🔗 Share this article That Floating Excrement Was Far Too Meaningful! These Are the TV Letdowns of the Past Year. As we reflect on the television landscape of the recent year, a handful of shows stand out not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from cringe-inducing spin-offs to confusingly bad documentaries, here are the programmes that had us scratching our heads or just reaching for the remote. And Just Like That How to start with this love/hate follow-up? Plagued with dreadful scripts, painful arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the series fought to find its footing. Briefly, as the final series began, it seemed as if it had finally hit its stride. Then came an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the creator declared this would be the last series. It concluded on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was just way too on-the-nose. Yet, fans undeniably had a hoot picking apart every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – once again single – twirled around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a small sob? The Kim Kardashian Drama ‘Can Kim Kardashian act? Of course she can’t.’ But that was almost the least of this show's issues. The recipient of a exceedingly uncommon no-star review, it was hard to know where to start listing the problems. The laughably leaden writing? The tedious glorification of wealth and materialism? The seemingly wilful procession of cliches? Performances so bad they felt borderline spiteful? Suffice it to say “all of the above” and never speak of this series again. However, a new season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to. The Charlie Sheen Documentary Considering the restraining orders, domestic violence allegations and parental shortcomings, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not that you’d really have gleaned it from this multi-part documentary which chuckled along 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 volatile personality was being indulged, so any sympathy this show might evoke should be reserved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charismatic but flippant egotist. The Supercomputer Drama Of course we knew it was ridiculous from the outset: a drama about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or destroy all of humanity. We persevered out of sheer love for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One scarcely cared when his character died, and the other ended up slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. That's what you call admitting defeat. The Gangster Drama Shady characters meeting in deserted boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter blaring in club scenes? The late 90s called and wants its gangland drama back. Actually, that is unfair on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many look a little dated now, but at least they didn’t suffer the ignominy of having to indulge unconvincing dialects. But there were many other problems. Primarily that it was just really boring; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various London rogues which felt a bit basic. With Love, Meghan Considering the degree to which she grinds the gears of certain ostentatiously enraged commentators, it’s almost easy to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into quaint homemaking as intentional statements. But then you view them and are compelled to admit that actually, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine come to life; a meme for evening drinks with ideas of grandeur; a parade of sleeping dogs, humming beehives, sentimental platitudes and forgettable crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh. Victoria Beckham There are obviously fascinating things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, self-image, self-worth. But for some reason, this three-part series opted not to explore them. Rather, the experience was akin to consuming a marketing catalogue. 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 cagey non-event of a series. The Inheritance It had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even camper, with a famous star playing dead and a well-known personality overseeing her estate. What more could you ask for? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s still too confusing to explain what precisely was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw glimpses of the star via prerecorded videos. The show ended up smelling of a production that was trying way too hard to live up to something way beyond it. Too Much How do you succeed a show that captured a generation? The pressure was enormous for this glitzy romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The star took her biggest role by the horns and was a delight to watch, reveling in Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very glossy and, paradoxically, was not enough. Plus, the abundance of famous friends involved felt icky. The Sketch Show Return Not good enough to be ‘uneven’. Given the shrewd inclusion of gifted younger comics, hopes were high. But unhappily, most of it didn’t land. A recurring sketch was a one-note joke milked to a dry pulp but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a familiar irate mode. The writing room sketches, in contrast, simply inspired the idea that they should probably have remained in there a bit longer. The Knox Dramatisation This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much exclusively showcased the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an interesting drama to be made about the tragic 2007 murder, this was not it. The subject matter needed to be treated with care. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right voice, lumbering from strangely breezy, somewhat mannered farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Complex? Arguably. A complete mess? Absolutely. The Maths Genius Thriller We admire the lead actor … but did we buy him playing the greatest maths genius since, a man so intelligent he’s on the verge of a discovery that could destabilise society? Nope! This international thriller about secret services targeting – and eliminating – intellectuals honestly got more absurd by the second. Formulaic nonsense. 1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story This uncritical portrait followed the online personality notorious for sexual escapades as she undertook her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would possess her? What we wanted was way more examination of her true psyche, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have interviewed the now-famous mum who showed up to haul her son out of the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and absolutely no interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the filmmaker has a teenage daughter too.