FUBAR Lives Up To Its Name — And Not In A Good Way (Review)

Let’s file this under "I watched this so you don’t have to."

It’s not that FUBAR (2023) is bad, exactly. It’s just… not good, and problematic as hell. Go watch a prior season of Archer again, or if you’ve not seen it, look up Peacemaker. Both are funnier, better, and don’t excuse torture, kidnapping, and worse with a nod and a wink.

Spoilers ahead! Don't scroll down if you don't want to see them!


FUBAR pretty clearly draws inspiration (or blatantly rips off — lookin’ at you, "Roo") from Archer and Peacemaker (the James Gunn spinoff from The Suicide Squad), but is a pale imitation of both.

Let’s get the easy things out of the way first. The acting — especially from the "leads" — is wooden and utterly without chemistry. The humor is frequently punching down and laughing at people being kind. And the characters’ relationships are not simply toxic, but unrepentant about their toxicity throughout. The two decent male characters – Carter, played by Jay Baruchel, and Donnie, played by Andy Buckley – are constantly mocked and held up as gormless fools.

The characters are supposed to be official (and high-ranking) CIA field agents… but they are incompetent. Just utterly, stupidly incompetent and deeply unprofessional throughout, having personal arguments out loud while supposedly undercover. If you’re talking about a bunch of "spies" that clearly can’t hack it in the big leagues (Archer) or the unprofessionalism of Vigilante and Peacemaker… we kind of don’t expect them to be competent at being spies.

And don’t ignore the absolutely horrific abuses of power and absolutely sickening stalking and manipulation of common citizens these (fictional) CIA officers perpetuate. Whether it’s the framing of two business owners, hacking the ex-wife’s boyfriend’s computer, kidnapping and (medically) torturing an jerk, the show basically blows off any ethical issues, because the only people who seem to matter at all are the protagonists. When Schwarzenegger’s character says

"I mean, I killed a lot of people. But they were all dicks!"

it’s sort of meant to be a joke… but the characters all act as if it is a self-evident truth that should be written in philosophy texts.

In both Archer and Peacemaker, the characters violate norms (and decency) with far greater regularity and to much greater lengths… but at least there’s a character nearby to at least say "what’s wrong with you?" How valid that justification really is a central arc of character growth in Peacemaker, where they acknowledge exactly how "fluffed" up that idea is and face it head-on while still being entertaining.

FUBAR, instead, treats those excesses as both routine and justified.

Overall, FUBAR consistently celebrates and pushes its characters toward toxic culturally stereotypical relationships while excusing gross abuses of power. And it does that while still managing to not get more than a small chuckle.

FUBAR is available on Netflix.