Review: Archer “Shots”

Overview:

The Agency crew try to take their minds off of work and kick back with a night of camaraderie and drinks–with a heavy emphasis on the drinks. The group succeeds in their copious consumption of alcohol, but as they spend more time with each other they begin to remember why it’s been so long that they’ve had such a friendly bonding experience. 

Our Take:

A lot of the times when a series lasts for twelve seasons it experiences significant changes in the makeup of its cast, yet Archer’s core group remains virtually identical to how it looked when the series began. This means that its characters have been together for over a decade and that can put a strain on any group of people. Archer consistently underscores the importance of teamwork, but “Shots” examines togetherness–albeit toxic togetherness–and how knowing someone so well can actually become more of a problem than an asset. Archer’s characters in “Shots” try to make progress in this department and definitively answer if these characters are actually friends or just conditioned to be around each other because of their dysfunctional workplace dynamics.

Like previously in this season, PR extraordinaire, Sandra (Pamela Adlon), remains a new pillar of the team’s prep work. Sandra still doesn’t exactly pop and is a bit of a drag, but it’s helpful that the series embraces a new presence like this and at least tries to work in a fresh component to this group dynamic. Curiously, the episode specifically becomes about whether the core group has fallen into a rut and turned predictable and boring. This, of course, is what caused Archer to play dress up for a handful of seasons, so it’s compelling to see “Shots” address this idea and through Sandra who does hold a reverence to these “spy heroes,” even if they don’t.

This is a decent angle to approach an episode of the series and it allows Archer the opportunity to actually say something significant while it occupies this space. “Shots,” fortunately, rises to the occasion with this premise and does attempt to say something new and engage in a discourse about genre as well as Archer’s past and future. It’s no coincidence that “Shots” begins with a thorough rundown of The Agency’s many destructive acts throughout the first half of the season and how their quality of work needs to quickly improve. This is very much an episode that believes that it needs to address its past in order to make any headway with its future. This is the recipe to create a deep, satisfying episode of Archer. “Shots” does many things right and points towards an engaging finish to this season, but it still struggles to distance itself from its history. 

“Shots” is prepared to head into serious territory with its characters, but it also engages in some of the broadest comedy from Archer’s twelfth season. There’s a bumbling criminal aspect, complete with bombastic heist music, which is a fun touch that only highlights how exaggerated Archer and his team have become after twelve seasons. This element of the plot never fully comes together, but it does help break up the more emotional and serious material that consumes the character introspection that occurs at the bar. On the other hand, the ”Pampage” group nonsense is the right kind of crazy and it effectively intersects with the bumbling criminals. The visuals that occur in the Pampage dance party are a real highlight and the origins behind “Sploosh” also possibly get revealed, which is nice and something that never seemed necessary, yet is a delight all the same.

“Shots” turns out to be one of the better episodes of this season. It has a clear message and isn’t afraid to dig deep into its characters and presents them at their most vulnerable. It works as both a simple celebration of The Agency team and how they continue to bring out the best and worst in each other. The jokes here are satisfying and absurd and the character beats are provoking in the right ways. The biggest problem with this episode is that its setup is so strong that it should turn out better than how its finished product comes out. “Shots” only brushes up against greatness as opposed to fully realizing it, but it’s still a satisfying look into Archer’s growth after twelve seasons.