FXX delivers the first trailer for Archer: 1999, the latest re-imagining of the long-running animated series from creator Adam Reed. The past few seasons have seen the one-time super spy Sterling Archer in a number of wildly different scenarios, like Archer: Dreamland, a noir-inspired detective story, and last season’s disappointing Archer: Danger Island, which, for better or worse, put the show’s characters in the midst of a classic adventure serial. The changes have all been predicated on the cliffhanger ending of season 7, which left Archer comatose, following a near-fatal gunshot wound.
Though this is not the first time Archer has been re-imagined — Archer Vice came about in season 5, while Archer season 7 was essentially an homage to Magnum P.I. — these most recent excursions from the series’ usual drunken spycraft shenanigans have the luxury of eschewing series continuity since they’re taking place inside the mind of one man. That freedom has allowed the series to not only re-imagine the circumstances of the series, but also many of the characters. And this time it looks as though Pam and Krieger will yet again be the recipients of the most radical changes.
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The first trailer for Archer: 1999 follows through with the reveal at the end of Danger Island that sent the characters into outer space. What looked like a solid riff on the Alien franchise has now expanded to a full-fledged space opera, complete with a variety of extraterrestrial life forms, space battles, and a gladiatorial grudge match that leaves Krieger half the man he used to be. Check out the trailer and a character breakdown below:
Unlike the plot of Danger Island, the sci-fi scenario of 1999 brings plenty of material for the series to lampoon, as the 90 or so seconds of the trailer riffs on everything from the aforementioned Alien movies to Predator, Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, and more. What’s more, the series’ irreverent sense of humor seems to have benefitted from a trip to space as well, as there are several laugh-out-loud moments in the trailer alone. With any luck, heading to space will put Archer back on top.
“The series features the voices of H. Jon Benjamin as the hard-drinking Captain, ‘Sterling Archer;’ Aisha Tyler as Archer’s Co-Captain and short-tempered ex-wife, ‘Lana Kane;’ Jessica Walter as Archer’s mother and ball of energy, ‘Malory Archer;’ Judy Greer as the eagle-eye fighter pilot, ‘Cheryl/Carol Tunt;’ Chris Parnell as the attention-seeking First Mate, ‘Cyril Figgis;’ Amber Nash as the crew’s rock monster muscle, ‘Pam Poovey;’ Adam Reed as the out-of-place-in-space courtesan, ‘Ray Gillette;’ and Lucky Yates as the synthetic human with questionable morals, ‘Algernop Krieger.’”
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Archer: 1999 premieres Wednesday, May 29 @10pm on FXX.
