9x03 Different Modes of Preparing the Fruit

[7.7/10] Another episode that’s tons of fun. I again like the split in the episode to start that leads to a convergence later. You have Archer and Pam on the one hand trying to come up with a plan to get the money they need to repair the plane, and Lana and Cyril on the other explaining their mutual motivations for wanting to find the idol. It’s good work to establish everyone’s rationale in a funny way with the show’s trademark funny, historical reference-laden dialogue before letting the characters loose on one another.

Archer and Pam’s conversation (with a side of Krieger) was particularly amusing. The two of them spitballing ideas on how to make the money is the sort of hangout, dialogue-heavy comedy I really like from this show. And the gag about “chinchiladas” had me in stitches. Also in the food-based humor department, the cutaway gags to the apparently terrible Lugii’s restaurant was a big laugh as well. The two of them figuring out that the idol must be worth something and going after it is a good piece of plotting to set everyone on a collision course.

Lana and Cyril’s conversation is almost as good, between the double entendres and historical references. The homages to World War II mixed with Charlie Chaplin comparisons are really amusing (and dovetail well with Archer’s “I don’t think Catch-22 is a thing yet” line). And I really like Lana’s motivation here, trying to use other global powers who have subjugated her island and her people to gain their freedom.

From there, it leads into some classic Archer capering, with Archer, Pam, and Krieger trying to break into Cyril’s bungalow and get the map to the idol, while Mallory and Cheryl try to seduce/distract Cyril long enough to make that happen. The bungled bungalow burgling is a lot of fun, both for the banter among that trio and the amusingly poor job they do of pulling it off. And Cyril trying to put the moves on a drunk-as-hell Cheryl has some good laughs as well, with it being unexpectedly heartening for Mallory to step in to defend her (though not credit it against Cheryl’s debts.)

Overall, this is a nice mostly-hangout episode of the show that sets up good motivations for almost everyone in the cast and leans in to the dialogue-heavy charms of the series.