🔗 Share this article

Looking back, we consider the TV landscape of the recent year, a selection of shows emerge not for their brilliance, but for their notable failures. From awkward spin-offs to confusingly poor 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 dreadful writing, painful arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series struggled to justify its existence. For a moment, as the third series began, it looked like it had at last found its groove. Then came an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator announced this would be the final series. It ended on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet full of poo was simply too symbolic. Still, fans undeniably had a hoot picking apart every single “wtf?” moment. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t let out a little sob?

The Kim Kardashian Drama

‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? Of course she can’t.’

But that was practically the least of this show's problems. The subject of a very rare zero star assessment, it was hard to know where to start listing the problems. The hilariously leaden dialogue? The tedious veneration of wealth and consumption? The seemingly deliberate parade of tropes? Performances so bad they felt borderline malicious? Let’s just say “all of the above” and never speak of this series again. However, a second season has been commissioned, so we’re likely 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 troubled figure. Not you’d really have known it from this multi-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless excess while struggling to tell us anything we weren't already aware of. Rather, it felt as if this volatile personality was being pandered to, so any sympathy this series might evoke should be reserved for the people who have had to suffer proximity with this charismatic but flippant egotist.

The Iris Affair

Naturally we knew it was preposterous from the outset: a drama about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or destroy all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure admiration for its stars … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One scarcely reacted when his character died, and the other ultimately slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. That's what you call giving up the ghost.

MobLand

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

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

The Meghan Markle Series

Given the degree to which she grinds the gears of certain ostentatiously enraged commentators, it’s almost tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised forays into twee homemaking as deliberate provocations. But then you watch them and are forced to admit that actually, they might have a point. It’s like watching a homeware magazine animated; a poster for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a procession of sleeping dogs, buzzing beehives, sentimental platitudes and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll forget instantly. All underpinned by vast, largely unearned wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are clearly fascinating things to be discussed about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with vocation, self-image, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this three-part series opted not to say them. Instead, the viewing was akin to reading a sales brochure. She clearly has every right to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she failed to do herself any helps with this cagey non-event of a series.

The Inheritance

It should have been the next cultural phenomenon – except even camper, with a glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a sharp-tongued personality managing her estate. What more could you ask for? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s still too confusing to detail what exactly was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw brief appearances of the star via prerecorded videos. The show ended up smelling of a production that was straining desperately to emulate something far greater than it.

Too Much

How does one follow a show that defined a generation? The expectation was immense for this starry romcom about Jessica, a rosy-eyed 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, paradoxically, was not enough. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity cameos involved felt uncomfortable.

The Sketch Show Return

Not good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart recruitment of talented emerging comics, expectations were high. But sadly, most of it fell flat. A recurring 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, meanwhile, simply provoked the thought that they should probably have stayed in there a while longer.

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

This retelling of the story of Amanda Knox was overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively presented the viewpoint 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 with care. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right voice, lurching from oddly breezy, slightly stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A complete mess? Absolutely.

Prime Target

We love the lead actor … but did we buy him playing the greatest maths genius since, a man so intelligent he’s on the brink of a breakthrough that could ruin society? No! This international thriller about government agencies spying on – and killing off – intellectuals honestly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense.

The Bonnie Blue Documentary

This uncritical portrait followed the content creator notorious for explicit exploits as she undertook her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was far greater interrogation of her true psyche, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have spoken to the now-famous mum who appeared to drag her son away from the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and zero critical analysis of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.