History Main / TalkingThroughTechnique

* In ''Film/OceansTwelve'', Danny Ocean and Rusty are speaking in code to Robbie Coltraine's character and it's played for laughs when Matt Damon's character doesn't get it

* ''Film/{{Bat 21}}'' staring Gene Hackman, based on a real life rescue in which a downed pilot's knowledge of golf was used to give him directions when he was TrappedBehindEnemyLines -- the directions matched the layout of various golf courses he had played.

* The USSR does this with troop movements ''Film/CountdownToLookingGlass''. The Americans don't respond, the press fails to run the story, and the Soviets take the whole thing as a slap in the face.

** This ''almost'' backfires, as Marko asks for a single ranging active sonar ping on the US ship, which is the submarine equivalent of pointing a flashlight in someone's eyes and shouting "Here I am!". And then he does it ''again'', without any explanation.

* [[Creator/IainBanks Iain M. Banks]]'s [[Literature/TheCulture Culture]] novel ''Literature/ThePlayerOfGames'' contains a rather interesting take on the concept. Throughout the story, the main character, Gurgeh participates in a number of games, but the readers are only given hints as to the rules and play of each of them. This is particularly true of the game of Azad which is considered complicated and realistic enough that success in the game is literally equal to success in the Empire of Azad where the routine tournaments function as a civil service exam. When Gurgeh plays Azad, particularly during his last game, he and his opponent are described as conveying so much information via their moves that their entire philosophies are discussed without a word being exchanged.

* ''Literature/CodexAlera'' (being an endless GambitPileup between [[TheChessmaster Chessmasters]] and {{Manipulative Bastard}}s of varying competence,) has a fair number of messages being hidden inside actions. It's particularly pronounced with the Canim, (who, even in face-to-face conversations, rely much more on body language and non-verbal communication than humans do,) and in ''Captain's Fury'' Tavi tries to explain Nasaug's indications that [[spoiler: he actually wants to take his invading troops and leave Alera]] to [[SmugSnake senator Arnos]] without success.

* In Creator/JimButcher's Literature/DresdenFiles series, the novel ''Skin Game'' has a brilliant example of this. Harry has to fulfill a high profile heist due to a favor Mab owed [[spoiler:Nicodemeus]] even though the employer is able to literally overhear everything Harry says during the operation, and wants nothing more than to see Harry dead "by accident." With Mab's approval, they set up the convert communication method where Harry can communicate with an undercover associate in plain sight.
* A British spymaster in ''Literature/TheFourthProtocol'' is able to determine that a Soviet spymaster is trying to let him know about an operation that he wants blown away (it was done without his approval, and has the potential for severe global consequences if it goes wrong), because a soviet operative who comes through the border is so incompetent, so blunderingly obvious, that only someone who ''wanted'' him noticed and followed would have sent him.

* In an episode of ''[[Series/{{Mash}} M*A*S*H]]'' Hawkeye is sent to a frontline aid station, which the Army loses radio contact with after receiving a report that a doctor there has been killed. The rest of the 4077th is concerned, until B.J. receives a patient from the aid station who has been sewn up using a technique that is specifically Hawkeye's style.
* The [[UsefulNotes/ComicRelief Red Nose Day]] charity spoof ''Series/DoctorWho and the Curse of Fatal Death'' had a particularly humorous example of TalkingThroughTechnique, coupled with BizarreAlienBiology and ToiletHumor

-->'''The Doctor''': Think, my dear! Back on Tersurus TheMaster and I both bribed the castle architect. Not only do I speak perfect Tersuran, so does he.

* The ''Series/{{Covert Affairs}}'' episode ''Horse to Water'' used the standard Chess version: an ex-CIA operative imprisoned for a decade using a slow chess game to get secrets outside to be sold. Played with slightly in that the daughter he was playing with just thought she was playing chess with her wrongly-accused father: he kept the game in his head, but she kept its state on a board in her house, which his ''other'' daughter was reading for its secrets.

* In ''Film/TheHuntForRedOctober'', Jack Ryan communicates with Soviet Captain Marko Ramius by using morse code in flashing lights attached to their periscope. Since Marko couldn't respond with morse code (the code would be recognized audibly by the crew of his ship if he tapped it out), they resorted to yes/no questions he could answer by sending a sonic range verification 'ping' to the US sub.
** This ''almost'' backfires, as Marko asks for a single ranging active sonar ping on the US ship, which the submarine equivalent of pointing a flashlight in someone's eyes and shouting "Here I am!". And then he does it ''again'', without any explanation.

* In Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar, a bunch of bad guys threaten to kill a captured Airi and Mamiya if Kenshiro and Rei don't fight to the death. With no means of communication, Kenshiro and Rei engage each other, ending in a seemingly MutualKill, but when the bad guys go closer inspect their corpses, the heroes reveal they're very much alive. The finishing blows they had used on each other seemed brutal, but were specifically designed not to kill, and the reason why both heroes knew to use their respective techniques was because [[GeniusBruiser Kenshiro]] went into his move's fighting stance, which a skilled martial artist like Rei would have recognized. When Rei went into his technique's fighting stance, thus confirming their plan with neither of them having to say a word, the rest was just waiting for the bad guys to get cocky before blowing their heads apart.

* In ''Film/Oceans12'', Danny Ocean and Rusty are speaking in code to Robbie Coltraine's character and it's played for laughs when Matt Damon's character doesn't get it
* ''Film/ThePhantomMenance''; according to ExpandedUniverse sources, [[AllThereInTheManual this is how]] Padme Amidala communicates her orders to Sabe, her decoy bodyguard. When Padme poses as a handmaiden, a subtle system of body language lets the two communicate in code.

Two characters need to communicate, but can't. They might know they're BeingWatched and don't want to give away vital information, or can't transmit or receive messages by normal means[[note]](They've been blinded, deafened or can't talk, or their method of communication is limited to something like a game of internet blackjack without chat)[[/note]]. However, both share a common talent at some game, combat style, art form or other skill. They're experienced enough thanks to practice and knowledge of it that they can [[AwesomenessByAnalysis analyze the moves]] to tell what their friend on the other end is thinking. So what they end up doing is Talking Through Technique, passing information not through words but through actions, and [[{{Metagame}} interpreting them.]]

* Invoked in ''{{Naruto}}'' when Sasuke fights the title character. Sasuke says that [[MyKungFuIsStrongerThanYours two powerful ninja]] are able to understand each other's thoughts just by fighting.

Contrast IDoNotSpeakNonverbal. Compare HandSignals, where signaling is done by use of hand gestures, and DoubleMeaning.

Two characters need to communicate, but can't. They might know they're BeingWatched and don't want to give away vital information, or can't transmit or receive messages by normal means[[note]](They've been blinded, deafened or can't talk, or their method of communication is limited to something like a game of internet blackjack without chat)[[/note]]. However, both share a common talent at some game, combat style, art form or other skill. They're experienced enough thanks to practice and knowledge of it that they can [[AwesomenessByAnalysis analyze the moves]] to tell what their friend on the other end is thinking. So what they end up doing is [[TitleDrop Talking Through Technique]], passing information not through words but through actions, and [[{{Metagame}} interpreting them.]]

* Franchise/{{Batman}} communicated with Cassandra Cain/Comicbook/{{Batgirl|2000}} via combat, which makes sense since her father had [[SacrificedBasicSkillForAwesomeTraining overwritten the language center in her brain to better her combat training.]]
* Her future brother [[ComicBook/RobinSeries Tim Drake]] did likewise while they were working together to take down Penguin in Bludhaven, but he was much less certain of his own ability to read her actions and second guessed himself a lot. He did figure out she liked sweets and long showers from her taking all his rice crispies and coming to his place to use the shower for hours on end without though. By the time he's ComicBook/RedRobin Cass is the sibling he trusts the easiest and asks along if he wants someone to work with.

** The Lorridians are descendants of a human colony that had been taken over by ScaryDogmaticAliens, who did not allow groups to speak to one another (as to prevent a SlaveRevolt). As a result, the Lorridians developed an elaborate form of body language communication to skirt around the restrictions, ran ScaryDogmaticAliens off their planets, and their culture produces some of the finest actors and spies in the galaxy due to their mastery of reading and communicating through body language.

* In ''[[Literature/ForgottenRealms The Sorceror]]'' a spellcaster who could not use magic at this time suspected the presence of an invisible enemy. He moved his fingers through the [[MagicalGesture somatic components]] of a spell he wanted until a wizard looking at him understood and cast it.

* ''VideoGame/BravelyDefault'' has Eternian Grand Marshal Braev Lee and Swordmaster Kamiizumi as examples of this trope. An amusing rumour late-game about a past duel between the two of them is revealed to simply be a misunderstanding, brought about by the fact that they are both [[{{Understatement}} poor with words]] and "let their blades do the talking".

* In the second ''Film/RushHour'' movie, Detective Carter is having a difficult time getting his informant, Kenny (Creator/DonCheadle in a traditional Chinese Changsam), to calm down, much less tell Carter and Li what they need to know. When Li tries to put a reassuring hand on Kenny's shoulder, Kenny spins around and engages Li with surprisingly good kungfu. After trading very similar blows, Li recognizes the technique Kenny is using as the 'Twisting Tiger' and they both release.

-->'''Kenny''': [''in Cantonese''] No... Master Ching from Crenshaw.

* In the second ''Film/RushHour'' movie, Detective Carter is having a difficult time getting his informant, Kenny (Creator/DonCheadle in a traditional Chinese Changsam), to calm down, much less tell Carter and Li what they need to know. When Li tries to put a reassuring hand on Kenny's shoulder, Kenny spins around and engages Li with surprisingly good kungfu. After trading very similar blows and techniques, Li recognizes the technique Kenny is using as the 'Twisting Tiger' and they both release.

* In the second ''Film/RushHour'' movie, Detective Carter is having a difficult time getting his informant, Kenny (Creator/DonCheadle in a traditional Chinese Changsam), to calm down, much less tell Carter and Li what they need to know. When Li tries to put a reassuring hand on Kenny's shoulder, Kenny spins around and engages Li with surprising skill. After trading very similar blows and techniques, Li recognizes the technique Kenny is using as the 'Twisting Tiger' and they both release.

* In FistOfTheNorthStar, a bunch of bad guys threaten to kill a captured Airi and Mamiya if Kenshiro and Rei don't fight to the death. With no means of communication, Kenshiro and Rei engage each other, ending in a seemingly MutualKill, but when the bad guys go closer inspect their corpses, the heroes reveal they're very much alive. The finishing blows they had used on each other seemed brutal, but were specifically designed not to kill, and the reason why both heroes knew to use their respective techniques was because [[GeniusBruiser Kenshiro]] went into his move's fighting stance, which a skilled martial artist like Rei would have recognized. When Rei went into his technique's fighting stance, thus confirming their plan with neither of them having to say a word, the rest was just waiting for the bad guys to get cocky before blowing their heads apart.

* Franchise/{{Batman}} communicated with Cassandra Cain/[[Comicbook/{{Batgirl|2000}} via combat, which makes sense since her father had [[SacrificedBasicSkillForAwesomeTraining overwritten the language center in her brain to better her combat training.]]
* Her future brother [[ComicBook/RobinSeries Tim Drake]] did likewise while they were working together to take down Penguin in Bludhaven, but he was much less certain of his own ability to read ''her'' actions and second guessed himself a lot. He did figure out she liked sweets and long showers from her taking all his rice crispies and coming to his place to use the shower for hours on end without though. By the time he's ComicBook/RedRobin Cass is the sibling he trusts the easiest and asks along if he wants someone to work with.

* Franchise/{{Batman}} communicated with Cassandra Cain/Batgirl via combat, which makes sense since her father had [[SacrificedBasicSkillForAwesomeTraining overwritten the language center in her brain to better her combat training.]]

* This is very common in silent films: To cut costs, movies tended to use as few intertitles as they could, meaning actors must convey what they want to tell through nonverbal means. Naturally, comedians quickly jumped on how easily misinterpreted such behavior could be, most famously Creator/CharlieChaplin. For instance, in ''Film/ModernTimes'', some nearby cops interpret Charlie swinging a red flag as him being a Communist revolutionary rather than him simply gesturing to a driver that it fell off his truck.

* ''Series/{{Chuck}}'': In "Chuck vs. The Nemesis", the Fulcrum agent has a gun to Chuck's head, threatening to shoot him. Bryce, Chuck's former best friend at Stanford and a CIA Agent, asks Chuck in Klingon if he is wearing a vest, to which Chuck says yes, also in klingon. Bryce then shoots Chuck, surprising the Fulcrum agent, and everyone else, until Chuck reveals what Bryce asked him, and that he was indeed wearing a bulletproof vest. The Fulcrum Agent is then taken into custody, and the NSA sweeps the area clean of any evidence of what happened.

->The young Borg realised that Tuvok was inquiring if she was all right. Seven quirked her ocular implant in reply, conveying that such a question was irrelevant and she was currently trying to free her bonds. Tuvok raised his other eyebrow, conveying his disapproval at the emotion of arrogance that might distract one from the task at hand. Seven answered with a scowl, conveying that she was experiencing some difficulty with the knots but she was Borg and would adapt, and that she would be as arrogant as she wished thank you! Tuvok took a deep breath, dropped his eyebrows to normal level, then raised first the right brow, then the left brow, then both brows together, then the left, then the right brow, two raises of the left again, then a wiggle of his pointed ears, then a slight twitch of his right brow again, and last of all a final poetic dance of supercilious motion by the two hairy arches.