Archer: Season 13 TV Review

Plot: Archer and The Agency have been acquired by Fabian Kingsworth and the spy conglomerate known as IIA (International Intelligence Agency). As the gang struggles to find their identity performing odd missions for Fabian, one question arises: will they be able to maintain independence, or will they succumb to their corporate overlords?

Review: Having been a die-hard Archer fan since it debuted back in 2009, I didn’t realize that I had not once reviewed the show for this site. I have visited the series panels at San Diego Comic-Con year after year but there is a gaping hole (phrasing!) in our critical coverage of Adam Reed’s long-running series here at JoBlo.com. Well, with the thirteenth season of Archer premiering soon, I am going to take the opportunity to review the new season and offer this as a collective look back at the series as a whole. Luckily, Archer’s latest run is just as funny and irreverent as ever with the main cast back and going on all new missions under the leadership of IIA.

For those unfamiliar with Archer, the series follows the spies and office workers at an independent espionage agency formerly known as ISIS. Led by Mallory Archer (Jessica Walter), the agency’s top spy is Sterling Archer (H. Jon Benjamin), a hard-drinking and debonair ladies man who thinks he is far better at his job than he actually is. His fellow agent and on-again/off-again lover Lana Kane (Aisha Tyler) often joins him on missions where the pair squabble. Other characters include HR head Pam Poovey (Amber Nash), accountant-turned agent Cyril Figgis (Chris Parnell), crazy secretary Cheryl Tunt (Judy Greer), insane scientist Dr. Krieger (Lucky Yates), and bomb specialist Ray Gillette (Adam Nash). For most of the series, the episodes existed in modern times but with a retro 1950s/1960s sensibility. For a few seasons, the series adopted subtitles that represented changes in setting or plot either due to the characters becoming mercenaries or existing within Archer’s comatose subconscious.

The new season of Archer, the first since the passing of Jessica Walter, follows the story from last year focused on the team as they compete with a larger espionage corporation called IIA led by Fabian Kingsworth (Kayvon Novak). At the close of last season, Archer’s agency was acquired by IIA and they now find themselves working for a man they despise. In many ways, this season is a return to form for the earliest seasons of the series with Archer back to his self-indulgent lifestyle of drinking and bedding as many women as possible. The story does continue to follow threads from recent years including Lana’s divorce and struggles for her and Archer to co-parent their child, AJ. The season also presents the characters vying for the vacant leadership spot opened by Mallory Archer’s retirement.

Fans can rest assured that the passing of Jessica Walter does not diminish the quality of these episodes nor does it write her character off completely. While retired and out of the main storyline, the first four episodes of the thirteenth season make multiple references to her as if she is merely off somewhere living her golden years to the fullest. Her character is also not directly replaced. Instead, we get more scenes with IIA honcho Fabian Kingsworth who injects division among the rest of the characters. The driving narrative this season is still the episodic missions which function more as standalone tales loosely connected rather than the season-long focus of the last few seasons.

The best strength Archer has remains the hilarious performances of the ensemble of voice actors who remain at the top of their game. H. Jon Benjamin continues to shine as Archer as he delivers insults and one-liners with equal measure. In the first episode alone there is a thirty-second sequence that manages to cram in references to both Point Break and The Neverending Story. Another episode puts Archer on horseback with a lance chasing down armed thugs in a scene that tops a similar moment in John Wick. The guest voices also shine this season with early episodes featuring Shohreh Agdashloo and Kenan Thompson with the promise of more hilarious actors through the remaining episodes. The violence is over the top and the stories continue to be absolutely as insane as they are funny, playing to the strengths of Adam Reed and his writing staff who never seem to run out of episode ideas.

With over one hundred episodes over its thirteen-season run, Archer shows no signs of slowing down. This new season feels every bit as funny and original as the dozen that came before it. H. Jon Benjamin and the entire cast have mastered their characters and still mine them for hilarity in increasingly ridiculous stories. Having been everything from drug runners to noir detectives to space pirates and more, having these characters back to playing spies is a treat that feels fresh every time the opening theme plays. I love this series as much now as I did in 2009 and you owe it to yourself to get as many laughs as you can. If you have never watched the series before, catch up now because season thirteen is another winner for Archer fans.

Archer‘s 13th season premieres on August 24th on FXX and the next day on Hulu.

Archer

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