Oh my god, where to begin? First I’d like to announce that Archer Executive Producer and all-around tremendous guy Matt Thompson will be dropping in shortly after this goes live so direct all your burning questions @Matt in the comments thread and he’ll be providing his one-of-a-kind insight into the episode and all things Archer.
We knew the Bob’s Burgers crossover was coming, but we didn’t know when or how, so to not only kick off the season with it but then also take it next level by wrapping the whole thing in a History of Violence homage was so f-ing brilliant it almost blew my head in half like an exploding can of cooking spray. Thank god I forgot that Danger pretty much inferred all this from interview snippets a few months back or I would have been extraordinarily pissed.
Highlights followed by spectacular Chet Manley GIFs…
- I’m ill-suited to properly cover all the surely spectacular aspects of the Bob’s Burger crossover as I’m not a Bob’s diehard, but — as Spencer Hall was the first to educate the masses last night — the “Thomas Elphinstone Hambledurger with Manning Coleslaw” is a reference to the protagonist in the spy novels by Manning Coles (a pseudonym for British co-writers Frances Oke Manning and Cyril Henry Coles). That’s right, all of that happening simultaneously with A+ Russian accent jokes.
- If I’m ever diagnosed with psychogenic retro grade amnesia I want it to be done by a man stuffing a piglet in his lab coat. It won’t hurt if that same man is also fond of erasing co-worker’s memories and making latex gimp suit metaphors.
- “I just wear it to fend off the cougars.” – This will be recycled.
- Shazam! the TV show was before my time (I’m of course aware of the character) but I’d still like to think I enjoyed Bob’s/Archer’s continued references 99% as much as I would have if I’d ever seen every episode. “How do you not remember that show?”
- Jennifer Walters, alter ego of She-Hulk, wins reference of the night for me though thanks to it being directed at Lana and her man hands. Never not funny.
- I still don’t quite understand Cheryl’s running ostrich fascination but I approve.
- “For who? Crippled gay hillbilly spies? There’s a niche.” – Leading S4 Malory burn thus far.
To recap where things stand: We’re at the very least two eight months (per Matt in the thread) removed from the S3 finale. Barry is pulling menacing strings from space. Sterling has spent two months of that time in a lifestyle the polar opposite to his own. And Malory is now married to the biggest Cadillac dealer in the tri-state area.
Where almost all shows would have gone the wedding episode route Archer instead made that a side note to a spy amnesia story and let the audience infer that everyone but his new stepson is enamored with Ron Cadillac. We’ve mentioned it before but if the show’s goal is to sh*t on every trope in the book they continue to do a helluva job.
Also, never sour mix.
GIFs on the next pages as to not crash too many browsers. Make us seem cool in front of Matt, OK?
The most brutal and bloody fight scene in show history by my recollection. Simply wonderful.
Aw, pocket piggy. We’ll apparently be seeing more of you.
“Seriously, I’m like Chuck Norris-esque.”
Bikini slingshots and Old Buncombe pasties? Double duh.
A light Pam and Cheryl episode, but we did get this.
Improvised lacrosse-style Molotov Cocktails FTMFW.
Heart this driver and his use of callbacks.
Pam = World’s best bridesmaid
Also best at firsts…
Many thanks to Chet for the GIFs. See you you dumb idiots next week.
