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Looking back, we consider the TV landscape of the past year, a handful of shows stand out not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular failures. From awkward spin-offs to bafflingly bad documentaries, here are the programmes that left us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

Where to begin with this love/hate spin-off? Plagued with woeful scripts, painful character development (justice for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the show struggled to justify its existence. Briefly, as the final season began, it looked like it had finally found its groove. Then arrived an episode all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the creator declared this would be the last series. It ended on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s loo flooded with poo was simply too on-the-nose. Still, viewers undeniably found joy dissecting every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her sprawling 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 almost the smallest of this drama's issues. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon no-star assessment, it was hard to know where to start enumerating the problems. The hilariously leaden writing? The mind-numbing veneration of wealth and consumption? The almost wilful parade of tropes? Performances so poor they felt almost malicious? Suffice it to say “each and every one” and forget about this series again. However, a second season has been commissioned, so we’re probably going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Given the restraining orders, abuse allegations and fatherly failures, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not that you’d truly have known it from this multi-part documentary which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless excess while failing 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 show might induce should be reserved for the people who have had to endure proximity with this charismatic but dismissive egotist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we knew it was preposterous from the outset: a thriller about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or destroy all of humanity. We persevered out of pure love 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 hacking Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about giving up the ghost.

MobLand

Dodgy characters convening in deserted boxing gyms? A certain band's Firestarter blaring in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its gangland drama back.

In truth, that is unfair on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many seem a bit old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t endure the embarrassment of having to indulge unconvincing dialects. But there were many other problems. Mainly that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various cockney picaresques which seemed rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Given the degree to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s performatively enraged commentators, it’s almost tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised forays into quaint homemaking as intentional provocations. But then you view them and are forced to admit 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 procession of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark platitudes and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll forget instantly. All underpinned by vast, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are obviously fascinating things to be discussed about both Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, identity, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this documentary series opted not to say them. Rather, the experience was like reading a marketing brochure. She obviously has good reason to resent what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But unfortunately, she failed to do herself any helps with this guarded non-event of a series.

The Game Show

It should have been the next big hit – except even camper, with a famous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality managing her inheritance. What more could you want? As players competed, 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 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 way beyond it.

Too Much

How do you succeed a show that defined a generation? The pressure was enormous for this glitzy romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a broken heart. The lead actress 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 not enough. Plus, the sheer amount of famous friends involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the shrewd recruitment of talented younger comics, hopes were high. But sadly, most of it didn’t land. A particular sketch was a single joke stretched to a husk but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a familiar irate mode. The writing room sketches, in contrast, simply provoked the thought that they should probably have stayed in there a while longer.

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively showcased the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an compelling drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this was not it. The material needed to be treated sensitively. Instead, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right voice, lumbering from oddly jaunty, slightly mannered farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Complex? Arguably. A complete mess? Absolutely.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the star … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius since, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a discovery that could destabilise society? No! This globe-trotting thriller about government agencies spying on – and eliminating – intellectuals honestly got more farcical by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This hagiography followed the content creator renowned for sexual exploits as she prepared for her biggest feat yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we wanted was way more examination of her true psyche, 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 disturbing imagery and absolutely no interrogation of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.