing catalogue. She obviously has good reason to bridle at what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she didn’t do herself any favours with this guarded non-event of a series.

The Game Show

It should have been the next cultural phenomenon – except even camper, with a glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality overseeing her inheritance. What more could you ask for? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of betrayal and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s still too confusing to explain what precisely was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw brief appearances of the star via prerecorded videos. The series ended up smelling of a production that was straining desperately to live up to something far greater than it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How does one follow a show that captured a generation? The pressure was enormous for this glitzy romcom about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who lands in London with a broken heart. The star took her biggest role by the horns and was a delight to watch, embodying Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, ironically, was not enough. Plus, the abundance 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 didn’t land. A recurring sketch was a single joke stretched to a dry pulp but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too willing to slip into a familiar irate mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, meanwhile, simply inspired the idea 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 undoubtedly is an compelling drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be treated sensitively. Instead, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right tone, lumbering from strangely breezy, slightly stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A complete mess? Absolutely.

Prime Target

We love the lead actor … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a breakthrough that could destabilise society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about government agencies targeting – and killing off – academics honestly got more farcical by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This hagiography followed the online personality notorious for sexual exploits as she undertook her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we wanted was far greater examination of her actual psyche, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have interviewed the legendary mum who appeared to drag her son out of the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and zero interrogation of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.