Top Gun is The Ultimate PUA Guide

The evocative imagery is everywhere. The phallic landing hook of the F-14 Tomcat catching the cable on the landing strip of the USS Carrier. I think it’s obvious to all of us what the “landing strip” represents as the Tomcat’s dangling towhook catches the cable. We have carnal knowledge here.

“Your ego is writing checks your ass can’t cash!”

This movie reads like The Art of War for bar hookups and pickup techniques. All the PUA guys on Twitter should covet the Top Gun DVD as their own personal bible.

“You never leave your wingman!” Any self-respecting man knows this is gospel.

Remember the opening scene when Maverick gets missile lock and Mig 2 bugs off? Maverick’s wingman was left behind getting pestered by the other Mig. The Migs here are those assholes from out of town that fuck with the girl you want. You can let them get the best of you like Cougar who panics and freezes. Or you can be like Maverick and Goose who fuck with the guy by “communicating” (you know, the finger!) in a 4G negative dive.

Cougar, inverted, Goose. The sexual imagery is everywhere. No one talks about this.

One Navy pilot whispers to the other as they’re watching real world action on the screen,
“This gives me a hard on.” To which his wingman replies, “Don’t tease me.”

We all know the rush of excitement when you’re up in the air flying by the seat of your pants. Chasing down targets and getting them locked on. This is made obvious as Maverick and Goose head to the bar to pick up chicks immediately after heading to Top Gun.

And who can forget Maverick’s infamous transgender move. The classic where you pose as a transwoman and follow her into the lady’s room to hop on the counter.

“There are no points for second place.”

And remember the pilot Maverick flew with in the opening scene, Cougar. He can’t handle the stress of his near death experience and he freezes up. What happened after Cougar lost his nerve? He went home, alone after he lost his edge. Maverick is number one and he went to the ball to dance. And see what targets he could catch flying with his joystick between his legs.

“This is what I call a target rich environment.” – Maverick

“You live your life between your legs man.” – Goose

This is a tale of redemption. Of love. The hero’s journey. Fast forward to Maverick meeting the civilian contractor who upon hearing his heroic tale of flipping off foreign intruders, “So you’re the one.”
Love at first sight.

If you haven’t seen this movie, buy it here. Spoilers ahead for the 40-year-old flick.

And then there is the much-touted volleyball scene to the chorus of “Playing with the Boys.” Let’s admit it. Everyone knows what this scene is all about. It couldn’t be any more obvious. It’s about going out with the boys and peacocking. What happens when Maverick leaves his wingman in the middle of the volleyball match?

Where does he go? To go talk to Kelley McGuiness and open up. There’s a reason why Berlin starts up at this scene. Because Maverick is planting seeds. He is emotionally available by explaining his deepest pain. The pain of not knowing what happened to his father, who disappeared while flying an F-4. And when he’s got her hooked into him, what does he do? He gets up and leaves.

This is where most men fuck up when pursuing women. Rollo tells you to be the prize but you all keep chasing the woman because you still see her as the prize. Maverick made this mistake early on in the bar when he came on too cocky and aggressive, but here he leaves her wanting more. She wonders why he left. This drives women mad, because they love the attention.

Notice the scene in the elevator where they awkwardly talk about Mig sightings and inviting students to instructor’s houses. What is amazing is Maverick literally says one word in this scene. What matters is his body language. He turns to face her which shows that he is giving her his attention. Here we see prolonged eye contact, smiles and he closes the distance with her. She reciprocates by facing him and subtly moving towards him.

If you struggle with women, with body language and with signals, then you need to watch this scene [48-minute mark] over and over again. There is almost no dialogue and yet so much is said!

It is only as the scene ends that he says anything at all, “I’m glad we got that straight.”

What you say isn’t half as important as how you say it. Your body language speaks volume. And that is what the director is very directly conveying to the viewer. You’re never going to watch this movie the same way again are you?

Oh yeah, then Maverick gets butthurt and runs off on his motorcycle. And she begins to chase him. Maverick unintentionally flips the script here by acting indifferent. He does so out of ego, but all the same, he hooks her in for good.

As she catches up to him she opens up that she’s fallen for him and well, if you don’t know the signal, that’s about as obvious as it gets. The prolonged eye contact: over 3 seconds. The body language. Their cat and mouse games they play.

Well… queue up Berlin and some soft, sensual, shadowy target engagement.
 

Remember the scene when Maverick is in a dogfight shortly after Goose died? He had that beautiful backend of that Mig lined up right in his sights. He was ready to close the deal, but his nerves got the best of him. He couldn’t pull the trigger.

He quits and goes to drown his sorrows at the bar. We all end up there at some point in our lives. It’s ok, but you must accept that you have a choice here. You can be temporarily fucked up or you can do this forever. The greatest of men learn how to handle adversity. Some days it could be feeling unmotivated. Some days it could be losing your best friend.

“To be the best of the best, means you make mistakes. And then you go on. It’s just like the rest of us.”
Life can be rough, but you need to remember to pick yourself up and weather the storm. No matter who you are. At some point, things will go wrong in your life.

Maverick’s journey has reached the low point of the hero’s journey. Here he has literally faced death and now must figuratively find his rebirth. He feels responsible for the death of his wingman.

With Maverick’s newfound sense of respect for life he returns to the Indian Ocean, where our story began, as a new man, humbled and matured. Life gives you a choice. You can wallow in self-pity or you can rise to meet the challenge of a new day.

Here Maverick is the supportive team player that he needs to be. He’s learned the hard lessons of becoming a Naval pilot and has matured.

“I’m not leaving my wingman!”

He puts himself in danger for the betterment of the team and what happens? Everybody goes home happy instead of crashing and burning alone. Cut to Maverick drinking alone in the bar… The jukebox cuts on to You’ve Lost that Lovin Feelin’! Whoa that loving feeling! And Maverick gets the girl.

Remember gentlemen, sometimes you crash and burn… other times you rise up from the ashes of your destruction reborn, a new man. It can be tough and painful to go through heartbreak and loss. To lose someone who has always been there and supported you. But no matter how great your partner was, no matter how special the connection there is always another girl at the bar waiting…