The Reality Method 2.0

Pickup In Action: Mystery Video Deconstructed

Eric von Markovik, known as “Mister E”, or simply Mystery, could easily be considered the Grandfather of the modern seduction community.

I recently came across some video of Mystery in action on YouTube. I present the first video here, for your edification, with my own notes attached describing what I see happening, frame-by-frame, as Mystery demonstrates his mastery of the game.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-quMo2nOQYg]

First Set: Opening / Active Disinterest
00:14 Strong opener. As he deploys the opener, notice how calmly and coolly it rolls of his tongue. He is clearly in total control of his tonality and vocal delivery — not hurried, not rushing, not nervous. In fact, the genius of this delivery is how he is actually pausing at strategic moments to hook the attention of the girls. “I never bothered to ask…until this moment…WHY….is everyone….wearing fuckin’ white??” This builds tension and expectation in the group.

00:22 Girls respond, but Mystery has started turning his body language AWAY from the group halfway through the opener. He’s now watching the video screen, as though his opener was totally throw-away. The camera is positioned to catch the expectant, hungry look on the girl’s faces.

00:30 “I thought you were asking us?” Girls attempt to re-engage Mystery. He responds as though he had temporarily forgotten about them: “Huh? Oh, no I’m asking you now, yes.” Notice the extravagant hand movements, which actually cause many male viewers to label him as ‘gay’, serve an important function; they are part of the overall theatricality that is part of the Mystery persona.

00:37 Mystery is walking away from the set but the girls continue talking to him, because they are expecting him to stay: “So now, we’re uh, it’s a birthday party…” notice how Mystery has used social conventions and social expectations to his advantage, much as a jiu-jitsu player uses his opponents’ own weight as leverage. Here, the weight of social expectation (that a guy who comes into a group is supposed to actively try to engage and stay around as long as possible) is causing the women to roll out a social script that makes it seem as though THEY are the ones trying to engage HIM. This is a classic demonstration of active disinterest. Notice also how the girls almost sort of trail off as Mystery appears to walk away! Their voices falling, sounding disappointed.

But Mystery is just changing his angle, and comes into the set on the other side of one of the girls, essentially isolating the two-set of girls from the two-set of guys that were roughly facing them.

At 00:40 he shrugs “Whose [birthday party]?” This is a very small conversational input. He clearly doesn’t give a flying fuck if the conversation continues — so the girls work to make it continue.

Second Segment: Storytelling
00:54 Video comes into this interaction midway through a story one of the girls is telling. Mystery says, “Aaaaand, back to me”, politely cutting her off. He could have just plowed her story, and starting talking over her, but instead he’s given her a little guidepost that not only subcommunicates “Okay, you’re talking to much, your turn is over” but does it in a funny and socially savvy way that the girl isn’t going to feel slighted by. He’s telling a Girlfight story, which are common enough at clubs/parties.

Notice how engaged the girls are, and how reactive to each point in his story: “guy was helping….right on…..WOWWWW…..that’s HOT……wow….(SCREAM)….that’s not good….”

At the same time, notice how UNreactive Mystery is, how demonstrative his body language in, and how calm and unhurried his tone and delivery of the story is, even during the beginning slow parts (where he’s explaining how one guy is holding this girl and the other guy is holding the other guy, but they’re not really separating, blah blah boring, right, but he doesn’t acknowledge that boredom and so it works).

Third Segment: Merging Sets
At 1:19 Mystery is engaged in a nonverbal interaction with a girl standing across from him. She was apparently trying on his headphones, or something. Notice also the two-set (group of two girls) standing off to his left (screen right), especially one with long hair wearing a skirt, who he was clearly just talking too (she is glancing at him periodically).

When Mystery reaches across to take the other girl’s hands, at 1:28, short-skirt girl checks her out. Social dynamics in action.

After a bit of dancing, Mystery merges the sets (groups) with a brilliant intro opener that is not only funny but also a slight neg.

Fourth Set: Sexual Vibing
At 1:48 we transition to a solitary girl Mystery is gaming. This is just solid verbal game. “Why am I drawn to you? You need to rationalize this for me…” Obviously not a line you’d use on every girl, but clearly very well calibrated here.

The most important thing in this segment is the girl’s body language. Swaying, touching her hair, flipping her hair, piling her hair on top of her head (glamor hair) — this girl looks about ready to eat Mystery alive right there.

2:07 “You are a very beautiful girl…BUT…beauty is very common.” It helps that they’re standing in L.V…..but I remember this frame and ‘routine’ from 2003 or earlier (this video may be quite dated). Mystery runs it like a pro (it was probably an original routine of his anyway).

At 2:14 we see him go into a subroutine, “Three things are very uncommon….” and disqualifying her by saying “Two outta three ain’t bad.” She instantly qualifies herself as “having a good outlook” (the third characteristic).

Notice how LITTLE work Mystery is doing in this interaction. In fact after that single routine he pretty much lays back and lets her start a new thread “Have you lived in Vegas long?” or somesuch.

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In a little over two minutes, this great compilation shows proper opening, merging, and attraction-generating techniques. Props to Carlos Vibe productions, who put it together.

Up next: Analysis of Mystery Plowing Through Shit-Tests in cold pickup.