This past year offered plenty of great TV shows — “House of the Dragon,” “The Old Man,” “Severance” — but it also had its share of stinkers.
Here’s a look at five of the worst shows of 2022.
“The Time Traveler’s Wife,” HBO
From the jump, this show was a baffling idea that begged the question, “Who is this for?” It’s based on a book that was a hit in 2003 so those fans have long since moved on. It was also adapted into a movie in 2009 (starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams), so there was no need for additional material.
But for some reason, HBO put out a new version starring Theo James and Rose Leslie, who had no chemistry — while wearing laughably bad old-person makeup to age them up in certain scenes.
“How We Roll,” CBS
This CBS sitcom starring Pete Holmes wasn’t offensively bad, but it felt like a relic from a TV era that ended at least a decade ago, like something that would’ve aired after “King of Queens.” It followed a Midwest father and husband (Homes) who got laid off from his auto plant job, and decided to try to pursue his dreams of becoming a professional bowler in order to support his family. Full of bland jokes and clichés, it’s a series that might have stuck around in the days before there were hundreds of TV shows from which to choose. It’s no surprise it was axed after one season.
“The Ultimatum: Marry or Move on,” Netflix
On the surface, this show wasn’t much different than a slew of other borderline sadistic dating reality shows. On it, long-term couples split up, mingled with each other and then decided whether to get back together and pop the question to their original partner or move on with someone else. But what made this series baffling is that most of the couples were under the age of 30. Why are you giving each other ultimatums to marry and have kids soon when you’re 23 years old? It didn’t make sense. It would have been more effective with a cast that was a decade older.
“Monarch,” Fox
This star-studded series was set in the world of country music and followed a fictional family ruling over that industry: patriarch Albie Roman (Trace Adkins), matriarch Dottie (Susan Sarandon), their music exec son Luke (Joshua Sasse) and his singer sisters Nicky (Anna Friel) and Gigi (Beth Ditto). It had potential, but was weighed down by overwrought melodrama, clunky dialogue and musical numbers that felt less like watching “Empire” or “Glee” and more like watching a round of karaoke in a Midtown bar.
“The Endgame,” NBC
There’s always a certain air of inevitability around a series that drops midseason — was it not good enough to make the fall cut? Case in point: “The Endgame,” which offered a strong cast — Ryan Michelle Bathè and Morena Baccarin — but absolutely nothing else in its paint-by-numbers format and a plotline that went nowhere … fast.
Honorable mention: “Chrisley Knows Best,” USA
Never could quite figure out the allure of this insipid, borderline-creepy reality series. But now that Todd and Julie Chrisley are headed to the slammer, it’s a moot point. Good riddance.
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