Gramercy, Halberd!

Gramercy, Halberd!
Series Information
Series	Archer
Season No.	8
Episode Information
Episode No.	7
Original Air Date	May 17, 2017
Written by	Adam Reed
Production Code	XAR08007
U.S. Viewership (Millions)	0.309
Episode Navigation
← Previous	Waxing Gibbous
Next →	Auflösung

"Gramercy, Halberd!" is the seventh episode of Season 8, and the ninety-second episode overall.

Plot

Synopsis

Archer and Trexler try to escape a rampaging Dutch by telling the world's worst knock-knock joke.

Summary

The story continues from the last episode where Archer wonders how Dutch is still alive until Dutch remembers Archer's voice where he ran over him and got turned into a cyborg. Enraged, Dylan punches Archer in the face sending him flying into the mangled corpses beside Trexler. Everyone else tries to shoot Dutch with their guns, but shows he's bullet proof. And the bullets deflect right at Cecil three times. Archer regaining consciousness manages to sneak Trexler away from Dutch. Which enrages Dutch. And also meats slaps him for all the things Trexler did. Trexler tells Archer the reason why Dutch is a cyborg is because he knows Kreiger who was a former Nazi scientist. Figgis, Poovey, Lana, Trenette and Cecil escape from Dutch and run out of Trexler's mansion.

Meanwhile, Mother wonders what's going on since she heard nothing from Archer. And Charlotte once again has her head in the clouds. Mother tells Mr. Zerk if anything goes wrong, then tie up the loose ends. Meaning to kill Charlotte, whom he's fallen in love with.

Back at the mansion, Trenette takes Cecil to the hospital. Who gets pretty annoyed with his sexual antics. And Lana reveals herself as a treasury agent to Poovey and Figgis and tries to arrest them. But Figgis points his gun at Lana as she does the same to him. Poovey points her gun at Figgis as well. Which much to Figgis' surprise, he finds out she kept the chinese women at her place. Lana tells Poovey that if she confesses, the judge would go easy on her and may get a less prison sentence. Which she doesn't by. Meanwhile, Archer and Trexler are at the top of the mansion and climbing down a drain pipe. Which Trexler doesn't know why. Until Dutch finds the two and smashes the drain pipe with a halberd, and Archer and Trexler fall to the ground. They run into Archer's car and Dutch smashes through a window. Everyone gets in Archer's car and he reverses straight into Dutch, and they escape. But Dutch still holding on with the halberd hooks on to Archer's car. Until Archer drives into some trash cans knocking him right off.

Lana again tries to arrest Figgis, Poovey, Trexler and Archer, but they just laugh at her and pull their guns out at her until she points a gun to Archer's head. That isn't until they see Dutch again riding a motorcycle still with the halberd. A chase ensues! Everyone shoots at Dutch, but to no avail. Dutch scrapes and pierces Archer's car with the halberd. Until Archer, with the halberd swerves right at Dutch sending him flying off the motorcycle across the road. Archer runs over Dutch three times while telling bad jokes. Archer gets frustrated because all he wanted to do was to find who killed Woodhouse, but he's been saving chinese women, cutting off a dead women's finger, and now getting chased by robots. Trexler suddenly remembers Woodhouse and drops a bomb by telling Archer that Mother killed Woodhouse. Archer can't believe what he hears.

Cast

• Starring:
  • H. Jon Benjamin as Sterling Archer / Archer P.I. (Dream Persona )
  • Judy Greer as Cheryl Tunt / Charlotte Vandertunt (Dream Persona )
  • Amber Nash as Pam Poovey / Detective Sergeant Poovey (Dream Persona )
  • Chris Parnell as Cyril Figgis / Detective Lieutenant Figgis (Dream Persona )
  • Aisha Tyler as Lana Kane / Lana Kane (Dreamland) (Dream Persona )
  • Lucky Yates as Dr. Krieger / Krieger (Dream Persona )
  • Jessica Walter as Malory Archer / Mother (Dream Persona )

• Guest Starring:
  • Eugene Mirman as Cecil Tunt / Cecil Vandertunt (Dream Persona)
  • Jeffrey Tambor as Len Trexler (Dreamland) (Dream Persona)
• Co-Starring:
  • Dave Willis as Barry Dylan / 'Dutch' Dylan (Dream Persona)
  • Maggie Wheeler as Trinette McGoon (Dreamland) (Dream Persona)

Cultural References

• Definition of Insanity - when Dutch asks the gang whether they "know the definition of insanity?  The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result" he is referring to a well-known aphorism which has been attributed to Albert Einstein, Ben Franklin, Confucius, and an old Chinese proverb. Its first known appearance in print, however, was in the approved 'basic text' for Narcotics Anonymous, as of 1981.  No single reference can be assigned to such a ubiquitous (and under-attributed) idea.

• Halberd:  a two-handed pole weapon that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries. The word 'halberd' may come from the German words 'Halm' (staff), and 'Barte' (axe).
• Grease (1978):  When Dutch attacks Archer's car with a halberd as the gang try to escape, the close up shot of the halberd tearing into the metal on the side of the car is reminiscent of this scene in the live-action movie. The leader of a rival crew (who like Dutch is a leather jacket-wearing antagonist) uses a tool built into his car to tear into the metal on the side of the car Danny is driving, 'Greased Lightning', in their race on Thunder Road.

• The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951): After smashing Dutch into the wall with his car, Archer refers to him as Gort, the name of the robot in the movie.
• Robert Ripley(1890-1949): Archer references this cartoonist when joking about Dutch's legs.
• Elliot Ness (1903-1957): Poovey calls Lana "Elliot Mess" after the prohibition agent Elliot Ness, famous for taking down Al Capone.
• Groucho Marx (1890-1977): Trinette mimes a cigar in her hand while doing puns in the accent of Groucho Marx. This gag is also a callback to Krieger's impression of Groucho in Achub Y Morfilod.
• After running over Barry, Archer says "I'm manumitting sex slaves and grossly abusing corpses." Manumit specifically means the act of an enslaver freeing their slave. The correct term would be "emancipate" which more broadly means freeing from subjugation.

Running Gags

• Jumping Right In: Dutch starts the episode with:

"So, uhhh, what are we -"

[This is a callback to Archer's opening line in ​Berenice (s8e2)​.  For analysis, see Jumping Into Dreamland].

• "I promised I wouldn't cry… promise broken" from Crossing Over (s3e10).

• Are you hourly? - directed towards Trinette who as a prostitute, would be paid hourly.
• I mean… - it goes without saying, right?
• Bullet magnet - Cecil attracts his fair share of bullets.
• Parking the brake - forgetting to disengage the parking brake when someone else is trying to push a vehicle.
• Suppressing Fire - twice in this episode, Cyril yells his catchphrase while shooting with his eyes closed.
• Just slap 'em - Archer slaps Trexler after Trexler won't stop stuttering about Dutch.
• Fat Mike - Trexler has a guy named Fat Mike just like Ron Cadillac did from Midnight Ron (s4e4).
• Mike n Vics - Archer calls his codine-dexedrine mix "the adventures of dex and cody" which is reminiscent of his "mike n vics" from The Holdout (s6e1).
• Tinnitus - when everyone is shooting Dutch from the car, Archer yells about how bad that is.
• Archers Signature Move - during the car chase with Dutch, Archer wants Lana to take the wheel so he can jump onto Dutch's motorcycle.

Continuity

• Reality (Non-Dream):
  • None
• Dream/Reality Crossover:
  • (Dream) 'Halberd' refers to the medieval long-handled ax used by Dutch / (Reality) Halberds are mentioned in The Papal Chase (s4e11)
  • (Dream) Cecil is shot multiple times by ricochet / (Reality) Cecil was shot by a ricochet in Sea Tunt: Part I (s4e12) (and Brett was a notorious bullet magnet).
  • (Dream) Poovey attempts to push the car while its parking brake is engaged / (Reality) Pam attempted to pull Krieger's van while its parking brake was engaged in The Kanes (s6e8)
• Dream (Non-Reality):
  • This episode begins immediately where the previous episode, Waxing Gibbous (s8e6), left off.

Trivia

• Title Explained: "Gramercy, Halberd!", is a quote from Act 3 Scene 1 of a play written by Sir Walter Scott in 1830 called The Ayrshire Tragedy . The word "Gramercy" means "many thanks" or "an expression of surprise, wonder, etc" . A "Halberd" is a weapon of the 1400s and 1500s having an ax-like blade and a steel spike mounted on the end of a long shaft. . In the episode Dutch attacks Archer and everyone else with a halberd.
• The Wild One (1953) The way Dutch dresses and rides a motorbike is reminiscent of the movie's protagonist Johnny Strabler played by Marlon Brando.
• Chris Payne's composition Declamation A is used during the chase scene.

Goofs

• Pam's black eye disappears during several scenes.
• When Archer says: "Jesus, can somebody please shoot him?!", Figgis' hat is missing.

Locations

• Dreamland (Nightclub)
  • Mother's Office
• Len Trexler's mansion

Gallery of Images

There are 4 screenshots and images from "Gramercy, Halberd!" on this Wiki, visit the category page for a complete gallery.

External links

• "Archer Dreamland: Gramarcy, Halberd!" on IMDB