Lana Anthony Kane

Background

As a child, Lana was highly pressured by her parents, who were both college professors, to succeed. She was so nervous about going to science fairs that it led to her throwing up in the car. Lana got her job as an ISIS agent during a protest at a local furrier. She was about to throw red paint on Malory Archer's new fur when Malory pointed her gun at Lana's forehead. The rest of the protesters fled, including Joshua Gray, but Lana was not intimidated. Malory, impressed by her nerve, offered Lana a job. Three weeks later, she was on her first mission in Tunisia "killing a different man," referencing that she restructured her priorities from being a college protester (sticking it to "the man") to who she is now.^[2][3][4]

Personality

Lana is strong-willed and tough, rarely if ever allowing herself to be pushed around or demeaned. She is, however, very short-tempered and does not hesitate to use violence to resolve conflictive situations, whether it's called for or not.^[5]

Lana is a competent and deadly agent but is constantly frustrated that she is treated as the number two ISIS field agent because Archer's mother runs the agency. Like Archer, Lana is an expert in Krav Maga, in which all ISIS agents undergo training, and is usually seen carrying two Tec-9 submachine guns in shoulder holsters (she is so proficient with these that she can write letters in cursive with one magazine). She drives a purple car that resembles a Living Daylights-era Aston Martin V8 Vantage. Lana also has incredibly large and strong hands, which have been (usually mockingly) likened by Archer and other characters to cricket bats, steam shovels, and the "Truckasaurus" to her ever-mounting frustration.

Her liberal leanings do occasionally show, and she tends to be the most politically correct character on the show, as well as the straight man to the antics of the rest of the staff. However, she is shown to be as capable of questionable behavior as the rest, once charging every man in the ISIS office $600 to say they slept with her as a way to get revenge on her cheating ex-boyfriend Cyril, and on another occasion holding up a firefight on a space station until the other agents conceded her breasts are still perfect. Furthermore, in a moment of surprising insight, Cheryl accused Lana of being a hypocrite as her history as a social activist is not enough to drive her away from ISIS, which is deep down her only true love. She is also prone to extreme acts of unnecessary violence, such as giving Cyril, whom she was dating at the time, a black eye for merely implying that she might have been jealous of a rival agent.

Characteristics

Lana is one of the most recognizable characters from Archer because of her stunning good looks and body.^[6] Lana has large hands for a woman. Ridiculing her for this characteristic is one of many long-running jokes on the show, with such comments as "man hands" or "shovels".

In flashbacks, she is shown sporting an afro, a hairstyle that, according to Archer, made her look "like Angela Davis had a love child with Sweet Lou Dunbar." She eventually straightened her hair and grew it long enough to wear it in a tied back flip hairstyle. In season seven, she began wearing a hair weave, which she does not like the others noticing.

Relationship with Archer

Despite having a great disdain for Archer, Lana shares the closest connection with him of all the characters. They're frequently partnered together on missions, and despite all he has put her through, she still considers him a friend (Heart of Archness: Part III) and cares about him deeply.

During a firefight, both Archer and Lana reveal they are each other's beneficiaries should they die. Lana stated she was going to change that, but it's unknown if she did. Lana showed great concern for Archer when he was diagnosed with breast cancer (Stage Two) and spent the night with him out of pity. After Archer found out his cancer medication was fake, Lana begrudgingly accompanied him in his "rampage", serving as his cameraman and chauffeuse.^[7]

Lana began contemplating having a baby in Season 4. After Archer saves her from falling to her death when she slips off a building, she decides to ask him to be the sperm donor, but she changes her mind once he begins acting like his typical self (The Honeymooners). During a mission to stop a radical environmentalist marine biologist from blowing up Sealab, Lana discloses that she is pregnant, angering Cyril because he isn't the father and prompting Archer to sacrifice his scuba gear and drown so that they could escape.^[8]