ARCHER 1×01 review

Title: “Pilot”
Written by: Adam Reed
Air date: 17th Sept 2009

The show follows the exploits of Sterling Archer, a 007 agent type who works for ISIS, and the various other employees at the organisation.  The pilot, like just about every other pilot, sets up the characters and their individual relationships.

I usually have at least an idea about what’s coming on TV with regards to new shows, but it’s especially true for shows I think I’d be interested in.  I had no idea that Archer was going to be on and I had no clue what it was about.  The only reason I found out about Archer is because I was checking the schedule on TheFutonCritic.com and saw that an animated show was premiering on FX.  As with most new animation, I check the voice cast behind it, and in the case of Archer there’s a pretty decent level of talent, including Judy Greer, Chris Parnell and Jessica Walter.  All this combined to make Archer a show I was very interested in seeing.  My instincts proved right on.

Almost immediately I was struck by how perfect this show felt to me. This one episode taster seems very close to Arrested Development in terms of comedy perfection, with gags that push the limits of not only what an animated show can be but also what a regular show can be. It’s not juvenile or gross-out humour like you’d expect in South Park, but something far more tailored for adults.  The jokes come thick and fast with hardly a break between them.  But don’t think there’s an over-reliance on jokes at the expense of story (eg Family Guy/American Dad/The Cleveland Show) as Archer manages to fit in a decent groundwork for what the show is likely to be about.  Namely espionage, family tension, and sexual relationships.

The whole episode was simply brilliant and trying to highlight just a few parts really does it a disservice.  That being said, some of my favourite parts were:

• “Just the tip.”
• Archer threatening his butler with rubbing sand in his eyes and then ordering the butler to go buy sand.
• “That’s how you get ants.”
• Malory (Archer’s mother) masturbating under her desk whilst having phone sex and having Archer walk in on her.

FINAL RATING: 9/10

CONCLUSION
Checking the FX website reveals that Archer isn’t scheduled to hit the airwaves until January 2010.  I guess the pilot was just to whet our appetites.  It worked.  Archer is one of the best shows I’ve seen in a long time, and is a great adult orientated animated show.  FX is really building a very strong stable of shows.  Waiting until January for Archer is almost as difficult as waiting for Lost, but after seeing the pilot I’m extemely confident that the show will be worth it.

Related posts:

1. THE CLEVELAND SHOW review
2. COMMUNITY 1×01 review
3. SONS OF TUCSON pilot script review