The new FX cartoon "Archer." Illustration courtesy of FX.
Interested in watching a mixture of James Bond, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and the Young and the Restless? Then Archer, a new cartoon on FX, is the show for you.
After the first four episodes, viewers have been introduced to a Jewish African-American double agent, a corrupt, skirt-chasing Swedish foreign diplomat, and assorted assassins disguised as hookers, chefs and Cubans. And those aren’t even the main characters. By the end of the season, no race or ethnicity may be left ridicule-free.
The plot is thin, but the gags come faster than ninja-tossed throwing knives. The show’s 11 p.m. time slot allows for the show to be as foul-mouthed and vulgar as late-night TV allows.
The show is named after Stirling Archer, a reckless, womanizing secret agent for the ISIS (International Secret Intelligence Service) agency, voiced by H. Jon Benjamin. The only reason has the secret agent gig is because his mother Malory (Jessica Walter) runs the agency.
Archer is joined at ISIS by his vengeful, trigger happy ex-girlfriend, Lana (Aisha Tyler), her nerdy, self-esteem challenged boyfriend Cyril, voiced by Chris Parnell of SNL fame, and by Cheryl/Carol/Cristal (Judy Greer), a secretary who changes her name according to the occasion.
Occasionally the jokes come so fast it’s difficult to catch them all without watching the episode over again, particularly when Archer make snide comments while his mother is talking. Other times a situation steps way over the boundary of good taste.
But when everything clicks, Archer is as irreverent and funny as any show out there.
Archer airs Thursday nights at 11 p.m. on FX.Contact the reporter at egrasser@asu.edu
