Blood and Dust: Wild West True Crime

Blood and Dust applies the modern true crime podcast format to the American frontier, and the combination works better than you might expect. Produced by 13 Stars Media, the show ran from 2019 to 2022 and left behind 21 episodes that each run 45 minutes to nearly two hours -- substantial, deeply researched examinations of frontier violence and the people who committed it. The multi-part series format is where the show really shines. The three-part arc on Olive Oatman -- captured by Yavapai raiders as a teenager in 1851 -- is gripping and heartbreaking in equal measure. The two-part episodes on Doc Holliday and Butch Cassidy go well beyond the standard greatest-hits retelling. Each story gets enough room to breathe, with context about the legal systems (or lack thereof), social pressures, and economic conditions that turned ordinary people into outlaws or victims. The podcast is concluded with no new episodes since September 2022, so this is a finite binge rather than an ongoing commitment. That's actually a selling point for listeners who prefer complete stories. At 4.6 stars with 147 ratings, the audience clearly appreciated what 13 Stars Media built here. The explicit rating is well-earned -- frontier true crime involved scalping, hangings, and shootouts, and the show doesn't look away. Think of it as a Western history podcast for people who also listen to Casefile or My Favorite Murder.