Review: Archer ‘The Archer Sanction’

 

Spoilers Below:

To be honest, I wasn’t sure I would be reviewing Archer this week. I’m starting vacation in the morning, so I, of course, have to pack and run around for hours like a crazy person – as one does just prior to any trip. (Except for an acid trip; in that case you run around like a crazy person during the trip.) However, I found some time before my mountain getaway to watch last night’s Archer, which was about…a mountain getaway. Sort of.

The agent gang (Sterling, Lana, and Ray) were tasked with heading into the Swiss Alps to assassinate a target whose identity Archer could not recall. All he remembered was that they were from an Axis Power country. When the team arrived at a lodge, Patrick “Crash” McCarran – their host and guide – welcomed them, and led them up an extremely dangerous mountain the next day. (Extremely dangerous, as in one-in-seven climbers die attempting to scale it.) Three of the seven group members ended up dying before Sterling remembered that McCarran was actually the target, and realized he had killed the deceased. When Sterling attempted to apprehend him (and save Lana from his grasp) a gunshot triggered a massive avalanche, which the agents survived. There was no sign of Crash.

Meanwhile, Pam, Cheryl, Cyril, and Krieger went to investigate why Malory (who was supposed to be watching AJ) wasn’t answering her calls. They arrived to an empty apartment, and eventually all got sick. It turned out that AJ and Malory were staying at the Plaza while the latter’s home was being fumigated.

In Case You Missed It:

1) Archer’s Peppermint Patty drink: Hot cocoa, dark crème de cacao, hint of crème de menthe, and peppermint schnapps. Sign me up.

2) Man, Sterling really wanted gum. He mentioned it seven or eight times in total.

3) Glühwein, or Gluvine, is hot mulled spiced wine. Sign me up for this as well.

4) I was hoping from the beginning that the call to Malory was an elaborate voicemail. Jackpot!

5) When Cyril acted incredulously toward Cheryl not knowing that watermelons are red, she replied, “Who am I, Charles Fredric Andrus?” Andrus was a horticulturist at the USDA who pioneered the breeding of a watermelon that was easier to stack & ship, could be grown across a wider geographical area and was resistant to most diseases. Hybrids of this strain still exist in the melons we eat today.

6) When Lana asked Sterling “So you don’t mind if I bang [Crash]?” Ray answered, “Yes!”

7) Sterling: “Ray, if I ever have sex with a man, it’ll be a man who remembers the gum. And not that it matters…also black.”

8) I want Krieger’s (and formerly Sterling’s and others’) ringtone of “Mulatto Butts.” It used to be on FX’s site, but not anymore. Someone help a brother out.

8) #3 on Archer’s bucket list is apparently: “Bang Joe Frazier.” Given that Joe kicked the bucket in 2011, the show puts another vote in the “past” setting column.

9) For the joke at the end: the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact (or Nazi-Soviet Pact) was a non-aggression pact signed in 1939 that divided the territories of Romania, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland into German and Soviet “spheres of influence.”

When you’re looking at the elements that make an Archer episode (and most other shows) work, it comes down to story and comedy. For this show, the story must be entertaining, with the exception of last season it should involve some sort of dangerous spy mission, and it should be simple and easy to follow. Check, check, check. Of course, the plot didn’t end up with a nice bow on it in the end – given the ambiguity of Crash’s potential demise – but in a very Archer-like way this just sets up a character’s inevitable return in a future episode. Lots of action entertainment uses this ploy to keep viewers interested. And it works. Also, in a very Archer-like way (the character this time, not the show) he left when he may not even have completed the mission.

Also, this episode was a rough parody of/tribute to the 1975 Clint Eastwood film “The Eiger Sanction.” So that’s cool.

As for comedy, this episode was easily the funniest of the season so far. There may not have been many huge laughs, but they came more frequently than the previous installments. There were obscure references (see ICYMI #5 & #9), inappropriate and/or offensive jokes, repeat jokes throughout the episode (“Don’t worry about it”), repeat jokes from earlier in the series (the ringtone), and plenty of what we all came here to see: hardcore nudity! There was even that alcohol recipe comment that sounds mighty delicious. It’s fun to see Archer try new things and push the envelope further and further, but showing that they can still go back to the basics will never get old.

But the best indicator that this was a quality episode? The fact that I wouldn’t hesitate to watch it again. I mean, Archer is a very re-watchable show, but this one would be a top pick. It was memorable, quotable, and had no deeper meaning whatsoever. Also, it succeeded without any gimmicks, or big guest stars (sorry, Rob Huebel), or anything out of the ordinary. It was basically the main cast, each pulling their weight, each exploiting their character’s niche, and putting together a team effort that’s everything an Archer episode should be.