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March 28, 2024, 11:48:35 PM

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Archer Season 11

Started by Small Man Big Horse, July 25, 2020, 11:29:38 PM

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NoSleep

Well, I absolutely love the show. Mostly because of the banter between the main cast (and the phrasing), but also because it spoofs the whole idea of the super spy by making everything come at a real world price (tinnitus, std, pension plans, breast cancer, etc).

I'm not holding out a lot of hope for this new season after the Reed-free episodes last season, but I'll have to watch nonetheless.

MojoJojo

Watched a couple of episodes of Archer in SPAAAACE!

- I hate what they've done to the opening music. Surely it was possible to sci-fi it without making so unpleasant.
- Something seems to have gone wrong with the visual referencing. The other series used to exaggerate the style without directly referencing stuff (or only rarely). But this seems to have loads of directly referenced stuff. Oh this is Aliens. This is Firefly. This is Thor: Ragnorak. And they don't go together very well, and it's distracting. It's a salad not a melting pot.

It leaves me with the feeling they weren't particularly enthusiastic about the sci-fi theme.

madhair60

Quote from: backdrifter on July 28, 2020, 12:01:36 AM
Having said that I HATE the look (and content) of anime so we probably just have completely different tastes.

what? all anime? every single japanese animated cartoon? all of em? even Totoro?!?

edit: I really don't think Archer is a good looking show, I'm not saying I hate it, I do think it's funny enough what I've seen of it.

Blumf

They cater to anime pervs like madhair60:


Thursday

I've now watched the first couple of space episodes since I'd never got round to it since the last 2 series bored me.

I really like Cheryl's haircut.

backdrifter

Quote from: madhair60 on July 28, 2020, 12:57:18 PM
what? all anime? every single japanese animated cartoon? all of em? even Totoro?!?

edit: I really don't think Archer is a good looking show, I'm not saying I hate it, I do think it's funny enough what I've seen of it.

I guess I haven't really given it much of a chance. The bits I have seen just seem boring, weird-looking, not funny and over the top "cute". Then there's the frequent sexualising of extremely young girls.

madhair60

bollocks talker but it's OK there is no requirement to like anime

Dyl Spinks

This is coming up very soon.

To those in the know: will the new bunch appear on UK Netflix an episode at a time, or do they all land at once?

The Mollusk

Quote from: backdrifter on August 03, 2020, 01:10:11 AM
I guess I haven't really given it much of a chance. The bits I have seen just seem boring, weird-looking, not funny and over the top "cute". Then there's the frequent sexualising of extremely young girls.

Anime can be an extremely diverse medium. It's reasonable enough to have a passing perception of it being OTT cute and frequently sexualising young girls because there's fucking loads of that, the latter of which I agree is creepy as fuck but the age of consent in Japan is still only 13, and Japan sure does love its traditions, so you sort of have to accept there's nowt much you can do about that. The overall female sexualisation is something I have more of a problem with, but there is anime that avoids that stuff. The work of Masaaki Yuasa might be worth looking into, as his style is very unique and often beautiful to look at, and isn't primarily focused on being comedic. I'm currently watching Ping Pong: The Animation and have been totally mesmerised by it.

Quote from: madhair60 on July 28, 2020, 12:57:18 PM
I really don't think Archer is a good looking show, I'm not saying I hate it, I do think it's funny enough what I've seen of it.

I get where you're coming from, without fully being able to articulate why. There's something about the way that it evolved from the very cardboard style of Reed's earlier works Sealab 2021 and Frisky Dingo so that those character designs gradually developed more fluidity of movement and the backgrounds become increasingly lush and exquisitely detailed that feels somewhat excessive or ugly to me. I think I must prefer how that stuff used to look, because I have much less of a problem with it in that earlier stuff.

Small Man Big Horse

Quote from: Dyl Spinks on September 13, 2020, 05:46:07 PM
This is coming up very soon.

To those in the know: will the new bunch appear on UK Netflix an episode at a time, or do they all land at once?

Two episodes aired last night on FX, and then afik it'll be one week, and I imagine it'll be the same on Netflix (though don't know for sure).

I've seen the first episode and liked it a fair bit, it had a slightly melancholic edge (Archer missing Woodhouse especially) and was a nice introduction to everything that has changed over the past three years. I had a couple of quibbles (Archer not mentioning his child and a lack of Malory) but most of the time it was amusing if not hilarious. The now incredibly unreliable AV Club also liked it but didn't rate the second episode which I've yet to see, so it's probably a bit early to become optimistic that this mostly Adam Reed-less season will be a return to form.

NoSleep

Quote from: Small Man Big Horse on September 17, 2020, 02:22:19 PM
Two episodes aired last night on FX, and then afik it'll be one week, and I imagine it'll be the same on Netflix (though don't know for sure).

Netflix will probably hold until the full season has run elsewhere (that's what they did last season, and that's what happened for Rick & Morty S4, too)

Small Man Big Horse

Quote from: Small Man Big Horse on September 17, 2020, 02:22:19 PM
Two episodes aired last night on FX, and then afik it'll be one week, and I imagine it'll be the same on Netflix (though don't know for sure).

I've seen the first episode and liked it a fair bit, it had a slightly melancholic edge (Archer missing Woodhouse especially) and was a nice introduction to everything that has changed over the past three years. I had a couple of quibbles (Archer not mentioning his child and a lack of Malory) but most of the time it was amusing if not hilarious. The now incredibly unreliable AV Club also liked it but didn't rate the second episode which I've yet to see, so it's probably a bit early to become optimistic that this mostly Adam Reed-less season will be a return to form.

And that second episode was indeed a disappointment, Archer by the numbers, and very bland sadly. Filed under: If these weren't Pandemic times and there was more fun tv around I'd probably be quitting it now, but will reluctantly stick with it for the time being.

Pink Gregory

So does no Adam Reed mean no Ray?

Small Man Big Horse

He was in the first episode but not the second, I think we'll see him again though as Reed's not quit the show completely and is writing one episode this year, he's just no longer the showrunner and writing all / the majority of the scripts.

NoSleep

The first one was really good. Much better than any of last season. They've managed to move the characters on a bit, so there's was little attempt at trying to make the characters "do their little dance" for the fans; more of a natural-feeling reset and Archer dropped in to fuck things up. Actually laughed out loud several times, which was scarce, if at all, last season.

Consignia

Just watched the first couple of episodes. First was good, second not so much but still passing the amusement test. I did like comas series though, so I guess I've got a lower Archer threshold.

Was it me though or was Aisha Tyler sounding a bit off? I noticed a similar for Jessica Walter a few years back. Not a lack of acting enthusiasm, just voice not sounding as up to it.

NoSleep

Third was pretty poor (like the worst of last season). Too many attempts to make a "typical" Archer episode. When Adam Reed does that thing where a line is finished over change of scene, it's always suitably jarring, unlike this time around. Krieger's "damn you all to hell' speech was another weak low (by now he should be "meh" about his van getting trashed yet again). They even managed to animate the characters out of character somehow. Worst was the incorrect callback to Pam's soya allergy whilst eating fake shrimp in season 4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7v-07kSc4E

Small Man Big Horse

I quite liked it. It wasn't as good as the first but I thought it was a step up on the second, having Archer separated and hanging out with the scientist woman livened things up for me and so it wasn't just the regular gang bickering all the time. It wasn't one of the best ever episodes by any means but there was enough going on, and enough decent lines, to keep me watching and that wasn't always the case with season 10.

Consignia

I did feel the latest was a bit half baked. It felt like it was a first draft that needed a couple of rewrites. I mean the character of Hands was really poorly established.

Small Man Big Horse

Only just caught up with the fourth episode but I thought it was the best yet, Archer slowly bonding with Barry led to some really strong dialogue, Cyril snapping (quite literally) and falling to pieces made me laugh, and the Valet Games back with Mallory and co was a fun subplot.

NoSleep

The fifth one had a potentially good story but was spoilt by weak writing. Simon Pegg[nb]Is this a new chapter in Pegg's career; taking roles in US TV shows? He's in The Boys as well.[/nb] was great as Archer's new valet but there were inconsistencies throughout; the worst being the old "I never mentioned... etc" cliche.

It seems all the writers have been briefed that the season-long arc is to be everybody returning to their pre-coma roles gradually, but this stuff is not being properly included in plot driven manner.

I love individual moments of this season but the sum is not greater than those tidbits.

Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth

Quote from: NoSleep on October 09, 2020, 12:39:13 PM
Is this a new chapter in Pegg's career; taking roles in US TV shows? He's in The Boys as well.
I understand that his role in The Boys is a sort of in joke thing, as he was the basis for Wee Hughie in the comics.

NoSleep

I knew about that, but he's made the time for this as well (or maybe it was simple to fit into his schedule while doing The Boys, although that must have been over a year ago).

Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth

Well voiceover work wouldn't take up that much of his time. I guess at this stage of his career, though, he's got enough big franchise (ugh) supporting roles to keep him comfortable and, at his age, he's probably not going to be a big leading man now.

I've thought for a while that he should probably make a return to television. Looking back at his work and listening to his interviews, he's got an interesting perspective on nerd culture and enough credibility within that sphere that he could surely land a series on Netflix or the like.

Ant Farm Keyboard

The latest episode brought a lot of what made the show great in its best years, with some balance and edge that it had somehow lost.

Even if he isn't ultimately credited for writing any of the episodes, there are reasons to assume that Adam Reed still does some polishing on the scripts. There are too many of his trademarks (like one character starting a sentence in a scene, then cut to another scene with a different character saying the last word in a totally different context) to assume that there are four or five new different writers that are just trying to pastiche him.

For your information, Reed, Matt Thompson and Floyd County have been involved in a new animated show that had gone below my radar (especially as I spent a few weeks at the hospital for surgery this summer). It's called Dicktown, and it stars John Hodgman as a former teen detective who's kept on being a detective, still only accepting jobs from teenagers and cartoonist David Rees as his former bully, now muscle and best (well only) friend.
The show first aired as segments from the third season of Cake, an anthology show on FXX, but quickly, which looks like a vote of confidence from the networks, it was also released as standalone 11-minute episodes on Hulu (and also collected as some cough cough torrent for the whole season). There are ten of them, I've only watched the first episode so far, but if it turns up to be something special, I'll update you.
And it may be the explanation for Reed and Thompson getting a credit for "Shark Lords", the main recurring segment on the second season of Cake. I guess that they took a few pitches to contribute to Cake and get some work for their studio, that "Shark Lords" was ultimately produced as live action but that "Dicktown" was greenlit as a series of animated shorts.

NoSleep

Quote from: Ant Farm Keyboard on October 18, 2020, 10:56:15 PM
The latest episode brought a lot of what made the show great in its best years, with some balance and edge that it had somehow lost.

Some rough edges, but it was at least as good as the first episode of this season.

QuoteEven if he isn't ultimately credited for writing any of the episodes, there are reasons to assume that Adam Reed still does some polishing on the scripts. There are too many of his trademarks (like one character starting a sentence in a scene, then cut to another scene with a different character saying the last word in a totally different context) to assume that there are four or five new different writers that are just trying to pastiche him.

I think it's been done differently enough (for better or worse) to assume that it's the writers working either to instruction or based on what their own idea of how an Archer episode should be structured. I would think they have watched some episodes to get the character of the show as well as the characters. Unfortunately it's something that only Adam Reed had the perfect touch for. The characters sometimes do things that you can see (as a fan) that they would never have done before. And the segueing between scenes is sometime just perfunctory, or worse, too painless and slick, compared to the way that Reed would do it. It can feel like a poor imitation. I've noticed Reed's appearance in the episodes is kept to a minimum, too.

NoSleep

Another good one again this week; written by Mark Ganek, who wrote episode 1. It was free of any of the usual Adam Reed "riffs" and although he hasn't quite got the characters right (especially Cheryl) it worked because it was a good story and he made it his own. I see they have given him the closing episode too (so that's 3 of the 8, the most for any writer this season). Ganek did a couple of episodes last season, too; one of which I particularly took a disliking to (the one where they were trapped in a cave by a monster and they discovered dead doppelgangers of themselves) and one that I liked (the one where Pam's "sandwich filler" escaped the pantry and started laying eggs all over the ship).


Small Man Big Horse

I really enjoyed last week's episode but thought the finale was only quite good, nothing was bad about it, it just felt like the gag rate was far lower than usual. Still, as a season as a whole it's been far, far better than any of the coma years, and it's pretty impressive that it's so good considering Adam Reed's minimal involvement.

It's been renewed for a twelfth season too, which I'm glad about it, which I'm not sure I would have said at the end of season 10...