Archer (2009– )
Trivia
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Spoilers (9)
Magazines that characters read are often references to later episodes or plotlines for upcoming episodes in the season.
The real physical model for Ray Gillette is Lucky Yates, who is the voice actor for Dr. Krieger.
I.S.I.S. stands for International Secret Intelligence Service. On October 13, 2014, the creators decided to merge I.S.I.S. with the C.I.A. for season six, due to the acronym's incidental association with the jihadist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, which gained attention for its violent actions in the Middle East earlier that year.
Pam Poovey (Amber Nash) has a full back tattoo which reads: "For the Angel of Death spread His wings on the Blast, and breathed in the face of the foes He passed; and the eyes of the Sleepers waxed deadly and chill, and their hearts but once heaved, and forever grew still!" This is the third stanza to the poem "The Destruction of Sennacherib" by Lord Byron (George Gordon), an eighteenth century English poet. The poem is a reference to a biblical passage (2nd Kings 18-19) of how God destroyed the Assyrian army before it could attack Jerusalem.
Cyril Figgis's alias "Chet Manley" is the name of the boy who drops four baby turtles into a sewer in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic.
Creator Adam Reed has admitted in interviews that the show isn't set in a realistic time period. The geopolitical Cold War situation doesn't align with the technology being used, or Woodhouse's (George Coe's) age.
Ray (Adam Reed) has two nickel-plated M1911 pistols engraved with the names Barbra and Liza, references to Barbra Streisand and Liza Minnelli.
Amber Nash is neighbors with the physical model of her character Pam.
Sterling Archer's aliases include: Butler, Duchess, Chet Manly, Randy Randalman, Cyril Figgis, Pirate King, Bob Belcher, Randy Magnum, Randy Randerson, and Rando.
One of the episodes in season six is set in Wales and titled "Achub y Morfilod" (which translates to "Save the Whales" in Welsh).
According to an article on Vulture.com, the characters' appearances are based on friends of the show creators, as well as actors, models, and other people in the Atlanta area. The models would pose for several pictures, which would then be used as reference points for the animation.
Lana's (Aisha Tyler's) nicknames include Truckasaurus, Monster Hands, Shirley Temper, Johnny Bench, and Spray and Pray. Nearly all the names relate to her large hands.
According to Art Director Neal Holman, the series was titled "Duchess" (Archer's code name and Malory's favorite dog) until the last day or two of animating the opening sequence.
Woodhouse's name is a reference to famed British writer P.G. Wodehouse, best known for his series of Jeeves and Wooster stories, about a superlative British butler and his rather dimwitted employer.
The tie-in book, "How to Archer", states that Dr. Krieger's (Lucky Yates') first name is "Algernop".
Jeffrey Tambor voices Len Trexler, the rival of Malory Archer, who is voiced by Jessica Walter. In the critically acclaimed comedy Arrested Development (2003), Tambor and Walter played husband and wife, and, once again, were constantly at odds with each other.
In a January 2016 episode of Jeopardy! (1984), "Archer" and " Danger Zone" were adjacent categories.
O.D.I.N. stands for Organization of Democratic Intelligence Networks. O.D.I.N. headquarters is located in Paris, France.
Because of the secrecy surrounding the change of scenery and plot for season five, the promotional clips did not involve any footage from the upcoming season. Instead, a shot-for-shot animated recreation of the "Danger Zone" music video by Kenny Loggins, made for Top Gun (1986), and a frequent reference on the show, was released instead.
Cheryl (Judy Greer) is often called by the wrong name by other I.S.I.S. employees, mainly Sterling (H. Jon Benjamin) and Malory (Jessica Walter). Her aliases include Carol, Cariña, Cristal, and Cherlene.
In addition to the blueprints for Vulture from Salvage 1 (1979) and Airwolf from Airwolf (1984), the opening credits also show a drawing of the Black Beauty from The Green Hornet (1966).
Visible in the opening title montages are blueprints of the helicopter from the series Airwolf (1984), and the homemade rocket ship "The Vulture" from the series Salvage 1 (1979).
Four cast members from this show were previously lead characters on Arrested Development (2003). In addition to Jeffrey Tambor, Judy Greer played Kitty, his very devoted assistant, and now plays Cheryl, Malory's (Jessica Walter's) less than devoted secretary, and David Cross, who played Tobias, voiced the character "Noah", in season three of this show.
Lana Kane (Aisha Tyler) and Malory Archer (Jessica Walter), after their respective recruitments, ended up "killing a man three weeks later in Tunisia."
Sterling Archer's cars have been a green Plymouth GTX, a black 1970 Dodge Challenger 440 6-pack, nicknamed "Genie", a black 1970 Chevrolet El Camino, and a Ferrari 308 GTS.
The car that Cyril Figgis (Chris Parnell) drives is a Dacia 1300 build in Romania, based on a Renault 12.
Lana Kane's middle name is Anthony (as in Susan B.). Sterling Archer's middle name is Malory. Both characters have middle names that traditionally are used for the opposite gender.
All of the main cast of Bob's Burgers (2011) have appeared in voice roles over the course of the series. H. Jon Benjamin plays the lead in both shows.
In addition to Cyril's Dacia, other Eastern European vehicles can be seen roaming the streets, like the Czechoslovakian Karosa SL11 bus and the Soviet Volga-GAZ 24 saloon car.
In the opening scene of season two, episode eleven, Jeu Monégasque, the leaderboard displays three names: Bell, Bivens, and DeVoe. These are the last names of musical trio Bell Biv DeVoe.
In Archer: Dial M for Mother (2010), Archer's right foot is visible revealing a bullet scar. This scar is from Lana purposely shooting him in the foot in a previous episode.
In the opening credits, the dolphin hand puppet that Amber Nash (Pam Poovey) is using is "Yoshi" from the television series Departures (2008).
Aisha Tyler (Lana Kane) and Michael Rooker (Sheriff E.Z. Ponder) also worked on Criminal Minds (2005).
Spoilers
Dr. Krieger is the son of a Nazi scientist, and lived in Brazil until he was fifteen years old. When his father was killed, Malory brought him to I.S.I.S., where it was later revealed that he was a genetically identical clone of Adolf Hitler. Recently, Krieger has called his supposed genetic heritage into question, saying, "And by the way, if I was a clone of Adolf goddamn Hitler, wouldn't I look like Adolf goddamn Hitler?!"
Prior to his death, Brett Bunsen (Neal Holman) had been shot at least eight times: at least four by Sterling Archer (H. Jon Benjamin) and several others by co-workers Lana and Cyril, actress Rona Thorne, and once by the F.B.I.
Archer grew up believing that his father was a war hero, named "John Fitzgerald Archer". Various events in season one suggest that his father may be Major Nikolai Jakov of the K.G.B., Len Trexler of the rival spy agency O.D.I.N. or jazz drummer Buddy Rich (although Malory is pretty sure it's either Jakov or Trexler). She later mentions a fourth possibility in the third season, and in Archer: Once Bitten (2013), an unknown man appears to Archer in a flashback, claiming to be his father, making a fifth possibility.
In season 7, the Figgis agency's interior design is similar to the office in the late seasons of Mad Men (2007)
Season five is subtitled "Archer: Vice", and focuses on the team selling a metric ton of cocaine. Season eight is marketed as "Archer: Dreamland", and appears to refer to the season seven finale (and the flash-forward from the season seven premiere), where a man, who looks like Archer, is shot and bleeding in a pool.
Archer Danger Island (Season 9) takes place in 1938. This is revealed in episode 8 when Cheryl talks about the hobbit released in 1937. Saying it was released last year
Several season four episodes make overt references to lead voice actor H. Jon Benjamin and Series Creator Adam Reed. The restaurant from Bob's Burgers (2011) (where Benjamin voices lead character, Bob) is a location in Fugue and Riffs (2013), where Linda, Gene, and Louise Belcher all make cameos and refer to Archer as Bob, and in season four, episode twelve, "Sea Tunt: Part 1", voice actors Eugene Mirman (Cecil Tunt) and Kristen Shaal (Tiffy) are also Bob's Burgers alumni (Gene and Louise Belcher). In The Papal Chase (2013), Archer mentions Lucy: The Daughter of the Devil (2005), in which Benjamin voiced The Devil. Adam Reed co-created Sealab 2021 (2000) and uses the title sea lab, and Captain Murphy, as the main antagonists for the season four finale.
