Fishes isn't archaic, Philip, a writer just needs to know when to use which.
ODWE says: fish pl. same, unless describing differing types or species, in which case use –es.
Fowler, as revised by Gower (under collectives) says; 3. Nouns that make plural forms in the normal way, but whose singular form may also be used as a plural, sometimes with little if any difference of meaning, e.g. cannon, duck, fish, but more often with some special implication. For instance hair, straw, and timber are used for the mass, hairs, straws, and timbers for the particular; chicken, lamb, cabbage, and potato are on the dinner table, chickens, lambs, cabbages, and potatoes are in their natural state; shot and game are for the pellets and their objectives, shots and games for those words in their other senses; elephant and lion are in the ush, elephants and lions in the zoo; fruit is the current word and fruits the archaic.
Encarta dictionary has fish, fishes as current plurals.
ODE says under Usage. The normal plural of fish is fish (a shoal of fish; he caught two huge fish). The older form fishes is still used, when referring to different kids of fish (freshwater fishes of the British Isles).
The AmHerDict says fish pl fish or fishes.
About fry.
AmHer Dict:
fry pl n. 1a. small fish, esp. young, recently hatched fish. B. the young of certain other animals. 2. Individuals, especially young or insignificant persons: "These pampered public school boys…had managed to evade the long prison sentences that lesser fry were serving" Neil Annan.
ODE
fry – pl n. young fish, esp. when newly hatched. The young of other animals produced in large numbers, such as frogs.
It is fries only when it is french fries (or French fries, for those who don't or won't lowercase).
The Dictionary Lady, at your service.
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