Ratings Within a few days of its premiere,
Archetypes became Spotify's most-listened-to podcast in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United States
. Spotify reported that, in its 3rd quarter in 2022, their listeners grew by "substantial double digits," specifically noting that
Archetypes "reached No. 1 in the podcast charts in more than six countries." On November 17, 2022,
Archetypes continued to chart at No. 4 among "society and culture" podcasts in the United States. A week after the podcast concluded,
Archetypes remained in the top 10 of Spotify's "top podcast" chart for the US, and the top 15 for the UK.
Critical response The podcast's content received mixed reviews from critics. Reviewing the podcast for
The Guardian, Miranda Sawyer wrote that, though Meghan "has a lovely voice, is intelligent and is clear and light when reading a script," Meghan "needs more" than this to produce an engaging podcast. Writing for
Salon, Melanie McFarland stated that the podcast felt like spending time with a host who is "friendly and down to Earth." In her review for
The Independent, Olivia Petter stated that Meghan's understanding of
feminism "seems to be almost entirely about herself." In a review for
The New Statesman, Rachel Cunliffe noted the controversial media context of the podcast, stating, "The Meghan-just-cares-about-Meghan crowd no doubt think she has played straight into their hands. And yet I suspect if you come to
Archetypes from a pro-Meghan standpoint, you'll find it uplifting – even insightful."
Awards In 2022,
Archetypes won The
People's Choice Award for "The Pop Podcast of 2022." In 2023, Meghan was also named "a digital media national winner" by the 48th Annual
Gracie Awards. After receiving this award, Meghan stated, "This is a shared success for me and the team behind
Archetypes — most of whom are women — and the inspiring guests who joined me each week."
Controversy In the first episode, Meghan revealed that, while visiting
South Africa, there was a fire in the room where her infant son was staying while she and her husband were not there. As she described this event, Meghan referred to the place where her family was staying at the British High Commissioner's residence in South Africa as a "housing unit." Her use of the term, "housing unit," was criticized in social media. In the sixth episode, Meghan discussed her time working as a
Deal or No Deal briefcase model. She stated that, though she was "surrounded by smart women on that stage," the models were treated like stereotypical "
bimbos." Former
Deal or No Deal model
Patricia Kara disputed this latter claim, stating "There is no truth to the padding station. In all the years I worked on the show, that never existed." Following the 2023 announcement that Spotify and Archewell parted ways, Bill Simmons, head of podcast innovation and monetization at Spotify, criticized Meghan and Prince Harry on his podcast. Following allegations that Meghan had not conducted the interviews for her podcast, an
Archetypes producer confirmed that Meghan conducted the main interviews while producers "occasionally" conducted the other interviews, adding that they "never edited [Meghan] asking questions into interviews that producers conducted." == References ==