🔗 Share this article

Looking back, we reflect on the TV landscape of the recent year, a selection of series stand out not for their brilliance, but for their notable shortcomings. Ranging from cringe-inducing spin-offs to confusingly bad docuseries, here are the productions that had us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

The 'Sex and the City' Sequel

How to start with this divisive follow-up? Plagued with woeful writing, painful arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the series fought to find its footing. For a moment, as the third season started, it looked like it had at last found its groove. Then arrived an installment centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator declared this would be the last season. It ended on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s loo flooded with poo was simply too on-the-nose. Still, viewers undeniably had a hoot picking apart every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – twirled around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't let out a small sob?

The Kim Kardashian Drama

‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? The answer is a resounding no.’

But that was almost the least of this show's issues. The recipient of a very rare zero star review, it was difficult to know where to begin enumerating the flaws. The laughably leaden writing? The mind-numbing veneration of affluence and consumption? The almost deliberate procession of cliches? Acting so poor they felt borderline malicious? Suffice it to say “each and every one” and forget about this series again. Except, a second season has been commissioned, so we’re likely going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Given the restraining orders, abuse claims 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 documentary which chuckled along at Sheen’s various bouts of self-destructive hedonism while struggling to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this volatile personality was being indulged, so any sympathy this series might induce should be saved for the people who have had to endure proximity with this charming but dismissive narcissist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Of course we knew it was ridiculous from the outset: a drama 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 hacking Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. That's what you call giving up the ghost.

The Gangster Drama

Dodgy figures meeting in deserted boxing gyms? The Prodigy’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 dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were plenty of other issues. Mainly that it was just profoundly boring; a dispute over narcotics territory between various cockney rogues which felt rather simplistic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Considering the degree to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s ostentatiously angry commentators, it’s temptingly easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised forays into quaint homemaking as deliberate 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 animated; a poster for wine o’clock with ideas of grandeur; a procession of sleeping dogs, buzzing beehives, sentimental platitudes and pointless crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, mostly unearned wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are obviously interesting things to be discussed about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with vocation, self-image, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this three-part series chose not to explore them. Rather, the experience was akin to reading a sales catalogue. She obviously has good reason to bridle at what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any favours with this cagey non-event of a series.

The Inheritance

It should have been the next big hit – except even camper, with a famous star as a deceased benefactor and a sharp-tongued personality managing her estate. What more could you ask for? As players battled it out, there was plenty of betrayal and squabbling. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s still too confusing to explain what precisely 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 defined a generation? The expectation was enormous for this starry romantic comedy about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who arrives in London with a broken heart. 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 glossy and, paradoxically, was not enough. Plus, the abundance of famous friends involved felt icky.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart inclusion of gifted younger 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 repeated in every episode. One star seemed too willing to slip into a well-known ranting mode. The writing room sketches, in contrast, simply provoked the thought that they should probably have remained in there a bit longer.

The Knox Dramatisation

This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much solely presented the perspective 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 handled with care. Rather, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right voice, lurching from oddly breezy, somewhat stylised farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A total mess? Absolutely.

Prime Target

We admire the star … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so intelligent he’s on the brink of a discovery that could destabilise society? Nope! This international thriller about secret services targeting – and killing off – intellectuals honestly got more farcical by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This hagiography followed the content creator notorious for explicit escapades as she undertook her most extreme challenge yet. What on earth would possess her? What we craved was far greater examination of her actual psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have interviewed the now-famous mum who appeared to haul her son away from the queue. What we got was horrific shots and zero interrogation of her notoriety whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the documentary-maker has a teenage daughter too.