🔗 Share this article That Floating Poo Was Far Too Symbolic! It's the Television Letdowns of the Past Year. Looking back, we reflect on the TV landscape of the past year, a handful of series emerge not for their excellence, but for their spectacular shortcomings. Ranging from awkward spin-offs to bafflingly bad documentaries, here are the programmes that had us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote. The 'Sex and the City' Sequel Where to begin with this love/hate spin-off? Burdened with dreadful scripts, cringe-inducing character development (we demand better for Miranda!), and a mere 71 seconds of fan-favourite Samantha, the series struggled to justify its existence. For a moment, as the third series began, it looked like 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 last season. It concluded on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet full of poo was just way too symbolic. Still, fans certainly had a hoot dissecting every single “wtf?” moment. And as Carrie – a single woman once more – danced around her sprawling townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t let out a little sob? The Kim Kardashian Drama ‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? The answer is a resounding no.’ But that was almost the smallest of this drama's problems. The subject of a exceedingly uncommon no-star assessment, it was hard to know where to start enumerating the flaws. The hilariously wooden writing? The mind-numbing veneration of wealth and consumption? The seemingly deliberate parade of cliches? Performances so bad they felt almost malicious? Let’s just say “all of the above” and forget about this show again. However, a second season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to. AKA Charlie Sheen Considering the restraining orders, domestic violence claims and parental shortcomings, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not that you’d really have known it from this three-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various episodes of self-destructive excess while struggling to tell us anything we didn’t already know. Rather, it felt as if this loose cannon was being pandered to, so any pity this series might evoke should be reserved for the people who have had to endure close contact with this charismatic but flippant egotist. The Supercomputer Drama Of course we understood it was ridiculous from the outset: a thriller 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 stars … 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 painfully slow-motion. That's what you call giving up the ghost. The Gangster Drama Dodgy figures convening in deserted boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands 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 accents. But there were many other problems. Mainly that it was just profoundly dull; a conflict over drug-selling territory between various London picaresques which seemed a bit basic. With Love, Meghan Given the extent to which she provokes the ire of the nation’s ostentatiously angry commentators, it’s temptingly easy to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into quaint lifestyle as intentional provocations. But then you view them and are compelled to admit that in this case, they might have a point. It’s like watching a homeware magazine animated; a meme for wine o’clock with delusions of grandeur; a procession of sleeping dogs, humming beehives, Hallmark sayings and forgettable crafting “hacks” you’ll forget instantly. All supported by vast, largely unearned wealth. Ugh. The Beckham Documentary There are obviously fascinating things to be said about regarding Victoria Beckham and her struggles with vocation, identity, self-worth. But for some reason, this documentary series chose not to explore them. Instead, the experience was like reading a sales brochure. She obviously has every right to bridle at what she describes as her “stern” image. But unfortunately, she didn’t 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 glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality overseeing her estate. What more could you want? As players competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and squabbling. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s even now too confusing to explain what exactly was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw glimpses of the star via filmed videos. The show ended up smelling of a programme that was straining desperately to emulate something way beyond it. Too Much How do you succeed a show that defined a generation? The expectation was enormous for this glitzy romantic comedy about Jessica, a hopeful New Yorker who arrives in London with a shattered romance. The star seized the opportunity by the horns and was joyous to watch, embodying Austen levels of romantic notions. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity cameos involved felt icky. The Sketch Show Return Not good enough to be ‘patchy’. Given the smart recruitment of talented emerging comics, expectations were high. But unhappily, most of it fell flat. 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 irate mode. The writing room sketches, meanwhile, simply provoked the thought that they should probably have remained in there a while longer. The Knox Dramatisation This dramatisation of the story of Amanda Knox was overseen by Amanda Knox and pretty much solely showcased the viewpoint of Amanda Knox. So, while there undoubtedly is an compelling drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be handled sensitively. Rather, the series struggled painfully to find the right voice, lurching from strangely breezy, somewhat mannered farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Complex? Perhaps. A complete mess? Very much so. The Maths Genius Thriller We love the lead actor … but did we buy him playing the most brilliant maths genius since, a man so intelligent he’s on the brink of a breakthrough that could ruin society? Nope! This international thriller about government agencies spying on – and eliminating – academics frankly got more farcical by the second. Formulaic nonsense. The Bonnie Blue Documentary This hagiography followed the online personality notorious for sexual exploits as she undertook her most extreme feat 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 now-famous mum who showed up to haul her son away from the queue. What we got was disturbing shots and absolutely no critical analysis of her notoriety whatsoever. And to think, the filmmaker has a teenage daughter too.