🔗 Share this article This Drifting Poo Was Far Too Symbolic! It's the TV Letdowns of the Past Year. As we consider the TV landscape of the recent year, a selection of series stand out not for their brilliance, but for their spectacular shortcomings. From awkward sequels to confusingly bad documentaries, here are the programmes that left us utterly bewildered or simply reaching for the remote. The 'Sex and the City' Sequel How to start with this divisive spin-off? Plagued with dreadful scripts, painful arcs (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the show fought to find its footing. For a moment, as the third series began, it looked like it had at last found its groove. Then came an episode centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner announced this would be the final season. It concluded on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s loo flooded with poo was simply too symbolic. Still, viewers undeniably found joy dissecting every single “wtf?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – twirled around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a small sob? All’s Fair ‘Can Kim Kardashian act? The answer is a resounding no.’ But that was practically the least of this drama's issues. The recipient of a very rare no-star review, it was difficult to know where to begin enumerating the problems. The hilariously wooden writing? The tedious veneration of affluence and consumption? The almost deliberate parade of cliches? Performances so poor they felt borderline spiteful? Suffice it to say “each and every one” and forget about this series again. However, a second season has been ordered, so we’re probably going to have to. The Charlie Sheen Documentary Given the restraining orders, domestic violence allegations and parental failures, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d truly have known it from this three-part documentary which chuckled along at Sheen’s various episodes of self-destructive excess while struggling to tell us a single thing we weren't already aware of. Instead, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any sympathy this series might induce should be saved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charismatic but dismissive egotist. The Iris Affair Naturally we understood it was ridiculous from the outset: a thriller 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 given up trying. One barely reacted when his character died, and the other ended up hacking Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. That's what you call admitting defeat. MobLand Dodgy characters convening in empty boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and wants its crime drama back. In truth, that is unfair on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many seem a bit dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the embarrassment of having to accommodate unconvincing dialects. But there were many other issues. Mainly that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various London rogues which seemed a bit basic. With Love, Meghan Given the degree to which she grinds the gears of certain performatively angry commentators, it’s temptingly tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised forays into twee homemaking as intentional provocations. But then you watch them and are forced to admit that in this case, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine animated; a poster for wine o’clock with ideas of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, buzzing beehives, sentimental platitudes and pointless crafting “hacks” you’ll forget instantly. All underpinned by vast, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh. Victoria Beckham There are clearly interesting things to be discussed about both Victoria Beckham and her journey with vocation, self-image, self-acceptance. But for some reason, this documentary series chose not to explore them. Instead, the viewing was akin to consuming a marketing catalogue. She obviously has every right to bridle at what she describes as her “stern” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any helps with this guarded non-event of a series. The Game Show It should have been the next big hit – except even camper, with a glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a sharp-tongued personality overseeing her inheritance. What more could you ask for? As contestants competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s even now too confusing to detail what precisely was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw glimpses of the star via prerecorded videos. The series ended up smelling of a programme that was trying way too hard to live up to something far greater than it. Too Much How does one succeed a show that defined a generation? The expectation was enormous for this glitzy romantic comedy about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who arrives in London with a shattered romance. The star seized the opportunity by the horns and was joyous to watch, embodying Jane Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, ironically, was insufficient. Plus, the abundance of celebrity cameos involved felt uncomfortable. Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping Not good enough to be ‘uneven’. Given the shrewd recruitment of talented younger comics, hopes were high. But unhappily, most of it fell flat. A recurring sketch was a single joke stretched to a husk 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 provoked the idea that they should probably have stayed 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 horrific 2007 murder, this was not it. The material needed to be handled sensitively. Rather, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right tone, lumbering from oddly jaunty, slightly stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A complete mess? Absolutely. The Maths Genius Thriller 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 discovery that could ruin society? No! This international thriller about secret services spying on – and killing off – academics frankly got more farcical by the second. Silliness-by-numbers. 1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story This hagiography followed the content creator notorious for sexual escapades as she undertook her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would possess her? What we craved was way more examination of her actual psyche, plus those of the men in the line. They could at least have interviewed the legendary mum who appeared to drag her son out of the queue. What we got was horrific shots and zero interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. And to think, the documentary-maker has a teenage daughter too.