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As we consider the TV landscape of the past year, a handful of series stand out not for their excellence, but for their notable failures. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to confusingly bad documentaries, here are the productions that had us scratching our heads or simply reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

How to start with this love/hate spin-off? Burdened with dreadful writing, cringe-inducing character development (we demand better for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the show struggled to find its footing. Briefly, as the final season began, it seemed as if it had finally hit its stride. Then arrived an episode all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the creator declared this would be the last season. It concluded on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was simply too on-the-nose. Yet, viewers certainly had a hoot picking apart every single “wtf?” episode. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – twirled around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't release a little sob?

The Kim Kardashian Drama

‘Can Kim Kardashian act? The answer is a resounding no.’

But that was practically the smallest of this show's issues. The recipient of a very rare no-star assessment, it was difficult to know where to start listing the flaws. The laughably wooden dialogue? The tedious glorification of affluence and consumption? The almost wilful procession of cliches? Acting so poor they felt borderline spiteful? Let’s just say “each and every one” and never speak of this show again. However, a new season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Considering the restraining orders, abuse allegations and parental shortcomings, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d truly have known it from this multi-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various bouts of self-destructive hedonism while struggling to tell us anything we weren't already aware of. Rather, 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 endure proximity with this charming but flippant narcissist.

The Iris Affair

Naturally we knew it was preposterous from the get-go: a drama about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or destroy all of humanity. We stuck with it out of sheer admiration for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. 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

Shady figures convening in deserted boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter blaring 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 little dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the embarrassment of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were plenty of other problems. Mainly that it was just really dull; a dispute over narcotics territory between various London rogues which seemed rather simplistic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Given the degree to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s performatively angry commentators, it’s almost easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into twee homemaking as intentional provocations. But then you view them and are compelled to concede that actually, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine come to life; a poster for wine o’clock with ideas of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark sayings and pointless crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by immense, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are obviously fascinating things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, self-image, self-acceptance. But for whatever reason, this three-part series opted not to say them. Rather, the viewing was like consuming a marketing brochure. She clearly has every right to bridle at what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any helps with this cagey non-event of a series.

The Inheritance

It had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a famous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality managing her inheritance. What more could you want? As contestants competed, there was plenty of betrayal and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s still too complicated to explain what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw brief appearances of the star via prerecorded videos. The series ended up reeking of a production that was trying way too hard to emulate something far greater than it.

Too Much

How does one succeed a show that captured a generation? The pressure was immense for this starry romcom about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who arrives in London with a shattered romance. The lead actress took her biggest role by the horns and was a delight to watch, reveling in Jane Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity cameos involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the shrewd inclusion of gifted emerging comics, expectations were high. But unhappily, most of it fell flat. A recurring sketch was a single joke stretched to a husk but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a familiar irate mode. The writing room sketches, meanwhile, simply provoked the idea that they should probably have remained in there a while longer.

The Knox Dramatisation

This retelling 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 compelling drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this was not it. The material needed to be treated with care. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lurching from strangely breezy, somewhat mannered farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A total mess? Absolutely.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the star … 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 international thriller about secret services spying on – and eliminating – intellectuals honestly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This hagiography followed the online personality notorious for explicit escapades as she prepared for her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we wanted was far greater interrogation of her true psyche, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have spoken to the now-famous mum who appeared to drag her son away from the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and zero critical analysis of her infamy whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.