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As we reflect on the television offerings of the past year, a handful of series emerge not for their excellence, but for their notable failures. Ranging from awkward sequels to confusingly poor docuseries, here are the programmes that had us utterly bewildered or simply reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this love/hate spin-off? Plagued with woeful scripts, cringe-inducing arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to justify its existence. For a moment, as the third series began, it looked like it had at last hit its stride. Then came an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner declared this would be the last season. It ended on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s loo full of poo was just way too symbolic. Still, viewers certainly had a hoot dissecting every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – twirled around her palatial 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 almost the smallest of this drama's problems. The recipient of a very rare no-star review, it was difficult to know where to start enumerating the flaws. The hilariously wooden dialogue? The mind-numbing veneration of wealth and consumption? The almost deliberate parade of tropes? Performances so poor they felt almost malicious? Suffice it to say “all of the above” and never speak of this show again. However, a new season has been commissioned, so we’re probably going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Considering the restraining orders, domestic violence allegations and parental shortcomings, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d really have gleaned it from this multi-part docuseries which chuckled along at Sheen’s various bouts of self-destructive hedonism while failing to tell us anything we didn’t already know. 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 narcissist.

The Supercomputer Drama

Naturally we understood it was preposterous from the get-go: a drama about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or destroy all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure love for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One scarcely 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.

The Gangster Drama

Dodgy characters meeting in empty boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its gangland drama back.

Actually, that is unfair on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many look a bit dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were plenty of other issues. Primarily that it was just really dull; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various London picaresques which felt a bit basic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Considering the degree to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s ostentatiously enraged commentators, it’s almost easy to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into quaint homemaking as intentional provocations. But then you view them and are compelled to admit that in this case, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue come to life; a poster for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a parade of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, sentimental sayings and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are clearly fascinating things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with vocation, self-image, self-acceptance. But for some reason, this three-part series chose not to explore them. Rather, the viewing was like reading a sales brochure. She obviously has good reason to resent what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any helps with this guarded letdown of a series.

The Game Show

It had the potential to be 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 want? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s even now too complicated to explain what exactly was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw brief appearances of the star via prerecorded videos. The series ended up reeking of a programme that was straining desperately to live up to something far greater than it.

Too Much

How do you follow a show that defined a generation? The expectation was immense for this glitzy romantic comedy about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The star took her biggest role by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Jane Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very glossy and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the abundance of celebrity cameos involved felt uncomfortable.

The Sketch Show Return

Not even good enough to be ‘uneven’.

Given the shrewd inclusion of talented emerging comics, expectations were high. But sadly, most of it fell flat. A particular sketch was a single joke milked to a husk but recurring 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 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 showcased the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an interesting drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be handled sensitively. Instead, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right voice, lurching from strangely breezy, somewhat stylised farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A complete mess? Very much so.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the star … but did we believe him playing the most brilliant maths genius since, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a discovery that could destabilise society? Nope! This international thriller about secret services targeting – and killing off – academics honestly got more farcical by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator notorious for sexual escapades as she undertook her biggest feat yet. What on earth would possess her? What we craved was way more interrogation of her true psychology, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have spoken to the legendary mum who showed up to haul her son away from the queue. What we got was disturbing imagery and zero critical analysis of her notoriety whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the documentary-maker has a teenage daughter too.