🔗 Share this article That Drifting Excrement Was Far Too Symbolic! These Are the TV Letdowns of the Year. As we consider the television landscape of the recent year, a selection of shows stand out not for their excellence, but for their spectacular failures. From awkward spin-offs to confusingly poor documentaries, here are the programmes that had us utterly bewildered or simply reaching for the remote. The 'Sex and the City' Sequel How to start with this love/hate follow-up? Burdened with dreadful writing, painful arcs (we demand better for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to justify its existence. Briefly, as the final season started, it seemed as if it had at last hit its stride. Then came an installment centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner declared this would be the final season. It ended on a bum note; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was simply too symbolic. Still, viewers undeniably found joy dissecting every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t release a small sob? The Kim Kardashian Drama ‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? The answer is a resounding no.’ But that was almost the least of this drama's problems. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon zero star assessment, it was hard to know where to begin listing the problems. The hilariously leaden writing? The tedious glorification of wealth and materialism? The seemingly deliberate parade of tropes? Acting so poor they felt borderline spiteful? Suffice it to say “all of the above” and forget about this series again. Except, a new season has been commissioned, so we’re probably going to have to. The Charlie Sheen Documentary Given the restraining orders, domestic violence allegations and fatherly shortcomings, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a bad boy. Not you’d truly have known 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 pity this show might evoke should be reserved 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 drama about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or annihilate all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure love for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had given up trying. One barely cared when his character died, and the other ended up hacking Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. Talk about giving up the ghost. The Gangster Drama Shady figures convening in empty boxing gyms? The Prodigy’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 endure the ignominy of having to indulge unconvincing accents. But there were many other problems. Mainly that it was just really boring; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various London rogues which felt rather simplistic. The Meghan Markle Series Given the extent to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s performatively angry commentators, it’s almost tempting to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s various ventures into quaint lifestyle as intentional statements. But then you watch them and are compelled to admit that actually, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue come to life; a meme for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark platitudes and pointless crafting “hacks” you’ll forget instantly. All supported by vast, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh. The Beckham Documentary There are clearly interesting things to be discussed about regarding Victoria Beckham and her journey with vocation, identity, self-acceptance. But for whatever reason, this three-part series chose not to explore them. Instead, the experience was like consuming a sales brochure. She clearly has good reason to bridle at what she describes as her “stern” image. But sadly, she failed to do herself any helps with this guarded letdown of a series. The Inheritance It had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a famous star playing dead and a well-known personality overseeing her inheritance. What more could you ask for? As players competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became incomprehensible: it’s still too confusing to explain what exactly was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via prerecorded videos. The show ended up smelling of a programme that was straining desperately to emulate something far greater than it. Too Much How does one follow a show that captured a generation? The pressure was immense for this starry romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who arrives in London with a shattered romance. The lead actress seized the opportunity by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very slick and, ironically, was not enough. Plus, the sheer amount 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 particular sketch was a one-note joke milked to a husk but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a well-known ranting mode. The writing room sketches, in contrast, simply inspired the thought that they should probably have stayed in there a while 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 subject matter needed to be handled with care. Instead, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right tone, lumbering from strangely breezy, somewhat stylised farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A total mess? Very much so. Prime Target We love the star … but did we buy him playing the most brilliant maths genius since, a man so smart he’s on the brink of a discovery that could ruin society? No! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services targeting – and eliminating – academics honestly got more absurd by the second. Silliness-by-numbers. The Bonnie Blue Documentary This uncritical portrait followed the content creator notorious for explicit escapades as she prepared for her most extreme feat yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we wanted was way more 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 haul her son away from the queue. What we got was disturbing imagery and absolutely no interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.