Much like episodes of the animated show they collect, the recent seasonal sets for Archerare not as good as the earlier ones. But if, like me, you continue to be a fan of this weird and wild show, you’ll still enjoy the DVD version of Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine.
As with the episodes…
in Archer: Dreamland: The Complete Season Eight — and the inevitable Archer: 1999: The Complete Season 10 that will collect the next batch of episodes — the eight in the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD once again find our hero in a coma and imagining he’s not a stupid spy but, in this case, a prop plane pilot who lives on a tropical island circa 1938. Which is why, instead of taking its cues from James Bond movies, noir films, or (I assume) Space: 1999, Danger Island is instead inspired by the Indiana Jones movies and, more accurately, Tales Of The Gold Monkey, a short-lived early-’80s TV show that is a favorite of Archercreator and writer Adam Reed.
Now, admittedly, the episodes in the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD aren’t nearly as funny as the ones from when Archer was a secret agent, and the show was like The Officeif it was set at MI6 and James Bond was an arrogant asshole. Instead, in these episodes, it’s like The Office if it was set at Rick’s Cafe Americain in Morocco, and Humphry Bogart’s character was a conceited prick.
That said, the episodes in the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD are still funny, especially if you’re a fan of not just the Indiana Jonesmovies and Casablanca, but also Ernest Hemingway, as well as pulpy adventure movies, comics, and video games that are set during or right before World War II.
Which isn’t to say to you need to be fans of those things, or even know about them, to find the episodes on the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD funny. Or even understand them. As with earlier episodes from back when Archer and the gang were covert operatives, the ones on this collection have the manic and intricate wordplay and character interactions that are a hallmark of this show. All of which comes courtesy of snappy scripts full of dialog that’s delivered with precision by such stellar voice actors as H. Jon Benjamin [Bob’s Burgers], Chris Parnell [Rick & Morty], and Jessica Walter [Arrested Development].
The episodes on the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD also work better when watched in rapid succession. Or at least over the course of four consecutive days, as opposed to once a week for two months.
As for the DVD itself,
the picture and sound quality for the episodes on the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD are as good as to be expected from a DVD. Which is to say they don’t look as good as when they aired on FXX in HD. Or if you streamed them in HD. Though, on the flipside, they don’t have annoying promos for other shows like the former, and can easily be rewound or fast-forwarded, unlike the latter.
Then there are the extras on the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD which, like the episodes, are good…just not as good as the ones included in the earlier seasonal sets.
First up on the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD is a four-part 13-minute-long making-of featurette called “Inside Look: Making Archer.” Though it doesn’t have as much with the cast or writer/creator Adam Reed as some would like, and is as much about the animation studio as it is this particular season, it’s still pretty entertaining and informative.
Next, the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD has Crackers’ Costumed Playthings, a silly video made for Comic-Con in which Crackers shows off his best cosplay costumes. Like some of the other shorts they’ve made to promote this show, it’s pretty funny, especially if you’ve been to Comic-Con.
But that, sadly, is it. Unlike previous seasonal collections, the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD doesn’t have any commentaries (or really anything explaining the idea behind this season and its connection to Tales Of The Gold Monkey), deleted scenes (though, admittedly, there may not be any), or the trailers for Archer: Danger Island. It doesn’t even include the trailers or anything else promoting the upcoming 10th season, Archer: 1999.
In the end,
fans of Archer really don’t have much of a choice if they want to enjoy one of their favorite shows over and over without DVRing the entire thing or hoping their wi-fi doesn’t go out mid-stream. And while neither the episodes nor the extras on the Archer: Danger Island: The Complete Season Nine DVD are as good as they could’ve been, they’re still pretty good.
SCORE: 7.5/10
