One of the best-kept secrets on television right now is FX’s achingly funny, ruthlessly witty spy satire Archer, which will return for a fifth season of thirteen episodes next month. The show has consistently surprised and delighted with state-of-the-art animation, hilarious plot-lines and inspired guest actors (check out season 3’s “The Man from Jupiter,” featuring Burt Reynolds, if you don’t believe me).
Now, FX is turning up the heat on Archer‘s publicity campaign with a terrific poster inspired by Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, which finds the ISIS gang going undercover beachside in what looks like Miami.
Check it out below:
Where to start with this awesome poster? How about a visibly pregnant Lana Kane (Aisha Tyler)? The character announced that she was expecting during the “Sea Tunt” season 4 finale, so it looks like a small time-jump is in order for season 5. Meanwhile, Ray (Adam Reed) appears to be fully mobile again (though likely not for long), Cheryl/Carol (Judy Greer) is evidently pursuing a career as a folk musician and Malory (Jessica Walter) is sunning it up, glamorous as always. And of course, Archer is fully committing to the bit, toting his rampage-ready sawed-off shotgun and a bag of cash that gives the poster a Scarface-esque feel.
At Comic-Con earlier this year, cast member Chris Parnell hinted that big changes were in store for the show:
[Season 5 is] going to be very different. It’s going to be a big shakeup for the ISIS gang. They’re not going to be in ISIS anymore. They’re going to be staking out digs in somebody’s house. They’ll still travel; the story will still have a similar tone to it. The show premieres in January, so you’ll find out in due time.
Though the reasons for the move are still unknown, guest star Gary Cole will be voicing an FBI agent who plays a large role in bringing the ISIS office down. Ron Perlman has also been confirmed to reprise his role from the season 1 episode “Honeypot” as former Cuban spy Ramon Limon, while Christian Slater is in talks to lend his voice to a new character.
After you’ve had your fill of the poster above, you can also check out a few teaser clips that have been released in preparation for the new season. In a series of instructional videos, mad scientist Dr. Krieger (Lucky Yates) shows viewers the ropes at ISIS. First, Pam (Amber Nash) gets emotional about conflict resolution:
Next, Archer tries (and fails) to teach new recruits about gun safety, much to Brett’s detriment:
My favorite promo video is definitely this Top Gun homage, featuring Archer as Maverick, Cyril as Goose, Lana as Charlie and Archer’s favorite Kenny Loggins song backing:
And finally, just yesterday, FX unveiled an additional promo, with Krieger teaching watchers all they could ever want to know about ninjas in the ISIS office:
Tell us, do you watch Archer? If so, why not? It’s one of the funniest and most creative comedies currently on TV, and I’m anxiously awaiting its return in January. The first three seasons are now on Netflix, so there’s no better time to catch up on the spy satire.
Archer returns to FX on January 14th at 10:00 p.m.