Maverick’s treatment of the Iceman is as powerful as any flight sequence

Top Gun: Maverick has now arrived on Netflix in the UK and Ireland, following its much-celebrated theatrical release in May 2022.

If you’ve heard anything about the movie, it’s that the flying sequences are breathtaking and will definitely take your breath away. But as thrilling and mind-blowing as it is to be placed firmly in the danger zone as a moviegoer, there’s another aspect of the film that might linger longer.

Unlike other legacy sequels like Scream or Jurassic World: Dominion, there are very few legacy characters returning. It’s just Tom Cruise’s Peter “Maverick” Mitchell (obviously) and Val Kilmer’s Tom “Iceman” Kazansky.

And in handling Iceman’s return Top Gun: Maverick delivers a sequence as powerful as any of his aerial moments.

In the three decades since Top Gun, Maverick (Tom Cruise) has progressed no further than Navy Captain. This is supposedly due to his maverick ways, but even when he was at his most unruly, Maverick always had a friend above: Iceman (Val Kilmer).

Just when it looks like Maverick will be kicked out of the Navy for good, Iceman comes to the rescue once again. He is now admiral and commander of the US Pacific Fleet, so he says what he says.

It’s Iceman who recommends Maverick prepare a bunch of Top Gun alumni, including Goose’s son Bradley ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw (Miles Teller), for a dangerous mission. In addition to clashing with Rooster, Maverick unsurprisingly annoys Vice Admiral Simpson (Jon Hamm) and everything seems to go very wrong.

That is until Iceman asks to meet Maverick and we get the most emotional scene of the sequel when they catch up with him at Iceman’s house. Iceman’s wife tells Maverick that an unspecified illness has returned, but keeps it a secret.

In the scene, Iceman communicates largely via computer to encourage Maverick to continue, aware that this mission is exactly what his friend needs to let go of his lingering guilt over Goose’s death. The scene ends with the pair embracing, and in a brief dialogue, Iceman jokes with Maverick about who is the better pilot.

After their meeting, a later scene reveals that Iceman is sadly dead. It’s a pretty unnecessary detail to include, and it’s probably there to rule out an Iceman return in a potential three-parter, but it doesn’t take away from the excitement of their reunion.

It would have been easy for the sequel to leave Kilmer out, as it did with Kelly McGillis’s Charlotte Blackwood (who is not mentioned at all) or Meg Ryan’s Carole Bradshaw (who was revealed to have died since the first film ). The Iceman could have simply not returned, with a passing comment made as to what happened to him.

But that would go against what was one of Top Gun’s most important relationships. Yes, Maverick and Goose packed an emotional punch, but Maverick and Iceman’s journey from rivals to the abiding respect of genuine wingmen was just as powerful.

It wouldn’t have felt right for the sequel to ignore that. Maverick needed a face from his past to help him deal with his guilt over Goose’s death, someone who was there at the time and who also probably knows what it’s like to lose a wingman. In story terms, it’s important that Maverick is made clear by Iceman, why would he listen to anyone else?

But what makes the scene all the more poignant is that the filmmakers didn’t shy away from Val Kilmer’s real-life experience with throat cancer.

In December 2017, Kilmer revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that he had been living with throat cancer for two years and that a tracheal procedure had reduced his voice to a hoarse voice and left him short of breath. In his 2020 memoir, I’m Your Huckleberry, Kilmer revealed that he was thankfully cancer-free for four years.

Because of his real-life condition, when we hear Iceman speak in Top Gun: Maverick, it might not sound like what you expect. It might be hard to watch as a fan, but you’re thankful the scene is part of the sequel because it’s one of the standouts.

In his memoir, Kilmer also noted that it could have been different because he wasn’t always sure he would return as Iceman.

“Tom was Maverick, but Maverick’s nemesis was Iceman. The two went together like salt and pepper,” he wrote (via Metro ). “It didn’t matter that the producers didn’t contact me. As The Temptations sang in the heyday of Motown soul, “Ain’t too proud to beg”.

Luckily, Kilmer had his own real-life wingman in Tom Cruise.

“(Tom) said, ‘I’m not making this movie without Val.’ When we shot it, it was a very emotional day, having Val there and seeing him work with Tom after 35 years,” producer Jerry Bruckheimer told The Hollywood. Reporter.

Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes added: “It means a lot to my dad because he’s very proud of that film. This is what he likes to do. It was quite a bit and very special for my dad to be on set with all his friends. who made this movie when they were my age.”

We feel the need… the need for tears.

Top Gun: Maverick is available to watch now on Netflix in the UK and Ireland.

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