Top Gun may be a cult classic, but some of its elements are just difficult to get through on rewatch. Directed by Tony Scott, the film catapulted Tom Cruise to a new level of success as he played daredevil pilot Pete “Maverick” Mitchell. While the film was supposedly an ensemble, Maverick was clearly its protagonist, with his experience at TOPGUN academy driving the film’s narrative. Both a box office hit and critical success for Paramount, the 1986 film has also been selected by the United States Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry, further proving its significance.
Almost 40 years after it was released, Cruise revisited the franchise that made him into a household name with the sequel, Top Gun: Maverick. For years, there was a clamor to do a sequel for Top Gun, but the actor understood the risks, opting to wait for the perfect time to actually do the follow-up. The Joseph Kosinski-directed blockbuster was worth all the wait, ending up both a massive critical and commercial success for Paramount. Top Gun: Maverick also became Cruise’s highest-grossing film. While it sets up the future of the burgeoning franchise, it also resulted in renewed interest in the original Top Gun film.
7 Goose’s Death Was Iceman’s Fault, Not Maverick
As the top two trainees from their TOPGUN batch, Maverick and Tom “Iceman” Kazansky with their respective RIOs, went into an intense tandem training session in Top Gun. While they were essentially on the same side against their superiors, they were still separately graded, motivating them to compete with each other instead of working together. Iceman got in front of Maverick and Goose to shoot down LCDR Jester, but couldn’t get a clean shot.
After repeatedly getting asked to move, Iceman eventually got out of the way. By this time, however, Maverick was too close to his tail, causing him to fly directly through the jet wash resulting in his aircraft suffering a flameout of both engines, ending in a fatal flat spin that led to Goose’s death. Had Iceman given Maverick the opening he needed when he was first asked, the accident wouldn’t have happened, and Goose wouldn’t have died.
6 Maverick Threw The Wrong Dog Tags After Goose’s Death
Understandably, Maverick had a hard time moving on from Goose’s death. After his extended period of grief, however, he decides that the best way to honor him is to continue flying. Top Gun visually represented this by having him throw Goose’s dog tags into the ocean at the end of the film. This suggested that Maverick was ready to let go of the guilt he felt for Goose’s tragic accident. On rewatch, however, Maverick got rid of the wrong dog tags, as they were labeled to be Viper’s and not his RIO’s.
5 Maverick and Charlie’s Romance Was Problematic
Cruise’s Maverick oozed with charisma in Top Gun, and the fact that he was actually great at what he did makes him much cooler. Given this, it shouldn’t be surprising that he was able to win Charlie. Looking back at it, however, the way he pursued her is quite unsettling. For starters, he and his cohorts essentially put her on the spot when they serenaded her out of the blue. The shtick was meant to be romantic but by today’s standards, it’s offensive and rude. Beyond that, the way he openly flirted and cornered her despite knowing that she was his TOPGUN instructor is unethical.
4 Maverick Handled Goose’s Death Very Badly
Granted that he was very close to Goose, but Maverick still handled the death of his RIO very badly. He was so desolate that he couldn’t function properly. What makes this worse is the fact that he refused people’s help, which made things much trickier. Maverick was so distraught that that Goose’s wife, Carole had to console him herself because he simply couldn’t process his emotions properly, which was so horrible for her. Maverick’s loss was undoubtedly immense. Aside from the death of a friend, he was also burdened by the guilt of not being able to save him.
That being said, Maverick was already a full-grown adult and the way he handled the tragedy was extremely immature. He should have at least communicated. Instead, he stonewalled everyone, made them worried, and made his situation worse. What makes this worse is the fact that he continues to have poor communication skills decades after as seen in Top Gun: Maverick.
3 Top Gun’s Ending Was Eventually Undone
At the end of the original Top Gun, Maverick seemed to have already gotten past the death of Goose. He successfully spearheaded a dangerous mission and even struck an unusual friendship with Iceman. Between his renewed self-confidence and innate flying capability, Maverick was poised to do big things in the Navy. Almost four decades later, however, it was disappointing to learn that he had become stagnant in his craft. In Top Gun: Maverick, he continued to be haunted by the same things, effectively undoing the feel-good ending of the original film.
2 Maverick’s Devil-May-Care Attitude Wasn’t Attractive
One of the hallmarks of Maverick’s character is his devil-may-care attitude. This means that he has no issues pushing the limits. He constantly does this in the franchise and is arguably the key to successfully carrying out his mission in Top Gun: Maverick. In Top Gun, however, this was already in full display. He had little respect for his superiors and had no issues breaking the rules if it meant that he was able to show off. Admittedly, this is what made watching the original film so entertaining. That being said, being a daredevil shouldn’t be glamorized like this, especially if it puts other people in danger.
1 Iceman Was The True Top Gun Protagonist
It was easy to root for Maverick in Top Gun. He was good-looking, cool, and suave, so naturally, viewers were on his side every time he went up against Iceman. Retrospectively, both had a lot of similarities, but because Maverick was billed as the protagonist of the film, Kazansky was branded as the villain from the get-go. Considering how their lives turned out as seen in Top Gun: Maverick, however, it’s clear that Iceman should have been the main hero of Top Gun.
Granted that he had a hand in Goose’s death, there’s an argument that Maverick would have been as stubborn as he had the roles been reversed. However, at least he did something with his life. Iceman didn’t waste his potential; he climbed the Navy ranks all while remaining a loyal friend to Maverick years after the events of Top Gun. Mitchell, on the other hand, was perfectly okay to live his life in mediocrity because he didn’t want to make some changes.
