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As we consider the TV landscape of the past year, a handful of shows stand out not for their excellence, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from awkward sequels to confusingly bad documentaries, here are the productions that had us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

Where to begin with this divisive spin-off? Plagued with woeful writing, painful character development (we demand better for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series struggled to find its footing. For a moment, as the final series began, it looked like it had finally found its groove. Then arrived an installment centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the showrunner declared this would be the final season. It ended on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s loo flooded with poo was just way too symbolic. Yet, viewers undeniably had a hoot dissecting every single “wtf?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – twirled around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release 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 drama's issues. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon no-star assessment, it was hard to know where to start listing the flaws. The hilariously wooden writing? The tedious glorification of affluence and consumption? The almost wilful parade of tropes? Performances so poor they felt almost malicious? Let’s just say “all of the above” and forget about this series again. However, a second season has been commissioned, so we’re likely going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Given the legal troubles, abuse allegations and parental 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 docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various bouts of self-destructive hedonism while struggling to tell us a single thing we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any pity this show might evoke should be saved for the people who have had to suffer proximity with this charming but dismissive egotist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we understood it was preposterous from the get-go: a thriller about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or destroy all of humanity. We persevered out of pure 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 ended up slicing Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. Talk about admitting defeat.

MobLand

Shady characters meeting in empty boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter blaring in club scenes? The late 90s called and wants its crime drama back.

Actually, that is harsh on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many look 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 profoundly boring; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various cockney picaresques which seemed rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the extent to which she grinds the gears of certain performatively enraged commentators, it’s temptingly tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various forays into twee lifestyle as intentional statements. But then you view them and are forced to concede that actually, 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, humming beehives, sentimental sayings and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are obviously fascinating things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with vocation, self-image, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this three-part series opted not to explore them. Instead, the experience was akin to consuming a marketing catalogue. She clearly has good reason to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any helps with this guarded non-event of a series.

The Game Show

It should have been the next cultural phenomenon – except even camper, with a famous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality overseeing her estate. What more could you want? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s still too complicated to detail what exactly was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via prerecorded videos. The series 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 captured a generation? The pressure was immense 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 Jane Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very slick and, ironically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity friends involved felt uncomfortable.

The Sketch Show Return

Not good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the smart inclusion of talented emerging comics, expectations were high. But sadly, most of it didn’t land. A recurring sketch was a one-note 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 inspired the idea that they should probably have stayed in there a bit 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 viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an interesting drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this was not it. The subject matter needed to be treated sensitively. Rather, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right tone, lurching from strangely jaunty, somewhat stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A complete mess? Absolutely.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We love the star … but did we buy him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so intelligent he’s on the brink of a discovery that could ruin society? No! This international thriller about government agencies spying on – and eliminating – academics frankly got more farcical by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This uncritical portrait followed the online personality renowned for sexual exploits as she prepared for her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was far greater interrogation of her true psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have interviewed the now-famous mum who appeared to drag her son out of the queue. What we got was horrific shots and absolutely no interrogation of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.