Is this the end of Archer as we know it?
The season finale began where the previous episode left off, with each member of the Figgis Agency placed under police investigation. The two agents in charge of the proceedings, Harris and Dietrich, reminded everyone that they were not permitted to leave the city and not to tamper with police testings for gun residue by washing their hands. In a cheap ploy, Shapiro convinced the cops to let Veronica Dean go into the police station the next day, much to the Figgis Agency’s irritation.
During the conversation, Veronica Dean and a few badly timed jokes convinced the cops that Lana had committed the crime and she was sent to the station for testing ahead of the others.
Shortly after, Archer was disturbed to discover Veronica Dean washing her hands after explicitly being told that it may skew evidence. He questioned her, with Veronica Dean quickly brushing him aside. Instead, she suggested a romantic getaway to Mexico, which struck Archer as suspicious due to the timing.
Taking his suspicions to Mallory, she mistook the explanation for a confession. After stressing to Mallory that he had not killed Ellis Krane, Archer claimed that he believed Veronica Dean was the murderer and that she intended on framing Lana. Surprisingly, Mallory did not appear phased by the evidence, suggesting he take Veronica Dean up on her Mexico trip instead of worrying about it. Throughout the conversation, however, Krieger repeatedly interrupted the two, appearing oddly different each time.
Suddenly perturbed by Krieger’s stranger-than-usual behavior, Mallory and Archer discovered that it was not one Krieger they were addressing, but three.
As an explanation, Krieger introduced Milkly and Coply, two cyborg clones of himself, dressed as a milkman and a cop, respectively. Remembering that Krieger had been working on a Cyborg for each member of the Agency, Mallory suggested that Archer switch himself out for his doppleganger. Archer immediately found the paradox, however, causing Milkly to combust when he asked “What is love?”
Meanwhile, in the back of the cop car, Lana insisted that the police would not find incriminating evidence against her. The driver’s vague answer disturbed Lana, leading her to believe that she was the intended scapegoat in the investigation.
Luckily for Lana, the death of Milkly had been mistakenly reported as another murder, buying some time. The car returned to the scene and, after a brief moment revealing that everyone had washed their hands and that Cheryl had even taken a shower, took the entire Figgis Agency away to the station. However, Archer never made it to the station, jumping off the back of the vehicle before anyone could notice.
Shortly after, Archer returned to the Figgis Agency and traveled to Krieger’s lab. There, he released cyborg Archer and, after hilarity ensued, the two began to hatch a plan to oust Veronica Dean. Somehow always knowing what her son was up to, Mallory assured Lana that Archer was working to clear her name.
That night, the two Archers arrived at Veronica Dean’s house under the guise of a romantic evening. Context led the audience to believe that human Archer hung back while cyborg Archer played out the scene. While sharing drinks, Archer pushed Veronica Dean into confessing and, in a panic, she shot him dead. While cyborg Archer floated lifeless in her pool, human Archer revealed himself. Veronica Dean attempted to shoot Archer again, but after realizing she was out of rounds, ran from the crime scene.
Meanwhile, at the police station, the Figgis Agency was informed that they were free to go and that Veronica Dean had killed another man. Fearing for Archer’s life, everybody arrived on the scene to see Harris and Dietrich examining a body lying in the pool. A closer look revealed the man was Archer.
In classic Archer fashion, however, human Archer stepped out only after he allowed everybody to mourn first.
He explained how he used cyborg Archer to trick Veronica Dean into confessing, only revealing his identity after she was out of a fatal amount of rounds. In a heartwarming moment, Archer turned to Lana and dropped to one knee. But before he could propose, Archer’s face twisted, eventually combusting in the same way Milkly’s had earlier.
Realizing the implications of what had just happened and that they had been faced with cyborg Archer, everybody turned to the pool. Mallory cried out as the rest stared at Archer, lifeless in Veronica Dean’s swimming pool.