A few months after waking from his coma, a still-hobbled Archer returns to the new and improved spy agency, and very quickly gets to work on Archering it up.
This episode provides examples of:
- Absence Makes the Heart Go Yonder: Lana has married another man since the time skip. That it only took her eight months to get over Archer is a sore spot for him.
- Achievements in Ignorance: Thanks to Archer deducing that they were given a fake picture and getting everyone distracted and bickering, the team finally captures "Peregrine" way behind schedule, ending up with the real Peregrine's plan getting foiled anyway.
- Borrowed Catchphrase: Archer yells out "Suppressing Fire" the way Cyril usually does.
- Classy Cane: Archer gets this, which he calls the "Tactil-Cane", courtesy of Krieger. It's designed to work with his nerve-damaged condition and synchronizes with his brainwaves. It also contains knockout gas, which he accidentally used on himself during his Badass Boast.
- Call-Back: As shown in previous episodes, Archer is the team's greatest obstacle to operating competently and efficiently. He's heartbroken to learn that they all think this after discussing it with each other.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: Archer is genuinely shocked to discover that the gang was more successful, and happier, when he was in a coma than they were before or after. It really brings him down to overhear this.
- Foreshadowing: Ray blames Archer for his argument with Cyril even though Cyril was hoarding most of the space in the break room fridge, and all Archer did was point it out; it's the first hint that the agency is just using Archer as The Scapegoat so they don't have to take responsibility for their own bad habits.
- George Jetson Job Security: None of Archer's new valets last long, and it's always over something trivial like forgetting an exact ingredient of "Eggs Woodhouse".
- The Heart: Played with; Archer's presence makes the group more personable, but this is unprofessional towards operating competently as a spy organization. Inverted when, after a brief discussion on the matter, everyone realizes that Archer doesn't even have to try to drive them to bicker over petty slights on mission.
- He's Back!: Archer in the end.
- Lame Comeback: After being introduced to Lana's good-natured billionaire husband, the best that Archer can come up with is that the guy is bald.
- Memento MacGuffin: Archer holds onto some blue gravel that he remembers force-feeding the late Woodhouse, and tends to talk to a handful of it during the episode's mission. It actually becomes useful in the end.
- New and Improved: Everyone seems to be performing better while Archer was in a coma for three years. Their operations run smoothly, they have turned a profit, Cyril has taken charge and has become buffer, and Cheryl is a little less crazy (referring to herself as "New-Better-Cheryl"). Archer tries to adjust to the changes, though he sticks to his old ways in the end.
- Keep in mind that they had improved before in Season 3, while Archer was missing for three months.
- No Name Given: The agency does not have a name since ISIS was dissolved back in Season 6.
- Noodle Incident: The gang was previously blacklisted from espionage work by the CIA at the end of Season 6, leading them to become private investigators in Season 7. How they returned to running a “quasi-independent freelance international spy organization” is currently unknown, but it was sometime during Archer's three-year coma.
- Riddle for the Ages: It is unknown how ISIS became spies again after the Season 6 finale where they were blackballed from espionage.
- Running Gag: "We don't do that anymore."note
- Snap Back: The agency, formerly known as ISIS, returns to form since they were blacklisted by the CIA in Season 6. Archer returns to work as team support, after waking from his comatose state.
- Speak Ill of the Dead: Remembering that Woodhouse died while he was comatose, he calls his late valet "selfish" for leaving him behind.
- Time Skip: Following the Cold Opening, three months have passed since Archer woke up and returns to spy work for the first time.
- Took a Level in Badass: Cyril has become far more assertive and buff since Archer's coma, and Archer seems legitimately shaken at the prospect of him being the new alpha.
- Wham Line: Regarding Archer:
- During the Cold Opening:Lana: Hoooly shit! He woke up.
- At the end of the episode:Malory: Welcome back. Took you long enough.
- During the Cold Opening:
