"Reignition Sequence" is the tenth episode of Season 6 and the seventy-second episode overall of Archer.
Plot[]
Synopsis[]
An office romance is interrupted by the Russians.
Summary[]
We hire somebody to kidnap their fat, gross baby.
In the ISIS training and break room, jealous, as well as nauseated, by Archer and Lana's rekindled relationship, the office gang decide to come up with a plan to break them up for good. When Cheryl's elaborate idea of framing a patsy for kidnapping A.J. is a bit much for everyone, the gang decides to settle instead for arranging a woman to be caught with Archer, who they think can't resist the temptation to cheat. After ruling out expensive hookers, they all decide on making a call to the one woman who has a strong psychological hold on Sterling, aside from Malory, Katya Kazanova.
Bring 100 copies of this.
Meanwhile, during the afterglow of sex in the janitor closet, Lana tells Archer that she has noticed that he's matured ever since getting back together with him and how happy she's been. He acknowledges all of the times in the past where he has cheated and promises it will never happen again. He also asks that neither of them tells his mother that they are an item, for fear that she'll try to split them up again. Later that day, Archer invites Lana over to his apartment for dinner that he plans to make himself, since Woodhouse has been missing for some time.
The Rush van is way too iconic.
Later that night, the gang are staking out Archer's place in an ice cream van. Dr. Krieger had previously set up hidden cameras in Archer's penthouse to catch everything that happens. As Archer returns home, he discovers Katya coming out of his bathroom, and his bedroom made up for an intimate evening together. As the gang watch Archer turn down Katya's advances, they see Lana pull up outside, who's forced to take the stairs, due to the elevator being broken.
I have a kid.
When Katya is upset that Archer is turning her down in favor of Lana, he gives a heartfelt talk, explaining how he now has a child, how much he's always loved Lana despite their fighting, and although Katya will have a place in his heart, he doesn't want to risk losing Lana again. The speech touches Katya, as well as the gang, who now feels guilty for what they've done. They try to stop Lana from going into Archer's apartment.
I'll be thinking of you the next several times I have sex with Lana.
When Archer realizes Lana will be there any second, he quickly asks Katya to leave before she comes in. She mentions she forgot something in the bathroom, but Archer tells her that he'll mail it to her. Equipped with a grappling hook in her forearm, she leaves from Archer's balcony, telling him she will miss him and kisses him goodbye for good.
I am going to burn you down.
As Archer scrambles to make dinner, the gang stops Lana, and as a stalling tactic, Cyril half-heartedly admits he still loves Lana. She laughs and goes inside anyway, closing the door on them. She eventually notices the intimate setup in the bedroom and thinking that this is Archer's attempt at romance, goes in the bathroom to prepare. Archer tells Lana he feels like a new man, which prompts Lana to furiously ask him about the vagina in the sink.
Cast[]
- Starring :
- Guest Starring:
Cultural References[]
- The Lindbergh baby - Cheryl's plan alludes to the Lindbergh baby's kidnapping (allegedly by a German immigrant).
- Batman: In Cheryl's original plan, AJ is going to be raised and trained by Rah's al Ghul. Also it resembles TMNT with splinter and shredders daughter.
- Cheryl's flipbook plan to kidnap Abbiejean is basically an allusion to the Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping. Also, she makes reference to Ra's al Ghul, a character from the DC Comics Universe and the sworn enemy of Batman training an older A.J. to seek revenge against those who kidnapped her when she was a baby. Cheryl's flipbook story also borrows a few plot elements from Kill Bill, specifically the backstory of assassin O-Ren Ishii, which was also depicted in the movie via an animation.
- La Retour de Martin Guerre (1982): During Archer and Lana's janitorial tryst, Lana compares Archer to both Martin Guerre and Sommersby (the title character of the 1993 English-language remake).
- In this scene, Archer refers to his cordwainer - Someone who makes (rather than repairs) shoes. Archer confuses shrinking feet with being correlated with a growing penis...as only Archer could. (And not in that way.)
- William Tell Overture (1829): The tune that various characters hum throughout the episode is the Ranz des Vaches from overture of the opera 'William Tell' by Rossini.[1]
- Action Comics 1: The comic book that Boris is reading in bed next to Katya is titled "ะกััะฐะฝะฐ ะะตัะพะธ" ("Strana Geroi", tr. Hero Country), with a collectivized farming cover that mimics "Action Comics #1", the June 1938 comic book issue in which Superman debuted.
- Julia Child: Doubting Archer's culinary abilities, Lana calls him "Julia Childish".
- The Guardians of the Galaxy 2008 team: Cheryl, in response to Archer's and Katya's description of Lana's largish proportions, refers to her as Groot, a character from the Guardians of the Galaxy.
- LL Cool J - 'Jingling Baby' (1990): The chorus is recited by Katya whilst seducing Archer.[2]
Eubie Blake fingers.
- Eubie Blake (1887โ1983): Archer describes Lana's hands as "in the dark it's like Eubie Blake's reaching out for you". Blake had famously long fingers.
- Katya's operating system updates:
- Kama Sutra (400 BCE and 200 CE): The ancient love-making guide.
- "Bartender's Guide" Old Mr Boston's Official Bar Tender's Guide (1935): The (not so ancient) cocktail-making guide.
- Lacrosse: "A deep and hard-wired understanding and appreciation of..." er, phrasing?
Frisky Dingo[]
- Cheryl refers to "Wendell T. Stamps" and the "slideshow' in a reference to the Adam Reed show Frisky Dingo, in which the character Wendell T. Stamps watches a live camera feed in the back of a truck.
- In the episode in question, "The Grate Escape" (s1e11), it is actually Cody who says "Yeah, he's in the slideshow" (apropos of Taqu'il). Wendell actually asks: "What is this slideshow everyone is doing?" (which is itself a meta-reference to other characters in the show who say it when he is not present). Without going too deep down the trope rabbit hole, Cheryl's utterance is indeed a callback, but it is also either a goof (unlikely) or subverted callback (more likely) because she 'forgets' who said the line. It also hangs a lampshade on the obscure reference ie. Frisky Dingo.
Running Gags / Callbacks[]
- Earballs!
- Me too!
- Just The Tip
- Lana's Hands - While trying to defend Lana to Katya, Archer makes several references to her abnormally large hands.
- Kreepy Krieger - Krieger's creepy pastimes, van, and sexual practices are once again alluded to when he mentions that he murders his virtual girlfriend every night.
- Fogging a Mirror - Archer's tendency to sleep with anyone as long as they are alive.
- Ray's Hand - (Or lack of) is called back a couple of times.
- The fact ISIS was wanted for treason is called back.
- Pam's vagina - Cheryl calls it back.
- The elevator repairman (Mr. Ford) from "Legs" makes a re-appearance in this episode.
- Stir-Friday being used in this episode is the same phrase coined by Archer in "Mole Hunt".
- Katya's death in "Double Trouble" is referenced.
- Archer brings up several times how Katya had sex with Barry on their 2nd Wedding day and left him at the altar in "Skin Game."
- The humming of the William Tell Overture is a callback to the opening scene of "White Elephant".
- Lana is referred to as a "giant negress" by Katya.
- Archer's promiscuity is called back by Lana.
- Slideshow - Archer calls back the slideshow Cheryl referred to in an earlier scene- in much the same way as Wendell call back to the slide show referred to by others in a different scene in Frisky Dingo.
Trivia[]
- There is a possible reference to the television show Fringe. In the janitor closet while Lana and Archer are talking, on the wall behind the sink can be seen multiple left handprints with five fingers (and a thumb, for a total of six digits). This handprint is one of the lead-in/lead-out screens shown on Fringe.
- Ray is still without a hand and reveals that the office insurance policy does not cover prosthetic replacements, indicating all of Krieger's previous cyborg procedures were off-the-record surgeries.
- It is revealed that Woodhouse has been missing for several weeks since his three days off in "Sitting".
- It is also revealed that, because of the ISIS crew's failed mission in the previous episode, the CIA has not contacted them since.
- Referring to Ray's stump, Pam calls him "Stumplestiltskin."
- When Katya receives the call, Boris has a magazine with a cover that is very similar to Action Comics #1. The cover title is 'ะกััะฐะฝะฐ ะะตัะพะน', or 'Country Hero' in Russian.
- Pam exits the toilet stall with a copy of "Holstein" magazine under her arm, showing her continued interest in dairy farming. The cover shows a unusual red and white Holstein, rather than the more common black and white markings.
- Katya Kazanova reveals that she upgraded herself with new firmware, as well a grappling hook.
- This is the first time in the series that Katya makes an appearance without Barry Dylan. It's revealed that she has no idea that Barry tried to kill Archer again ("Edie's Wedding") and that he is badly damaged.
- Krieger reveals that he moonlights as an ice-cream truck driver in this episode. One meaning of moonlighting is to work under moonlight, typically at an extra job - doing so in an ice-cream van is extra creepy, drawing attention to Krieger's perverse nature.
- Part of Pam's supplies for the van stake-out includes two 6-packs of Red Beer.
- The Frisky Dingo reference is either a goof (unlikely) or a subverted callback (more likely).
- Archer is wearing Kilgour, French & Stanbury and Turnbull & Asser menswear when Katya surprises him in his apartment.
Locations[]
Quotes[]
- Cheryl: We hire somebody to kidnap their fat, gross baby. There's this huge man-slash-baby hunt. It's in all the newspapers. On the wireless. America's going apeshit. Then we double-cross the kidnapper who obviously we paid with easily traceable gold certificates. We plant a shit load of dicey evidence in his garage, tip off the cops, heโs basically convicted of being German, then BZZZZAP! Dirt nap for the Kraut! Compliments of Old Sparky.
- Krieger: "You're forgetting what the largest sex organ on the human body is."
- Cyril: "The... penis?"
- Pam: "Well, I was gonna say vagina."
- Cheryl: "I was gonna say Pam's vagina."
- Ray: "Me too."
- Krieger: "The brain."
- All: "Eeeeewwww!!!"
- Krieger: "Not like that! What is wrong with you people?!"
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- Malory: "For all I know we're wanted for treason again!"
- Pam: "Well, no news is good news."
- Malory: "You do realise this is an intelligence agency?"
- Cyril: "...ostensibly"
- Malory: "What?!"
- Cyril: "Nothing!"
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- Cheryl: "Well, in the immortal words of Wendell T. Stamps: that's going in the slideshow."
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- Pam: "I mean - how do you not murder her every day?"
- Krieger: "I do."
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- Katya: "They're jingling baby."
Gallery of Images[]
[]
References[]
- โ Ranz des Vaches - William Tell Overture by Rossini youtube.com
- โ LL Cool J 'Jingling Baby' youtube.com