🔗 Share this article This Drifting Excrement Was Far Too Symbolic! These Are the TV Letdowns of the Year. Looking back, we reflect on the TV landscape of the past year, a selection of series emerge not for their excellence, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from cringe-inducing sequels to confusingly poor documentaries, here are the programmes that left us scratching our heads or just reaching for the remote. The 'Sex and the City' Sequel How to start with this divisive follow-up? Plagued with dreadful scripts, cringe-inducing character development (justice for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the series struggled to justify its existence. For a moment, as the third series began, it seemed as if it had at last found its groove. Then arrived an installment all about Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the showrunner declared this would be the last season. It concluded on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s loo full of poo was simply too symbolic. Still, viewers certainly found joy dissecting every single “what on earth?” episode. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t let out a small sob? All’s Fair ‘Can Kim Kardashian act? The answer is a resounding no.’ But that was almost the least of this drama's problems. The subject of a very rare zero star review, it was difficult to know where to begin listing the problems. The laughably leaden dialogue? The mind-numbing glorification of wealth and consumption? The almost deliberate procession of cliches? Acting so poor they felt borderline malicious? Let’s just say “all of the above” and forget about this series again. However, a second season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to. AKA Charlie Sheen Given the legal troubles, domestic violence claims and fatherly failures, it’s reasonable to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not you’d really have gleaned it from this three-part documentary which smirked its way at Sheen’s various bouts of reckless hedonism 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 flippant egotist. The Iris Affair Naturally we knew it was ridiculous from the get-go: a drama about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or destroy 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 scarcely reacted when his character died, and the other ended up hacking Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. Talk about admitting defeat. MobLand Shady figures convening in empty boxing gyms? A certain band's Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and wants its gangland drama back. Actually, that is harsh on the gangland dramas of the late 90s. Many seem a little old-fashioned now, but at least they didn’t endure the embarrassment of having to indulge baffling dialects. But there were many other problems. Mainly that it was just profoundly boring; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various cockney picaresques which seemed rather simplistic. With Love, Meghan Given the degree to which she grinds the gears of the nation’s performatively angry commentators, it’s temptingly easy to applaud the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into quaint homemaking as deliberate provocations. But then you watch them and are compelled to concede that in this case, they may have a point. It’s like watching a homeware magazine come to life; a meme for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark platitudes and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by vast, largely undeserved wealth. Ugh. Victoria Beckham There are clearly fascinating things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her journey with career, self-image, self-worth. But for whatever reason, this documentary series chose not to explore them. Instead, the viewing was like reading a sales brochure. She obviously has good reason to bridle at what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she didn’t do herself any helps with this guarded letdown of a series. The Inheritance It should have been the next big hit – except even camper, with a famous star playing dead and a sharp-tongued personality overseeing her estate. What more could you want? As contestants battled it out, there was plenty of betrayal and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too complicated to detail what exactly was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via prerecorded videos. The series ended up smelling of a programme that was straining desperately to emulate something way beyond it. The Lena Dunham Romcom How does one succeed a show that defined a generation? The expectation was enormous for this starry romcom about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who arrives in London with a broken heart. The star took her biggest role by the horns and was joyous to watch, reveling in Jane Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very slick and, ironically, was insufficient. Plus, the abundance of famous friends involved felt icky. The Sketch Show Return Not even good enough to be ‘patchy’. Given the shrewd recruitment of gifted younger comics, expectations were high. But sadly, most of it didn’t land. A recurring sketch was a one-note joke stretched to a dry pulp but recurring in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a well-known ranting mode. The behind-the-scenes sketches, meanwhile, simply inspired the thought that they should probably have remained in there a while 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 isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be handled with care. Instead, the series laboured awkwardly to find the right voice, lurching from strangely breezy, somewhat mannered farce to inevitably, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A total mess? Absolutely. Prime Target We love the star … but did we buy him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so intelligent he’s on the verge of a breakthrough that could ruin society? Nope! This globe-trotting thriller about secret services targeting – and eliminating – intellectuals honestly got more farcical by the second. Formulaic nonsense. 1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story This hagiography followed the online personality notorious for explicit exploits as she prepared for her most extreme challenge yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we wanted was way more examination of her true psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. 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. And to think, the filmmaker has a young daughter too.