🔗 Share this article That Drifting Excrement Was Far Too Symbolic! These Are the TV Letdowns of the Past Year. Looking back, we reflect on the television landscape of the past year, a handful of series emerge not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from cringe-inducing spin-offs to bafflingly bad docuseries, here are the productions that left us utterly bewildered or simply reaching for the remote. And Just Like That How to start with this divisive follow-up? Burdened with woeful scripts, painful character development (we demand better for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the show fought to justify its existence. Briefly, as the third series began, it seemed as if it had at last hit its stride. Then arrived an installment centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator declared this would be the final series. It concluded on a bum note; the closeup of Miranda’s loo flooded with poo was just way too on-the-nose. Yet, fans undeniably found joy dissecting every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't release a small sob? The Kim Kardashian Drama ‘Can Kim Kardashian act? The answer is a resounding no.’ But that was practically the smallest of this drama's issues. The recipient of a very rare no-star assessment, it was hard to know where to begin enumerating the problems. The laughably wooden dialogue? The tedious veneration of affluence and consumption? The almost deliberate parade of tropes? Acting so poor they felt almost spiteful? Suffice it to say “all of the above” and never speak of this show again. Except, a new season has been commissioned, so we’re likely going to have to. The Charlie Sheen Documentary Considering the legal troubles, domestic violence claims and parental failures, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not you’d truly have gleaned it from this three-part documentary which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless hedonism while failing to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being indulged, so any sympathy this series might induce should be saved for the people who have had to endure close contact with this charismatic but flippant narcissist. The Supercomputer Drama Of course we understood it was ridiculous from the get-go: a thriller about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or annihilate all of humanity. We persevered out of sheer love for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had given up trying. One barely 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 Shady figures meeting in deserted boxing gyms? A certain band's Firestarter blaring in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its crime 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 baffling dialects. But there were many other issues. Primarily that it was just profoundly dull; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various cockney picaresques which felt rather simplistic. With Love, Meghan Given the degree to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s performatively enraged commentators, it’s almost tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into twee homemaking as deliberate statements. But then you watch them and are forced to admit that actually, they may have a point. It’s like watching a homeware magazine animated; a poster for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a parade of sleeping dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark sayings and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All supported by vast, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh. Victoria Beckham There are obviously interesting things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, self-image, self-worth. But for some reason, this documentary series chose not to say them. Instead, the viewing was akin to consuming a marketing brochure. She obviously has every right to resent what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any favours with this guarded letdown of a series. The Game Show 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 want? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too confusing to explain what exactly was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw brief appearances of the star via filmed videos. The show ended up smelling of a production that was straining desperately to emulate something way beyond it. The Lena Dunham Romcom How do you succeed a show that defined a generation? The expectation was immense for this starry romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a broken heart. The star took her biggest role by the horns and was a delight to watch, embodying Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very glossy and, ironically, was insufficient. Plus, the abundance of celebrity cameos involved felt uncomfortable. Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping Not even good enough to be ‘uneven’. Given the shrewd recruitment of gifted younger comics, hopes were high. But unhappily, most of it didn’t land. A recurring sketch was a single joke stretched to a dry pulp but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too willing to slip into a well-known irate mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, meanwhile, simply inspired the thought that they should probably have remained in there a while 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 showcased the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an compelling drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be treated sensitively. Rather, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lumbering from oddly jaunty, slightly mannered farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Perhaps. A total mess? Absolutely. Prime Target We love 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 ruin society? No! This globe-trotting thriller about government agencies targeting – and eliminating – academics honestly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense. The Bonnie Blue Documentary This uncritical portrait followed the content creator renowned for explicit escapades as she prepared for her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would motivate 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 interviewed the now-famous mum who showed up to drag 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 filmmaker has a teenage daughter too.