🔗 Share this article That Floating Poo Was Way Too Meaningful! It's the TV Letdowns of the Past Year. As we reflect on the TV offerings of the past year, a selection of shows stand out not for their brilliance, but for their notable failures. Ranging from cringe-inducing sequels to bafflingly poor docuseries, here are the productions that had us scratching our heads or just reaching for the remote. And Just Like That Where to begin with this divisive follow-up? Plagued with woeful scripts, cringe-inducing character development (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series fought to find its footing. For a moment, as the third series started, it looked like it had finally found its groove. Then arrived an episode centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. No wonder the showrunner announced this would be the last series. It ended on a bum note; the lingering shot of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was just way too symbolic. Still, viewers certainly had a hoot picking apart every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who couldn't release a small sob? The Kim Kardashian Drama ‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? Of course she can’t.’ But that was practically the least of this show's issues. The recipient of a very rare zero star review, it was difficult to know where to start enumerating the problems. The hilariously leaden dialogue? The mind-numbing glorification of wealth and consumption? The seemingly wilful procession of tropes? Acting so poor they felt almost spiteful? Let’s just say “each and every one” and forget about this show again. Except, a second season has been commissioned, so we’re likely going to have to. The Charlie Sheen Documentary Given the legal troubles, abuse allegations and fatherly failures, 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 smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of reckless excess while struggling to tell us anything we weren't already aware of. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any sympathy this show might induce should be reserved for the people who have had to suffer proximity with this charming but flippant egotist. The Iris Affair Naturally we knew it was preposterous from the outset: a thriller about a AI known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either save the world – or annihilate all of humanity. We stuck with it out of pure love 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 ended up slicing Charlie with an axe … in painfully slow-motion. That's what you call admitting defeat. The Gangster Drama Shady characters convening 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 gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many seem a little dated now, but at least they didn’t endure the ignominy of having to accommodate baffling accents. But there were many other problems. Primarily that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over narcotics territory between various cockney rogues which seemed rather simplistic. With Love, Meghan Considering the extent to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s performatively enraged commentators, it’s temptingly tempting to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s various ventures into twee homemaking as intentional provocations. But then you view them and are forced to concede that actually, they might have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle magazine come to life; a meme for evening drinks with ideas of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, sentimental sayings and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll forget instantly. All supported by vast, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh. Victoria Beckham There are obviously interesting things to be discussed about both Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, identity, self-acceptance. But for whatever reason, this three-part series chose not to explore them. Rather, the viewing was akin to reading a sales catalogue. She clearly has every right to resent what she describes as her “miserable cow” image. But sadly, she failed to do herself any helps with this cagey letdown of a series. The Inheritance It should have been 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 contestants competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too complicated to detail what precisely was happening. Even more regrettably, we only saw glimpses of the star via filmed videos. The series ended up smelling of a programme that was trying way too hard to emulate something far greater than it. Too Much How do you follow a show that captured a generation? The expectation was enormous for this glitzy romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who lands in London with a shattered romance. The lead actress seized the opportunity by the horns and was a delight to watch, embodying Jane Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very glossy and, ironically, was not enough. Plus, the abundance of celebrity friends 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 recurring sketch was a one-note joke stretched to a husk but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too willing to slip into a well-known irate mode. The writing room sketches, in contrast, simply inspired the idea that they should probably have stayed in there a bit longer. The Knox Dramatisation 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 interesting drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this was not it. The material needed to be handled sensitively. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right tone, lurching from strangely jaunty, somewhat stylised farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Complex? Arguably. A complete mess? Very much so. Prime Target We admire the star … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the brink of a breakthrough that could ruin society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services spying on – and eliminating – intellectuals frankly got more absurd 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 prepared for her biggest feat 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 line. They could at least have spoken to the legendary mum who showed up to drag her son out of the queue. What we got was horrific imagery and absolutely no critical analysis of her notoriety whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.