Archer Season 8 looks to be bringing about another change in the animated cult hit’s storytelling style. Season 5 saw the spy comedy take on the tagline Archer Vice as the surly protagonist tackled the career of drug kingpin and arms dealer, and Season 7 threw another curveball when the group moved to Hollywood and became private investigators. Now the series is bending time. While the show’s actual time period has always been a bit of a mystery, the upcoming season will be set in 1940s Los Angeles.
Is that a little confusing? Maybe a trailer will help…
The trailer for Archer Dreamland sees Malory (Jessica Walter) as a mob boss, Lana (Aisha Tyler) as a less than stellar entertainer, Pam (Amber Nash) and Cyril (Chris Parnell) as detectives, and Archer (H. Jon Benjamin) maintaining the role of an investigator for hire (or so it would seem). If that’s too much change for you then don’t worry, Cheryl/Carol/Cherlene (Judy Greer) is still nuts. Also, Barry (Dave Willis) is getting some much deserved slapping around from Jeffrey Tambor’s Len Trexler. Small victories in a crazy world are always appreciated.
Of course, the setting isn’t the only change for the beloved cartoon. The program has made transition from FX to sister network FXX for the next three seasons. It joins It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Man Seeking Woman. It would appear that FX Networks are getting all of their original comedies in the same lane.
As for the future of Archer, according to Deadline Hollywood show creator Adam Reed told Modern Film School’s Murmur podcast last fall that the series will likely be finished after Season 10.
“The plan is to end Archer after season 10. I don’t know that anybody has talked about that, but that is definitely my plan—to do 8, 9, and 10 and they’re gonna be each shorter seasons of just eight episodes, and then wind it up.…I was gonna end it after 8, but then I had sort of a brain explosion of a way that I could do three more seasons and really keep my interest up. So the three seasons that are coming up are gonna be pretty different from what has come before, and they’re gonna be different from each other.”
For a series that has seen everything from pirates playing lacrosse and vengeful cyborg heads of the KGB to drug fueled Nazi-clone scientists, fans can expect that Season 10 might answer some long running questions. Until then, viewers will be able to occupy themselves with what looks to be the perfect period piece for a show that thrives on snappy dialogue, beautiful animation, and utter ridiculousness.
Season 8 of Archer premiers April 5 at 10 PM ET on FXX. Stay tuned with mxdwn for more information regarding the Dreamland edition of everyone’s favorite (former) secret agent.