Oyez! Oyez! Oyez! The Court of Bad Lit Friends is now in session, and the defendants have been waiting a looooong time for their day of reckoning. In this episode, we don our very snazzy judicial robes and put character archetypes on trial, because after five thousand years of showing up in every story ever told, it's time to ask some tough questions. Are these archetypes still earning their keep, or just showing up for a paycheck? Are they so trite and ubiquitous that they need to be escorted from the building post haste?

The BLF tribunal will decide and while the quality of mercy is not strained, not every ruling will droppeth as the gentle rain. The verdicts may surprise you. Or not. You know what we’re like by now.

Plus: Hot Goss takes a hard right turn into territory we cannot fully explain that will become immediately obvious when you listen to the episode. What we will say is this: some aesthetic choices are not defensible in a court of law or anywhere else. No further questions; the prosecution absolutely rests.

Welcome to Bad Lit Friends. We're glad you're here, even if none of us know what we're doing.

Bad Lit Friends was created and is hosted by Meagan Thompson-Mann and Kirk Rafferty.

Show email: ⁠⁠badlitfriends@gmail.com⁠⁠

Bluesky: ⁠⁠@badlitfriends.bsky.social⁠⁠

Threads: ⁠⁠@badlitfriends⁠⁠

Instagram: ⁠⁠@badlitfriends⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@BadLitFriends

Website: ⁠⁠badlitfriends.com⁠

Show notes:

RMFW Colorado Gold Rush Literary Awards – submissions open through May 25, 2026: https://www.rmfw.org/colorado_gold_rush_literary_aw.php

Romancing the Stone trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LX2zfbF0Rs

The Pirate and the Pagan by Virginia Henley – the book Meagan was convinced had a main character named Rogue, but it’s not, it’s Ruark, and Meagan probably needs to take some Prevagen: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/886620.The_Pirate_and_the_Pagan