Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

[Fool to cry]

3 hours ago, BetterButter said:

 

Admiral Iceman! Also I found out Jennifer Connelly is playing "Penny Benjamin" who was mentioned in the first movie as the "admiral's daughter" Maverick made a pass at.

[Shannon L.]

Lots of scenes in there that look very similar to the original.  I'm still in, though-I bet the flying scenes will look incredible on the big screen. 

[Yogisbooboo64]

Can't wait to see it!

[Bastet]

There's a third?  I haven't even gotten around to watching the second.  This is not at all my kind of movie, but the original tickled me in spite of itself for reasons I can't even fully articulate.  The trailer for the second did nothing for me, but I figured I'd watch it once it came on TV out of curiosity and nostalgia.  I have never once come across it, though!  I still stumble across the original with some regularity, but never the sequel.  It must have done well for there to be a third, but nothing.

I'm not jazzed by this trailer, either, but hopefully one of those days I'll happen upon the opportunity and time to see them all.

[Simon Boccanegra]

38 minutes ago, Bastet said:

There's a third?  I haven't even gotten around to watching the second.  This is not at all my kind of movie, but the original tickled me in spite of itself for reasons I can't even fully articulate.  The trailer for the second did nothing for me, but I figured I'd watch it once it came on TV out of curiosity and nostalgia.  I have never once come across it, though!  I still stumble across the original with some regularity, but never the sequel.  It must have done well for there to be a third, but nothing.

I'm not jazzed by this trailer, either, but hopefully one of those days I'll happen upon the opportunity and time to see them all.

Ha ha. No, this is still the much-delayed second, which wrapped back in June 2019. It was originally supposed to have been finished long before that. Then...well, you know. 2020.

I wasn't a big fan of the original film and don't have much interest in the new one. I've just been gawking at the messy rollout. I think Cruise and/or Paramount have been hoping for some kind of optimal old-times circumstance in which to open the thing.

[Bastet]

Oh, wow, okay -- that makes more sense, and I should have realized a third installment would have its own thread rather than being posted about here.  It just seemed like a very long time - even with COVID - had passed since I saw the first Eh, don't care about this sequel trailer to the time I saw this Eh, don't care about this sequel trailer.

I guess this is the type of film the studio didn't want to release until a good percentage of viewers are willing to go back into theaters to watch it.  (That's still not me, even for something I really want to see; I'm only watching things I can stream or rent.)  So box office data will be interesting even if I don't think the actual film is.

And some day it will show up on my TV and I'll watch.

[GHScorpiosRule]

10 hours ago, Bastet said:

Oh, wow, okay -- that makes more sense, and I should have realized a third installment would have its own thread rather than being posted about here.  It just seemed like a very long time - even with COVID - had passed since I saw the first Eh, don't care about this sequel trailer to the time I saw this Eh, don't care about this sequel trailer.

I guess this is the type of film the studio didn't want to release until a good percentage of viewers are willing to go back into theaters to watch it.  (That's still not me, even for something I really want to see; I'm only watching things I can stream or rent.)  So box office data will be interesting even if I don't think the actual film is.

And some day it will show up on my TV and I'll watch.

Well, the original teasers and trailers were released during the summer in 2019-before we even heard about COVID, or that it had happened. But clearly, by the time Summer 2020 rolled around, we were in the height of the pandemic, so I assume that's why they didn't release it.

I'll admit, I watched the first when it came out and I was a Tom Cruise fan back then. And the teenager in me wants to see this for the special effects alone.

[festivus]

I'm excited about it. Saw the first in the theater. Also, I ❤️ Glen Powell. He's always the highlight of anything he's in. He should be a bigger star.

[Morrigan2575]

On 3/29/2022 at 1:55 PM, Fool to cry said:

Admiral Iceman!

I read that he gave them permission to use CGI. This was around the time his Documentary came out.

Itcs so weird. In the 80s the idea of a dog fight school and aerial war with Russia sounded so cool. Now I'm sitting here going, it seems so antiquated.

I think this is a sequel that's being released well past it's sell by date but, that's just me.

Edited March 30, 2022 by Morrigan2575

[Raja]

The exclusive extended training scenes shown before Dr Strange was a thing of beauty

[BetterButter]

 

[aghst]

Just saw a commercial for it.

So ridiculous they fly a fighter under a bridge with afterburners on full thrust.  The opening is tall and narrow so the jet has to rotate 90 degrees immediately to fit the opening.🙄

 

First it’s not exactly a subtle move in a civilian area.

Second, they’re taking risks with aircraft that costs hundreds of millions if not more.

How would a hot shot pilot not get grounded for pulling that kind of stuff?

The reality is that drones, controlled by AI, will make the equation for expensive fighter nets and the millions it takes to train and support fighter pilots untenable, if they haven’t already.

The other thing is US doesn’t engage fighter jets, especially expensive hardware, until we’ll after air supremacy is established in theater by heavy cruise missile bombardment and now now deployment of drones.

So what’s depicted even in the first movie has little relation to American pilots.

But maybe the sequel will discover the next Meg Ryan or Kelly McGillis.

 

[SeanC]

Rapturous reviews so far:

https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/top-gun-maverick-first-reviews-the-most-thrilling-blockbuster-weve-gotten-in-years/

[methodwriter85]

On 3/29/2022 at 1:55 PM, Fool to cry said:

Admiral Iceman! Also I found out Jennifer Connelly is playing "Penny Benjamin" who was mentioned in the first movie as the "admiral's daughter" Maverick made a pass at.

So that's why they didn't try to cast someone around Emma Stone or Brie Larson's age.

[SunnyBeBe]

Jon Hamm was promoting the movie tonight on Fallon. 
 

 I’ll be interested to see Val Kilmer in this.  I saw his movie about a year ago and it was really good.  It’s a biography of his life.  

I actually have issues with Cruise, but like his movies.  
 

 

Edited May 26, 2022 by SunnyBeBe

[woodstock]

Saw it last night and really enjoyed it.

I don’t care how far fetched the flight sequences  were; they were action packed and well done. There were good callbacks to the first movie and there was a great scene and moment with Maverick and Iceman.

All in all not a bad way to kick off  the summer movie season IMO.
 

[revbfc]

I liked it.  The comparisons to Star Wars are blatant (and probably on purpose), but it did not hinder my enjoyment of it.  I’m definitely glad I saw it on the biggest screen I could find.

[Minneapple]

Saw it last night and it’s actually really good. Likeable characters, decent plot, fun callbacks to the first movie. It’s a perfect Memorial Day weekend film.

[juno]

Just saw it and it is just a great movie. Great plot, great characters. Terrific resolution to the plot lines from the first movie.

[norcalgal]

This film far exceeded my expectations where sequels are concerned. I only have two quibbles about Top Gun: Maverick .

First, either they should have developed the Maverick/Penny romance more, or just ditched it completely because that subplot was thin (paper thin since Penny was only mentioned in passing in the first movie). And imho, this film didn’t need the romance subplot at all.

Spoiler

Second, when it comes to nostalgia, they should have replaced the “Great Balls of Fire” playing by Rooster with a cameo from Viper (Tom Skerritt’s character in the first film) during the Iceman funeral. I say this because I rolled my eyes that Rooster would play that song just when Maverick happens to be around. Too much suspension of disbelief, whereas it would be believable if Viper attended Iceman’s funeral - a military funeral at that!

Lastly, I just have to say that both in the sequel and the first film, the casting of the hard ass ball breaker authority figure is sooooo spot on. James Tolkan, Tom Skerritt, Michael Ironside, Ed Harris - they all exude military discipline Big Man in Charge vibes. 
 

ps…me and the hubby will watch TG:Maverick for the second time tomorrow, but that will be in IMAX, while our first watch was in Dolby surround. 
 

If we watch a third time, maybe we’ll go for 4D (I think that’s what it’s called where the seat moves/vibrates with the onscreen action). 

[Traveller519]

I really enjoyed it! The flying scenes were just top notch. It's truly impressive they were able to shoot all of that practically, which is a huge credit to the whole production team.

The plot was adequate, and believable, to bring Maverick back to Top Gun, even if it was a bit predictable throughout. There were also a few too many characters, meaning they weren't able to get deep enough. They obviously wanted us to like the young crew like we did the original class, but they didn't get a lot of development beyond exposition, if they were lucky to get that.  I don't think Manny Jacinto's character got anything more than a quick reaction shot.

But those are minor. This was so much fun. Cruise, for all his weirdness, makes great popcorn films. I think they hit the perfect callbacks and told a good story.

[AstaCharles]

1 hour ago, Traveller519 said:

 There were also a few too many characters, meaning they weren't able to get deep enough. They obviously wanted us to like the young crew like we did the original class, but they didn't get a lot of development beyond exposition, if they were lucky to get that.  

I enjoyed the film as well, and this was my only nitpick. I'm not a big Tom Cruise fan so I was kind of thinking they could have scaled back Maverick's romance storyline and given more time to the younger cast. 

[aghst]

Cruise is the proven box office star.

plus he’s an EP, probably put his own money into it and gets big profit participation.

[RunningMarket]

21 hours ago, norcalgal said:

[SNIP] If we watch a third time, maybe we’ll go for 4D (I think that’s what it’s called where the seat moves/vibrates with the onscreen action). 

We saw it in what we call D-Box, which are the moving/vibrating seats. It was a fantastic way to see it! 

Loved the call backs to the original movie, like when Maverick first walks in to class. Even the way he carried the clipboard was a call back!

I will put this in spoilers, just in case. I was happy that:

Spoiler

The Rooster/Maverick conflict wasn't so much "you killed my dad" but rather "you kept me out of the Naval Academy for four years". 

I thought Tom Cruise and Jennifer Connolly had more chemistry than he did with Kelly McGillis. I bought that they had had an on/off relationship over the years.

Edited May 30, 2022 by RunningMarket
formatting

[SeanC]

6 hours ago, Traveller519 said:

There were also a few too many characters, meaning they weren't able to get deep enough. They obviously wanted us to like the young crew like we did the original class, but they didn't get a lot of development beyond exposition, if they were lucky to get that.  I don't think Manny Jacinto's character got anything more than a quick reaction shot.

5 hours ago, AstaCharles said:

I enjoyed the film as well, and this was my only nitpick. I'm not a big Tom Cruise fan so I was kind of thinking they could have scaled back Maverick's romance storyline and given more time to the younger cast. 

It seems like there was originally more stuff with the pilots who didn't end up getting chosen for the mission (e.g., Jacinto's character), and all things considered I think that's an easy place to make cuts since they aren't actually involved in the climax.

[overtherainbow]

Loved it! Not a big fan of the romance either but luckily there wasn't too much of it the film so it wasn't a big issue for me.

Both are fun but this definitely felt more Star Warsy, lacked the cheesiness of the original. 

[AimingforYoko]

6 hours ago, RunningMarket said:

The Rooster/Maverick conflict wasn't so much "you killed my dad" but rather "you kept me out of the Naval Academy for four years". 

How the hell does a screwup Captain have the stroke to pull his papers? Unless he had Iceman do it. 

[norcalgal]

1 hour ago, AimingforYoko said:

How the hell does a screwup Captain have the stroke to pull his papers? Unless he had Iceman do it. 

Thanks my fanwank...that it was actually Iceman who did it. 

[SunnyBeBe]

How was Hamm in this?

[dovegrey]

In the US Navy, the rank of captain (O-6) is equivalent to an Air Force/Army/Marine rank of colonel (O-6). The USN rank of captain is one rank below admiral. They made Pete sound like a career screw up, but he actually had taken multiple promotions since being a USN lieutenant in 1986 and rose up the ranks fairly well; it sounds like he stalled his own career at a certain point, refused to get out or move up, and kept being a PITA to anyone who had to deal with him. But I didn't question a well-known O-6 being able to quash a naval academy candidacy (especially when that person is known to be friends with the US Pacific Fleet commander and especially considering it would have been about 7-9 years before the events of the movie, depending on when Rooster graduated flight school and how long he'd been flying since then).

I liked the movie just fine. We rewatched Top Gun the other night, and watching this one today honestly felt like watching Tom Cruise play Tom Cruise playing Maverick. Nevertheless, the movie 100% had me, all in, until it became a Mission Impossible spoof with Maverick and Rooster getting shot down in enemy territory for 30 seconds. Edited to add: I forgot to say here that I genuinely expected there to be losses on this Hail Mary Quadruple Miracle Death Mission, but they ended up playing it for laughs. Meh.

All said, anything with fighter pilot action that well filmed is going to have my applause. That took me back a few decades. And this is the first movie we've seen in theaters since right before COVID; it was a great pay off.

Edited May 31, 2022 by dovegrey
Noted and some clarity

[Laurie4H]

People saying it’s amazing I feel like are jumping on the bandwagon.  It’s was paint by numbers.  I saw if for other people and was bored.  I don’t care about action.  And people saying Tom Cruise doesn’t age?  It’s called getting work done and lighting.  And nobody else found Jennifer Connelly first scene at the bar annoying?  Her contrived dialogue with a bit of sarcasm trying to act sexy was fake.  And they kept calling Goose’s son a kid.  If the timeline follows the amount of years since the first movie he looked about 4 in 1986 so he would be pushing 40.  

[MaggieG]

I really enjoyed this movie. I liked the callbacks. I think Miles Teller did a great job and I like that they gave him the hair and mustache. He looked a lot like Anthony Edwards. Love Glen Powell and I loved him saving the day at the end. 

The scene between Maverick and Iceman was a beautiful scene. It made several grown men in my theater cry. I saw tears rolling down the cheek of a big, burly dude sitting in front of me.

The football scene was fun.

How cool is it that all the flying scenes in this are real and not CGI? 

[Moose135]

1 hour ago, MaggieG said:

How cool is it that all the flying scenes in this are real and not CGI? 

Almost all, and yes, that was very cool!

[RunningMarket]

23 hours ago, Laurie4H said:

People saying it’s amazing I feel like are jumping on the bandwagon.  It’s was paint by numbers.  I saw if for other people and was bored.  I don’t care about action.  And people saying Tom Cruise doesn’t age?  It’s called getting work done and lighting.  And nobody else found Jennifer Connelly first scene at the bar annoying?  Her contrived dialogue with a bit of sarcasm trying to act sexy was fake.  And they kept calling Goose’s son a kid.  If the timeline follows the amount of years since the first movie he looked about 4 in 1986 so he would be pushing 40.  

If you don't care about action in a movie, and you admittedly saw this for other people, then no, you likely wouldn't enjoy it as much. This was made for those of who who live and breath by OG Top Gun.

I loved it, personally. But I don't know if this will be as endlessly rewatchable or quotable as the original.

[norcalgal]

14 minutes ago, RunningMarket said:

I loved it, personally. But I don't know if this will be as endlessly rewatchable or quotable as the original.

I concur.  Even though I loved TG: Maverick, I don't think it will enter the culture lexicon the way the first one did. Examples:

"I feel the need, the need for speed."  What is quotable from TG:M?

Callsigns starting to be a "thing". Meet the Parents had characters calling each other with TG callsigns. I dunno...maybe Hangman & Rooster will also be popular currency?

"Danger Zone" has come to refer to a well, dangerous situation. 

And of course, the song Take My Breath Away was HUGE - huge! Even won an Oscar.  Not sure the Lady Gaga song will get that kind of cultural cache. 

[aghst]

Danger Zone was a hit single too wasn't it?

Take My Breath Away was played to death when the movie was playing and it seemed like got a lot of airplay well after the movie was out of the theaters too.

[AstaCharles]

1 hour ago, RunningMarket said:

I loved it, personally. But I don't know if this will be as endlessly rewatchable or quotable as the original.

I like to see it get Oscars in the technical categories. 

[ChicksDigScars]

On 5/30/2022 at 9:42 PM, SunnyBeBe said:

How was Hamm in this?

Appropriately douchey as the antagonist/commanding officer who clashes with Maverick. But not a big villian. Ed Harris was scary.  His facial muscles literally twitch to convey anger. 

And Mr. Hamm can wear a uniform. Nice.

Anyone notice that the big diversity push in TG: Mav? The original had one black pilot, and he didn't get many lines. The rest were white male. This time, it's a very diverse group and the female pilot is a lead character who doesn't screw Maverick or her fellow pilots (although they do allude to Phoenix and Rooster being somewhat involved in the past). It was one line and a pool stick to the gut/crotch area by Phoenix. Other than that, she was not a token chick or cheesecake.

Edited June 2, 2022 by ChicksDigScars

[Moose135]

1 hour ago, ChicksDigScars said:

Anyone notice that the big diversity push in TG: Mav? The original had one black pilot, and he didn't get many lines. The rest were white male. This time, it's a very diverse group...

To a certain extent, that reflects reality. At the time the original came out, military aviation was predominantly white male. I was a pilot in the Air Force at the time, flying KC-135 tankers, and it was mostly a white male group, the fighter community even more so.

The first women to go through Air Force pilot training were in 1977 - Navy probably had a similar timeline - less than a decade before the original movie was released, and women were not permitted to fly combat missions until 1993, so none would have been flying F-14s or at Top Gun in 1986. The ranks of military aviation, including the fighter community, are more diverse 30+ years later.

Fun fact - I flew with two of the original 7 women who completed Air Force pilot training.

Edited June 2, 2022 by Moose135

[Raja]

On 5/30/2022 at 3:59 PM, AimingforYoko said:

How the hell does a screwup Captain have the stroke to pull his papers? Unless he had Iceman do it. 

I don't see how it would work. It was done to stall Rooster's career since he should have held more rank in the time since the first movie. The academy or bust story when anyone else would have went to a civilian school through R.O.T.C. was my head shaking moment

[dovegrey]

18 minutes ago, Raja said:

I don't see how it would work. It was done to stall Rooster's career since he should have held more rank in the time since the first movie. The academy or bust story when anyone else would have went to a civilian school through R.O.T.C. was my head shaking moment

That, plus I figure it was also done to create a source of conflict between them, which I found to be better than Rooster stewing in a lifetime of resentment against Maverick because of Goose's death. They probably could have found a stronger way to create that tension, but, of all the things this movie did that ranged from improbable to impossible, Rooster going the academy route and/or a Navy captain pulling strings to flatline someone's career doesn't even make the list. If anything, I more questioned how Maverick hadn't been forcibly retired after apparently turning down promotion(s?) to admiral, if I correctly remember the rapid-fire list of grievances against him; not even Iceman could pull that string.

[Raja]

1 hour ago, dovegrey said:

That, plus I figure it was also done to create a source of conflict between them, which I found to be better than Rooster stewing in a lifetime of resentment against Maverick because of Goose's death. They probably could have found a stronger way to create that tension, but, of all the things this movie did that ranged from improbable to impossible, Rooster going the academy route and/or a Navy captain pulling strings to flatline someone's career doesn't even make the list. If anything, I more questioned how Maverick hadn't been forcibly retired after apparently turning down promotion(s?) to admiral, if I correctly remember the rapid-fire list of grievances against him; not even Iceman could pull that string.

A more real career progression of Captain Mitchell being a civilian test pilot and Naval Reservist  recalled to train the special squadron for a mission may have been too confusing. And that was the basis for Louis Gossett Jr's Chappy in Iron Eagle.

Edited June 3, 2022 by Raja

[dovegrey]

12 minutes ago, Raja said:

A more real career progression of Captain Mitchell being a civilian test pilot and Naval Reservist  recalled to train the special squadron for a mission may have been too confusing. And that was the basis for Louis Gossett Jr's Chappy in Iron Eagle.

I think how they handled it by talking up Maverick as a last-leg pariah who never made anything of himself was too confusing for the average viewer. I've had friends and even coworkers talking about how sad it was he never made it past captain - as in, they think he promoted one time since 1986. 😆 But how the writers handled his self-inflicted career stall and refusal to move up and stop flying broke the entire premise for me, far more than him getting in Rooster's way at the academy (yet the movie was still so damn fun).

As it is, I think it would have actually been more compelling and less confusing for Mav to have retired as a decorated Navy captain now working as a civilian test pilot who is gloriously pulled out of retirement to fly his beloved jets one last time. Stargate SG-1 (which sounds silly but actually portrayed USAF protocol pretty well for a few years) was rooted in a similar premise nearly 30 years ago with retired Col. Jack O'Neill; viewers followed it just fine.

[Raja]

10 minutes ago, dovegrey said:

I think how they handled it by talking up Maverick as a last-leg pariah who never made anything of himself was too confusing for the average viewer. I've had friends and even coworkers talking about how sad it was he never made it past captain - as in, they think he promoted one time since 1986. 😆 But how the writers handled his self-inflicted career stall and refusal to move up and stop flying broke the entire premise for me, far more than him getting in Rooster's way at the academy (yet the movie was still so damn fun).

As it is, I think it would have actually been more compelling and less confusing for Mav to have retired as a decorated Navy captain now working as a civilian test pilot who is gloriously pulled out of retirement to fly his beloved jets one last time. Stargate SG-1 (which sounds silly but actually portrayed USAF protocol pretty well for a few years) was rooted in a similar premise nearly 30 years ago with retired Col. Jack O'Neill; viewers followed it just fine.

I was listenning to a podcast with the original movie's Navy advisors, then Lieutenants and formallyTopgun instructors going in with a "its not a documentary"  working relationship. Maverick having a USN Captain advisor and Admirals looking in. 

With the "its not a documentary"  focus  I think that  weekly viewing TV audiences for a military science fiction  shows are more niche than what Top Gun producers wanted. We demand more. So a Battlestar Gallatic, Space Above and Beyond, Stargate SG-1, JAG etc tend to be more in line with military culture because their smaller slice of the potential audience demands it. That Stargate started leaving its legacy, which saw the current USAF Chief of Staff cameo as himself, first with their international crew of Atlantis and then the disfunctional USAF and Marine survivors on Universe was a shame.

[norcalgal]

I’ve always wondered if the other branches (Army, Marines, etc.) were envious/resentful that there isn’t a movie focusing on them that has the cultural phenomenon that Top Gun gave to the Navy. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

11 hours ago, Raja said:

With the "its not a documentary"  focus  I think that  weekly viewing TV audiences for a military science fiction  shows are more niche than what Top Gun producers wanted. We demand more. So a Battlestar Gallatic, Space Above and Beyond, Stargate SG-1, JAG etc tend to be more in line with military culture because their smaller slice of the potential audience demands it.

With respect to JAG, it was always promoted/hyped as a Top Gun/A Few Good Men, the former especially in the first two seasons. But even the idiot show runner of NCIS: Los Angeles, when he brought Harm back so we who hadn't seen him since the JAG ended, regressed his career and he remained at Captain and went back to Carrier duties or whatever and it was just such bullshit.

Ahem.

I am soooo looking forward to this movie, that I can lock away for a few hours, my loathing for Cruise, who I used to love until he revealed his cray-cray and assholery. I plan to see it this weekend or next.

[Raja]

54 minutes ago, norcalgal said:

I’ve always wondered if the other branches (Army, Marines, etc.) were envious/resentful that there isn’t a movie focusing on them that has the cultural phenomenon that Top Gun gave to the Navy. 

I guess that now all focus is on special operations forces, but then amongst them US Navy SEALs get more than their share of popular entertainment mentions.

We do see aviators differently. Maverick is an ace while a Sergeant Rock counting his kills, unless it was because of sniper skills, is a sociopath. When Nicholas Cage did his Army helicopter movie somehow the focus shifted to him and Sean Young shooting down other helicopters instead of their real job. The man on man in the box seen as heroic

Maverick however did make a comment about the Top Guns always being told that they are the best while combat for them was dropping bombs from outside of enemy missle range. You could theorize that Hangman's previous kill was just a long range missle shot where the computer told his plane to fire instead of the others in his flight.

[SallyAlbright]

Absolutely loved it. It just felt like the kind of movie that isn't really made anymore, just fun and nostalgic and kind of wholesome.

I would never want to be married to him or even hang out with him, but I have to admit I love Tom Cruise as a movie star. I just find him to be kind of magnetic and his movies pretty much always entertain me. I also really like his unabashed enthusiasm for making films - I saw an interview recently where he said he's been dreaming of making movies since he was four years old and still can't believe he gets to do this for a living. Our world is so depressing and cynical right now that I actually thought that was really nice to hear. He feels like a throwback now to when we had real movie stars. There are plenty of young actors I like but none of them feel like classic stars in that specific way. 

I'm glad Glen Powell took the role of Hangman after he admitted he was devastated to miss out on playing Rooster. He was perfect for that part and can pull off arrogance in a very charming way. 

[norcalgal]

1 hour ago, SallyAlbright said:

I'm glad Glen Powell took the role of Hangman after he admitted he was devastated to miss out on playing Rooster. He was perfect for that part and can pull off arrogance in a very charming way. 

Agree that Powell was well cast as Hangman. I can’t see him as Rooster because Teller has the looks, body shape and height to make me believe he’s Goose’s son, which Powell lacks.

Also, if the roles were reversed, I can’t see Teller portraying Hangman with any charm or charisma to make the character rootable. I can only picture a Teller version of Hangman as a total douchebag. 

[juno]

It is absolutely crazy but I have the same issue again that I had with the original. Why was there just 1 alert fighter on stand-by while a almost completely disabled F-14 is under fire? wouldn't there be 6?

Also, was it the Admiral that gave the okay for launch to Hangman? Or did he go by himself? I asked because orders don't exist much in the Top Gun universe.

Still loved the movie.