Telling A Story about about a character, when they are not around. Too Cliche?

Well to cut to the chase.

Is it too cliche for a secondary character share a story about
a another character when they are not around?
Granted this would tie this secondary to the MC in question,
and changes the way they look to another MC during the
conversation. The two MCs are friends since the first book.
The story is of a prior event in the distant past (200 years or
so), that involves a secondary characters parent and the MC
that is not there. It reveals a little about their nickname
(Madman), and why he really wears a gas-mask and how
he got severely burned (permanently scarring him). It also
shows his duality and unpredictable nature.

So is this a burnt toast cliche, or just a way to deliver
a small piece of lore about a character without the use
of flashbacks from the character themselves?

Thanks for your thoughts and opinions.

 

That depends on whether the two characters are the "sharing" type

 

Well the one sharing the story is an alien empress, and the other is a pretty close friend after they settle
a few things in their own past.

This whole chunk takes place after the MC gets a wounded Empyreal Guard back to the Empress's ship,
and then she brings up the other MC who happens to have stayed behind so they could retreat from a
clearly losing battle.

In a way the Empress is kinda tying into the story on one pretext, one of official matters and the other
on a personal note. The little exchange kind of exposition on the one not there, to shed a different light.
Considering the MC they are speaking of, doesn't really offer much of an explanation (bare bones and blunt).
And does not really show mercy in front of allied eyes, when in combat (at least not when it is under his
command to do so).

 

It will seem clichè if not done well. Especially with your case. Try to make sure that the character that is talking about the MC is different from what you think is clichè and what you see often in other stories.

 

Shouldn't be a problem if the character hearing the story doesn't already know it. Just make the telling conversational ...maybe let the listener interrupt and ask questions. I think this might only become tiresome if you do it a lot.

 

Sometimes I wonder if it's not sometimes just better to bite the bullet. We all know it's cliche. But it gives us the information we need to enjoy the rest of the story. Just do it and move on.