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"Liquid Lunch" is the eighth episode of Season 7 and the eighty-third episode overall. It originally aired on May 19, 2016.

Plot[]

Synopsis[]

The on-again, off-again relationship of Archer and Slater causes a rift in the on-again, off-again relationship of Archer and Lana.

Summary[]

Sterling Archer and Lana Kane are asked by Slater to assassinate a former MK-ULTRA experimentee, while Doctor Krieger attempts to hypnotise the entire office (a bet was placed, as the main cast did not believe it was possible) other than Ray, who requested immunity as he helped Krieger scare the rest of the office. Krieger violated the rule of using no psychotropic drugs, he used the chemical Scopolamine.

Archer and Lana Kane (with the help of Slater) tracked down an associate of Eckerd, who revealed where Eckerd was staying (the Tuntford Arms Hotel) under the threat of waterboarding by Slater, this revealed that Archer was never waterboarded, as he skipped that training day at the agency, causing him to proclaim anyone who is susceptible to waterboarding "has a vagina" - Archer was strapped down to a table, which he was still mocking Slater, the scene later cut to a car, with a shocked Archer telling Slater and Lana how terrible waterboarding was.

At the office, Krieger successfully hypnotises everyone, and video tapes it (except Ray, who had Pam, Cyril and Cheryl acting like dogs)

At The Tuntford, Archer, Slater and Lana find Eckerd, who fires shots at them before escaping to a stairway, Slater proceeds to go secure the lobby, while Archer and Lana chase Eckberd to the roof.

Eckberd is discovered at the roof by Archer and Lana, precariously situated at the edge, he proceeds to enter a speech about how MK-ULTRA does not stop with him (comparing it to a Mobius Strip) Archer tries to sneak up, only to crunch the gravel beneath his feet, Eckberd turns round, seeing what caused the noise, but falls off the roof. While Slater is angry that they failed their mission, he does admit he wasn't going to pay them regardless on their success and leaves. Lana then leaves Archer, angrily stating they're on a break.

Back at the office, Cyril, Pam and Cheryl are viewing the clip, and Ray mentions to Malory about being exposed to Scopolamine, before the scene cuts to a laboratory run by Krieger, who is talking about cooling your jets to Malory, who proceeds to enter an "off mode", revealing Krieger has a robotic copy of the entire office (Cyril, Cheryl, Lana, Malory, Pam, Ray and Sterling)

Cast[]

Cultural References[]

  • Bea Benaderet: To rile Slater, Archer mistakes the plot of The Manchurian Candidate for On The Town, then rants about this mid-20th-century film and voice actress.
  • Project MKUltra: Slater's asset is a product of this, the CIA's scandal of mind-control experiments during the Cold War.
  • CIA Director Allen Dulles and U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles: Malory says, "Trust me, if there's a hell those creepy Dulles brothers are in it doing unspeakable things with bananas." Both were instrumental during the Eisenhower administration and both supported the 1954 Guatemalan coup d'état.
    • A key CIA asset during the coup was the United Fruit Company, of which Allen was a board member and John lobbied on behalf of. The United Fruit Company's primary Guatemalan export was bananas. The Company's current incarnation is Chiquita Brands International.
  • Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling: Krieger's one-man play references this semi-autobiographical film by Richard Pryor.
  • Waterboarding: This controversial form of torture, which has been used by the CIA in its "War on Terror", is something Archer has not experienced until now. He has however actually drowned, a fact that amuses him in spite of discovering how traumatic waterboarding really is.
  • The Art of Shaving : During the short flashback before Archer is waterboarded, when he is sitting in a barber's chair, he tells the barber, "I also think I want the lavender, instead of the sandalwood."  This is a reference to a particular brand of high-end shaving equipment, whose two main popular scents (of the five they produce, one of which is "unscented") are lavender and sandalwood (see the drop-down at left, under "Collections").  This is not the first time Archer has referenced this brand, either: in "Double Deuce" (S02E05), Archer was seen shaving; the brush he had used to apply shaving cream to his face was on the sink below.  When the wee baby Seamus tried to eat the brush, Archer told him it was made of "silvertip badger [hair]," the exact material used in the top-of-the-line shaving brushes made by the same company .
  • On the TV of Eckard, the TV shows the "please stand by" loading screen from the 1940s to the 1970s, most commonly recognized for their use in Fallout.

Running Gags[]

  • The Giggling Sadist: Cheryl is seen smiling when Pam tells her that there is a mouse caught in a mouse trap that is still alive.
  • Furlock Boned: Archer once again shows his dismay that a client discovered the Figgis Agency from Pam's flyer.
  • Cheryl/Carol: Can be seen on the notice board when Pam is reading it.

Trivia[]

  • A bulletin advertises a dog sitting/walking business run by Cheryl/Carol. On the same bulletin board is a flyer for Pita Margarita's, first seen in "Crossing Over".
  • When a hypnotized Pam and Cheryl call for Cyril, he is shown using the search engine, 10100 Search. 10100 is typically referred to as "googol", which makes reference to the popular search engine, Google.
  • In that same scene, another tab can be seen open on his browser. It says "PIRATE VIRUS REMOV..." which is a clear reference to Spelvin's Pirate Virus from the episode "Tragical History."
  • When Krieger makes Cyril forget his parents this is a nod to Doctor Donald Ewen Cameron hypnotizing people to forget their parents during “MKUltra”.
  • At the right of the Tuntford Arms Hotel, a sign advertises Sharknoid 5, a fictional movie referenced in the previous episode.

Quotes[]

Multiple: "Why? Shut up! Why?"

─────────────────────────

Multiple: "Yes, Doctor."

Episode Teaser[]


Gallery of Images[]

There are 17 screenshots and images from "Liquid Lunch" on this Wiki, visit the category page for a complete gallery.

Sample of fourteen images from the gallery:

External links[]

Reference List[]

  1. Archer Season 7 Ratings on tvseriesfinale.com

Navigation[]

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