archer is a low risk medium reward class, nuf said
Archery has also an easy EARLY learning curve, then it steadily becomes harder to progress.
2h/swing polearms just are hard when you learn blocking (pretty much everyone can block decently now), and when it's done you have the best melee weapons, and a little more awareness/feinting/min-maxxing makes you much more effective.
1h maybe are the easiest to start with. You don't have to block. So the only possible improvements are awareness, reach-learning, feinting... But due to the weaknesses of 1h weapons, damage and reach first, you have to become much better to gain just a little more efficiency.
No wonder many people prefer 2h, as nearly everyone can block well enough to be in the easy zone of the 2h learning curve.
As time goes, the advantage of shields
in melee becomes less and less important, and the lack of punch and reach of 1h more and more penalizing.