There has been a surplus of hilarious animated comedies throughout the years, but one of the few that truly pushes the limits as to what an animated show can achieve is Archer, the series with the seemingly simple premise about secret agents set in the 1980s.
While the show inevitably revolves around the titular character, Sterling Archer, the rest of the agency has no shortage of memorable and hysterical characters that continue to elevate the show more than a decade after it first premiered – and whichever one of those characters is your favorite might say more about you than you’d think.
10 Barry
While the seasons have had several detours and tangents that strayed from the original plot-line, the one constant was Barry, Archer’s arch-nemesis. Their history is long and detailed, mostly centered around Archer dropping Barry from a roof prompting scientists to turn Barry’s mangled body into a cyborg.
If Barry is your favorite character, you might just be a person who never gives up, constantly trying to achieve your goals no matter what the consequences may be, even if those goals always seem to elude you.
9 Woodhouse
R.I.P. Woodhouse. The best butler that ever animated, Woodhouse was essentially a glorified babysitter to the childish Sterling and was continually ridiculed by Archer for things that no sane person would have complained about. Not only that, but he had quite a historic past as he served in World War 2 and helped saved Archer’s mother while she was giving birth to Sterling.
If Woodhouse is your favorite character, you assuredly admire loyalty and honor above all else, constantly devoted to any task or order that has crossed your path.
8 Ray Gillette
While originally just an analyst for the agency, Ray made his debut as a secret agent in his own right and was pretty good at it… until Archer stepped in and continually handicapped Ray (literally). However, despite spending parts of the series in a wheelchair, Ray never tried to let it bring him down and he still did his best to contribute to the team.
If Ray is your favorite character, you might be a person who is capable of achieving the same results as the other people around you, but unfortunately, you might also have people in your life who are just as capable of hamstringing your plans.
7 Dr. Krieger
The largest wildcard of the entire team is, bar-none, Krieger. The crazy scientist (who isn’t actually a doctor) spends most of his time in the agency’s lab where he concocts some of the most twisted (albeit, useful) experiments that anybody could imagine. That said, most of the inventions often end up saving the day in some shape or form, so his experiments aren’t entirely unjustified.
If Krieger is your favorite character, perhaps you’re a person who just appreciates simulated-spontaneity – something that appears random and crazy at first, but in actuality has a true method-to-the-madness.
6 Lana Kane
Despite being the longtime love-interest to Sterling, Lana’s character is far more than that. Never considered a damsel-in-distress, Lana often competes with Archer for the spot of Best Agent (at least in earlier seasons they did), and their competitive nature carried on right into the coma-seasons.
If Lana is your favorite character, perhaps you’re a person who is truly competitive at heart and are more than capable of turning anything into a contest. However, those actions might just be your own unique way of expressing to somebody how much you care about them.
5 Pam Poovey
Stands to reason that every secret agency would need muscle – just didn’t expect it to be the agency’s H.R. rep. While Pam herself might not be an official agent, that sure doesn’t stop her from going on missions and getting entangled in the danger along with everyone else, quite often helping in some sort of fit-of-rage.
If Pam is your favorite character, you might be a person who always wants to tag along with whatever anybody else is doing, never minding where you might go as long as you’re with the people that you care about.
4 Cyril Figgis
Cyril was originally the accountant for the agency but actually managed to work his way up to becoming an agent. Despite this, nobody ever gave Cyril any credit and he has spent the entirety of the series being the rest of the character’s whipping-boy, constantly receiving undeserved flack.
If Cyril is your favorite character, perhaps you’re just a truly empathetic person who recognizes all of Cyril’s strengths and realizes that all of the dirt that gets thrown at him by his colleagues is completely unwarranted.
3 Cheryl Tunt
If Krieger wasn’t around then Cheryl would easily take the crown as the craziest character in the entire show. As the heiress to a massive fortune, Cheryl has had the luxury of never needing to worry about anything (other than being kidnapped and held hostage for said fortune) resulting in a manic, crazy, out-of-touch assistant who constantly causes problems for everyone.
If Cheryl is your favorite character, you might also be a person who struggles to keep their emotions in check at times and can seemingly fly off the handle over nothing, but the people in your life that truly care about you don’t mind dealing with the occasional hecticness.
2 Malory Archer
As the owner and CEO of the secret agency, Malory is in charge of everything and everyone – except for her own son, whom she can control about as well as anybody else can. Despite this, Malory invokes inspiration and fear in her employees all at once, truly embracing her role as a leader (regardless of the fact that she’s always got a drink in her hand).
If Malory is your favorite character, perhaps you appreciate strong charismatic people who are capable of commanding entire rooms with the flick of a finger. Or perhaps you can relate to having a child (or somebody close to you) who will never grow up, constantly making things in life more difficult than they have to be.
1 Sterling Archer
The man behind the title is the (self-proclaimed) greatest secret-agent in the entire world – Sterling Archer. Despite his role as a secret-agent, Archer treats his job like a video-game and is seemingly only a secret-agent in order to play with the expensive toys and deadly weapons. Along with these childish tendencies, he constantly ridicules everyone at the office for being terrible at their jobs… when he’s the one who often derails them.
If Sterling is your favorite character, perhaps it’s because you understand the comedic irony that, due to the utter ridiculousness of his antics and actions, Sterling isn’t meant to be likable at all, which somehow makes people love him even more.
