[darinpantley]

If people like bad media, does that make it good? Or do we just have poor taste?

"Good" seems to be a combination of "quality" and "entertaining". Funny how we talk about these bad books, movies, and other media as if their literal quality were their only value.

[brandnewlow]

Created things can aim to inspire and challege (art) or they can seek to comfort and warm (pop art). That Hardy Boys was great pop art. The books didn't challenge or inspire, however they did make you feel comforted, safe, and protected. The mystery got solved, all the threads got tied up in the end. Nice. Neat. Comforting.

[dschobel]

It could still be comforting and not lousy though.

[dschobel]

What value does fiction have beyond artistic? Fire-wood?

[joshuacc]

Entertainment seems like a worthy value to me.