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As we consider the television offerings of the recent year, a selection of series stand out not for their excellence, but for their spectacular failures. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to confusingly bad docuseries, here are the productions that had us utterly bewildered or simply reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this love/hate spin-off? Burdened with woeful scripts, painful character development (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the show struggled to justify its existence. For a moment, as the final series started, it seemed as if it had finally hit its stride. Then came an episode all about Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the showrunner declared this would be the final season. It concluded on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet full of poo was simply too on-the-nose. Still, fans undeniably found joy dissecting every single “wtf?” episode. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t let out a small sob?

All’s Fair

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

But that was almost the smallest of this show's problems. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon no-star assessment, it was difficult to know where to begin listing the problems. The hilariously leaden writing? The tedious glorification of wealth and materialism? The seemingly deliberate parade of tropes? Acting so poor they felt almost spiteful? Let’s just say “each and every one” and never speak of this series again. Except, a new season has been ordered, so we’re probably 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 bad boy. Not that you’d truly have known it from this three-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of self-destructive hedonism while failing to tell us anything we weren't already aware of. Instead, it felt as if this loose cannon was being indulged, so any sympathy this series might induce should be saved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charming but dismissive egotist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Of course we knew it was ridiculous from the get-go: a thriller about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or destroy all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure love for its stars … but by the end, it felt like even they had given up trying. One scarcely cared 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 figures convening in deserted boxing gyms? A certain band's Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its crime drama back.

In truth, that is unfair on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many look a little old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to indulge unconvincing accents. But there were plenty of other problems. Mainly that it was just really dull; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various London rogues which felt rather simplistic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Considering the degree to which she provokes the ire of certain performatively enraged commentators, it’s almost easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various forays into quaint homemaking as intentional statements. But then you view them and are compelled to concede that in this case, they may have a point. It’s like watching a homeware magazine animated; a meme for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a parade of sleeping dogs, buzzing beehives, sentimental platitudes and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll forget instantly. All underpinned by immense, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are clearly interesting things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with vocation, self-image, self-worth. But for some reason, this documentary series opted not to explore them. Instead, the experience was akin to reading a sales brochure. She clearly has good reason to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she didn’t do herself any helps with this guarded letdown of a series.

The Inheritance

It had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a glamorous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality managing her inheritance. What more could you ask for? As contestants competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s even now too confusing to detail what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via filmed videos. The show ended up reeking of a production that was straining desperately to emulate something way beyond it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How do you succeed a show that defined a generation? The pressure was immense for this starry 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 Jane Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very glossy and, ironically, was insufficient. Plus, the abundance of celebrity friends involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the smart inclusion of gifted younger comics, expectations were high. But sadly, most of it fell flat. A particular 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, in contrast, simply provoked the idea that they should probably have remained in there a bit longer.

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively presented the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an interesting drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this was not it. The material needed to be treated sensitively. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lurching from oddly breezy, somewhat mannered farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A total mess? Absolutely.

Prime Target

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

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator renowned for explicit exploits as she prepared for her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we craved was way more 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 disturbing shots and zero interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the documentary-maker has a teenage daughter too.