Review: Archer ‘Reignition Sequence’

Spoilers Below:

This season of FX’s Archer is on a serious roll. I mean, I love this show, and I love all the shows I watch, but I have a hard time remembering when I was more excited for a new episode of any series. Maybe Rick and Morty (which I’ll be covering this summer, biatches!) but in that instance I had to catch up on the show, having not always watched it in real-time from the beginning. Archer looked like it may have peaked in the last season or two, but it at least has plateaued for the time being, or possibly has reached a higher level ever this season. We’ll have to see what the final couple episodes have to offer.

Sterling and Lana are still together, and it was driving the rest of the gang crazy, so they plotted to break the couple up by bringing back Katya. When it looked like they were about to get down, her and Archer ended up arguing, and he confessed that he had a child with Lana, and was in love with her. Katya fled out the window, and the gang stalled Lana long enough for Sterling to collect himself – until Lana found a vagina in the sink.

In Case You Missed It:

1) Archer is only TV-MA for language? That won’t do. I need cartoon nudity in order to get my jollies.

2) Krieger wisdom: “Technically everything is breakfast if it’s your first meal of the day.”

3) And again: “Unless the problem is a solution with an overly-Alkaline pH balance?”

4) In Cheryl’s flipbook, AJ’s shirt read “Fat Gross Baby.”

5) The signs across America in Cheryl’s flipbook: “Bring Back the Brat!,” “Archer-Kane Stolen Baby Baubles + Souvenirs,” “Lana Still Annoying,” and “Slight Reward for Kidnapping Info.”

6) “I was gonna say Pam’s vagina.” / “Me too!”

7) Sterling’s flyer for Woodhouse read: “Loss [sic] Valet – Answers to the name Woodhouse. Responsible for my meals, dressing, grooming. Needs medicine: Heroin.” It showed him scratching his neck in a nervous manner.

8) Cameo by Sterling’s “Dicky” and “Seamus” tattoos.

9) Did the ending have anything to do with the old “Your vagina’s in the sink” joke.

At this point, I feel like I’m about to write a school report called, “Why I love this episode of Archer.” Why? Because I did. So let’s break it down.

The story. Yup, we have another non-mission episode. “Reignition Sequence” had nothing to do with the CIA whatsoever, and everything to do with the gang’s personal issues. Lana and Sterling were lovey-dovey, and everyone else was jealous, or annoyed, or some combination of the two. Plus all their usual extreme emotions. And as I’ve pointed out in other episodes this season: that’s just fine. After several seasons of missions, and one that had little or nothing to do with spy work, Archer has reached that point where the shows can be about something big, or nothing at all, and as long as the writing snaps, crackles, and pops, it will succeed.

Granted, I don’t like Archer and Lana together. I mean, I feel like there are enough people out there that probably enjoy this couple that it’s worth mentioning, and I gotta get it off my chest. Or maybe this is how we’re supposed to feel. Perhaps we’re meant to be grossed out. If so, then I’m acting just how I should be. If not, I’m a fucking rebel. Check out my bad-ass-ness. Point is, it doesn’t matter because it’s that love-to-hate kind of situation for me, and that still counts as enjoyment. Plus, a little sincerity between the two can’t hurt.

And if you didn’t dig that duo, the other characters shined in their own right. Cheryl had a fantastic early moment with her flipbook – a scene that was altogether brilliant. (BRILLIANT I TELLS YA!) Krieger accidentally revealed he has cameras in everyone’s apartments, and allowed for an exceptional amount of screen time for his hologram girlfriend. (“How do you not murder her every day?” / “I do.”) Also, Ray’s stub provided a good amount of humor as well. Between Pam’s jabs (“Stumple Stiltskin”) and Ray’s defenses (“That’s not even the hand I–”), an almost-forgotten-about plotline provided a series of gags throughout the entire episode. Let’s see how long they can keep that one going.

Also, how weird was it to see Malory for more than just a few seconds? It may have only been for a few minutes, but it’s an improvement. I miss her.

In the end, it was an entertaining story getting to see the gang go up against each other, and the show had an abundance of jokes to keep it amusing from start to finish. Not only were the laughs hearty, but they came at the viewer rapid-fire. It seemed like almost every other line of dialogue was a riot, and left me (and I can only assume other fans) hanging on every word waiting for the next laugh. If every episode had this balance, Archer could become my new favorite show, and one of the most solid on TV today.

P.S. Come home, Woodhouse.