***SPOILERS***
Archer is a TV series on FXX. It follows a spy agency and their thrilling day-to-day lives. The show first aired in 2009. Season 13 aired on August 24, 2022, till October 12, 2022. Season 13 has 8 episodes, 30 minutes long each. The cast includes H Jon Benjamin (Bob's Burgers), Aisha Tyler (Criminal Minds), Chris Parnell (Rick and Morty, 30 Rock, SNL), and Judy Greer (Reboot, 13 Going on 30).
Season 13 follows Archer and the gang partnering up with another spy agency from last season, the IIA. The team is given new, outrageous, assignments each episode by Fabian Kingsworth, head of the IIA. While dealing with those assignments, each character has an arc in that episode, changing the way they act for the rest of the season.
The season ends with the team learning that through the assignments, they involuntarily collapsed a government in Manatina, and Fabian Kingsworth is holding the President hostage. They solve the situation with the help of a CIA agent from previous seasons, Agent Slater, played by Christian Slater (Inside Job, Mr. Robot).
I loved the reappearance of some old characters in the finale. They were so much fun to catch up with and see what they'd been up to. My favorite would have to be Agent Slater, especially his last line in the last episode. The guest stars this season were also really well cast. Kenan Thompson (SNL, Kenan, Good Burger) was in the third episode, Saturday, playing a negotiator that needed to be rescued by Archer and Lana Kane.
This season is the first season without Jessica Walter, who played Benjamin's character's mother. The show definitely felt very different and like it was missing something. It did mention very often since her departure at the end of last season. The characters in the show did have an intervention for her son, Sterling Archer, for his behavior over her departure, leading to the new plot of the following episode, where Archer goes to therapy.
Lately, I've noticed Judy Greer's character, Cheryl isn't the same as she was in the older seasons. I think her character just isn't fun anymore. Cheryl in the older seasons was a strong character, with memorable moments. Now she's been reduced to one-liners and weird storylines. I do hope she becomes a stronger character in the next season when it's renewed.
I feel like every season of Archer is a really good season, and the same goes for this season. While I didn't enjoy the first 5 episodes, the episodes do show each character's development really nicely. That is one of my favorite things about Archer. They're not afraid of changing the characters. They love shaking things up and putting the team in a new situation or setting.
Archer Season 13 completes the new era of the characters evolving and becoming better than before. (Though I still adore the older, unevolved characters, seasons)
Rating: 8/10
