🔗 Share this article

Looking back, we consider the TV landscape of the past year, a handful of series emerge not for their brilliance, but for their notable shortcomings. From cringe-inducing sequels to confusingly bad documentaries, 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 love/hate spin-off? Burdened with woeful writing, painful character development (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to justify its existence. Briefly, as the final series started, it looked like it had finally hit its stride. Then arrived an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the creator declared this would be the final series. It concluded on a low point; the lingering shot of Miranda’s loo full of poo was just way too symbolic. Still, viewers certainly had a hoot picking apart every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't release a little sob?

All’s Fair

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

But that was practically the smallest of this show's problems. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon zero star review, it was difficult to know where to begin enumerating the problems. The hilariously leaden dialogue? The tedious glorification of wealth and consumption? The almost wilful procession of cliches? Acting so bad 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 likely going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Considering the restraining orders, domestic violence allegations and parental failures, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not you’d truly have gleaned it from this three-part documentary which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless excess while struggling to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being indulged, so any pity this series might evoke should be reserved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charismatic but flippant egotist.

The Iris Affair

Of course we knew it was preposterous from the get-go: a drama about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or annihilate all of humanity. We stuck with it out of sheer admiration for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One barely reacted when his character died, and the other ultimately slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about giving up the ghost.

MobLand

Shady characters convening in empty boxing gyms? A certain band's Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and wants its gangland drama back.

Actually, that is harsh on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many seem a little dated now, but at least they didn’t suffer the ignominy of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were many other issues. Mainly that it was just profoundly dull; a conflict over narcotics territory between various London rogues which felt rather simplistic.

The Meghan Markle Series

Considering the extent to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s performatively angry commentators, it’s temptingly tempting to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s televised forays into quaint lifestyle as intentional statements. But then you view them and are compelled to concede that actually, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue animated; a meme for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a procession of sleeping dogs, buzzing beehives, Hallmark platitudes and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll forget instantly. All underpinned by immense, largely unearned wealth. Ugh.

The Beckham Documentary

There are clearly fascinating things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, self-image, self-worth. But for some reason, this documentary series chose not to explore them. Instead, the viewing was akin to reading a marketing catalogue. She clearly has good reason to bridle at what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she failed to do herself any favours with this cagey letdown of a series.

The Inheritance

It had the potential to be the next big hit – except even camper, with a glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality managing her estate. What more could you want? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too confusing to detail what precisely was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw glimpses of the star via filmed videos. The series ended up reeking of a production that was straining desperately to live up to something way beyond it.

The Lena Dunham Romcom

How do you follow 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 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, ironically, was not enough. Plus, the abundance of famous friends involved felt icky.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the shrewd recruitment of talented emerging comics, expectations were high. But sadly, most of it didn’t land. A recurring sketch was a one-note joke milked to a dry pulp but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a well-known irate mode. The writing room sketches, meanwhile, simply inspired 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 solely presented the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an interesting drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be handled with care. Instead, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right voice, lurching from strangely breezy, somewhat stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A total mess? Absolutely.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the star … but did we buy him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the verge of a discovery that could ruin society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services spying on – and eliminating – intellectuals frankly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator notorious for sexual exploits as she undertook her most extreme challenge yet. What on earth would possess her? What we craved was way more examination of her true psychology, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have spoken to the legendary mum who appeared to haul her son out of the queue. What we got was horrific shots and absolutely no interrogation of her notoriety whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.