🔗 Share this article This Drifting Excrement Was Far Too Symbolic! These Are the TV Letdowns of the Year. Looking back, we reflect on the television offerings of the recent year, a selection of series emerge not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from awkward sequels to confusingly bad documentaries, here are the programmes that left us utterly bewildered or simply reaching for the remote. And Just Like That Where to begin with this love/hate follow-up? Burdened with dreadful scripts, cringe-inducing arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to find its footing. Briefly, as the final season started, it looked like it had at last found its groove. Then arrived an episode centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the creator declared this would be the final series. It ended on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was simply too symbolic. Still, viewers undeniably found joy dissecting every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – once again single – twirled around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't let out a little sob? All’s Fair ‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? The answer is a resounding no.’ But that was almost the smallest of this show's issues. The subject of a very rare no-star review, it was hard to know where to begin listing the flaws. The laughably leaden dialogue? The tedious glorification of wealth and materialism? The almost deliberate procession of cliches? Performances so bad they felt almost spiteful? Suffice it to say “each and every one” and never speak of this series again. However, a new season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to. AKA Charlie Sheen Considering the legal troubles, 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 three-part docuseries which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless hedonism while struggling to tell us a single thing we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any sympathy this show might induce should be saved for the people who have had to endure proximity with this charismatic but flippant egotist. The Supercomputer Drama Of course we knew it was ridiculous from the get-go: a thriller about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or annihilate 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 barely reacted when his character died, and the other ultimately slicing Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. That's what you call admitting defeat. The Gangster Drama Dodgy characters convening in deserted boxing gyms? A certain band'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 seem a little dated now, but at least they didn’t suffer the ignominy of having to indulge baffling accents. But there were plenty of other issues. Primarily that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over narcotics territory between various London picaresques which seemed a bit basic. With Love, Meghan Considering the degree to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s performatively enraged commentators, it’s almost easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various ventures into twee homemaking as deliberate provocations. But then you view them and are forced to concede that in this case, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine come to life; a meme for wine o’clock with ideas of grandeur; a procession of sleeping dogs, humming beehives, sentimental sayings and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, mostly unearned wealth. Ugh. The Beckham Documentary There are obviously fascinating things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, identity, self-acceptance. But for whatever reason, this three-part series opted not to explore them. Rather, the experience was like consuming a marketing catalogue. She obviously has good reason to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But sadly, she failed to do herself any favours with this guarded non-event of a series. The Inheritance It should have been the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a famous star as a deceased benefactor and a sharp-tongued personality managing her inheritance. What more could you ask for? As players competed, there was plenty of betrayal and squabbling. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s still too complicated to explain what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via filmed videos. The show ended up reeking of a production 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 romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The star seized the opportunity by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very glossy and, ironically, was not enough. Plus, the abundance of celebrity cameos involved felt icky. Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping Not good enough to be ‘uneven’. Given the smart inclusion of talented emerging comics, hopes were high. But unhappily, most of it fell flat. A particular sketch was a single joke stretched to a husk but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a well-known ranting mode. The writing room sketches, meanwhile, simply provoked the idea 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 showcased the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an compelling drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The material needed to be treated sensitively. Rather, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lumbering from strangely breezy, slightly mannered farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A complete mess? Absolutely. Prime Target We love the lead actor … but did we buy him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so intelligent he’s on the brink of a breakthrough that could ruin society? Nope! This international thriller about secret services spying on – and eliminating – academics frankly got more farcical by the second. Silliness-by-numbers. 1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story This hagiography followed the online personality renowned for explicit exploits as she prepared for her most extreme challenge yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we craved was far greater interrogation of her actual psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have spoken to the legendary mum who showed up to drag her son away from the queue. What we got was disturbing imagery and zero critical analysis of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a teenage daughter too.