Hello, all! We’re continuing catching up with the new season of Archer. Today’s episode is a continuation of yesterday, where the gang was taken hostage by a bunch of crazy clowns. Now, Archer has gone undercover and is trying to free his friends.
Here are some thoughts.
1. That opening shot
It’s a 360 degree panorama that starts on a ringing telephone and circles around the room, showing all the hostages and most of the clowns. It’s very cinematic and an
2. Coulrophilia
A sexual attraction to… wait for it… clowns. Now, who on earth do you think Archer was referring to? Ding, ding, ding it’s Che- ugh, Tanya is her name now, I guess. You can always count on Archer to define an obscure concept as if it were common knowledge.
3. The detectives from episode 1!
The hapless fellas who showed up at the murder of Archer in episode one are back. Which means we might be inching closer to finding out who (or what!?) killed Archer. Also, I’m pretty sure one of them is Keegan Michael Key.
4. “Suck it, Bechdel test.”
Best line of the night goes to Che- god damn it, TANYA. Mallory and Lana are discussing Archer and his supposed infidelity and Tanya, being very woke, points out in her delightfully sardonic way that this conversation is the very antithesis of what Alison Bechdel tries to stand for.
5. Pam is such a badass
She manages to sneak off from the group and finds one of the more rotund clowns making himself a sandwich. So she beats the crap out of him and steals his suit, thus blending into the gang of crazy clowns. She always surprises me with her “I don’t give a fuck” attitude and her ability to beat the ever living christ out of almost anybody.
6. It’s turning into a farce
Lana also managed to overpower a clown and steal his costume, as did Archer last episode. Which means there are now three of our crew running around as clowns and none of them know about the others. That’s, like, the definition of farcical.
7. The quartet is a nice touch
A very wry Archer-esque joke. The quartet has been forced to stay with the hostages and play for the entire encounter, occasionally adding diegetic mood music.
8. Archer v. Lana
We haven’t seen the two of them actually engage in a fist fit for a long time, if ever. And because they both think the other is an actual evil clown, neither is holding back. The result is an out and out brawl that can only be improved…
9. v. Pam
When Pam joins the mix, bringing her tank-like fighting style to the brawl, making it that much more badass. Of course, the three of them eventually realize who they are fighting and stop and their undercover antics don’t end up really affecting the story. So… yeah…
10. Shapiro set it up
Apparently, Richard Shapiro set up the entire heist to get his client, Veronica Dean, out of debt. I don’t fully understand how he planned on doing that but… It’s Archer so that’s all secondary, I suppose.
