5 Most Disappointing TV Shows Of 2018 (So Far)

2. Altered Carbon

Altered Carbon
Netflix

With the promise of some incredible visuals, a pilot directed by Miguel 'Battle of the Bastards' Sapochnik, Emmy-nominated Steve Blackman (Fargo) helping run the show, and acclaimed source material to go on, there was a lot of anticipation around Altered Carbon, which looked like it could be Netflix's first huge sci-fi series.

The show did indeed look spectacular, with Sapochnik et al creating a cyberpunk world that provided eye candy at every turn and wouldn't look out of place on the big screen, but that was really the best thing about the show.

With uneven pacing, a wooden lead performance from Joel Kinnaman, and some bad writing (the other showrunner was Terminator Genisys' Laeta Kalogridis) the series didn't have much inside its admittedly gorgeous packaging. Although ambitious, it bashes through themes of race and sexual violence like a sledgehammer, its grand philosophical questions remain surface-deep, and more than anything the story just becomes rather dull.

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Contributor
Contributor

NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far. A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.