The Matrix trilogy’s deep and multi-layered narrative wowed science fiction lovers. It was an unimaginable notion back then, and the movies’ concealed meaning and open-ended nature kept things fascinating for the audience.
The final film, in particular, has one of the most contentious endings, which has sparked countless arguments and conversations. The plot of The Matrix may be summarised as follows. Neo discovers that his world is nothing more than a computer simulation run by a species at war with humans for total domination.
Neo is humanity’s predestined rescuer, and he can manipulate the Matrix’s fundamental code to suit his needs. The Matrix Revolutions, the third installment in the trilogy, has been the talk of the franchise, and anticipation for the next Matrix film is at an all-time high.
In the third movie, we watched Neo sacrifice himself because he wanted to rescue the Matrix one final time, and this was the only way to beat Agent Smith. However, the many interpretations of the sacrifice differed, and the mind-boggling narrative became even more complicated!
Now, we have The Matrix Resurrections all prepared to premiere, and this movie is poised to deliver the resuscitation of two of the renowned characters, Neo and Trinity. There are several hypotheses concerning their reappearance, ranging from it all being a simulation to some claiming that their reappearance is real.
We won’t know the actual answer until the film is released, but there’s a lot to learn about what happened after Matrix 3. With the Matrix game, the plot was extended, and we learned more about Neo’s fate and the ongoing fight between Zion and the Machines. In this video, we’ll look at all of that and more as we try to solve the Matrix story’s riddles!
The Matrix Online – taking the story ahead with some new characters:
Cryptos
The Matrix Online was a well-known multiplayer online role-playing game that continued the tale. Cryptos was one of the new characters presented in this episode. He was a Zionite captain and an extreme who intended to destroy the Matrix with virtual nukes. He went missing after the war, and it was widely believed that he turned into a Cypherite. Later, it was discovered that he was under the control of the Machines, and this new information brought some tension between Zion and the Machines because it was a violation of the truce formed by Neo.
The General
He was the lead Sentinel in the attack on Zion following the Machine War. The sacrifice of Neo brought about a truce and the mission of the General was to restart the war by some means between Zion and the Machines. He had quite a few ideas to do that, but eventually, he became a tool of the Merovingian and the military leader of his forces.
Red-eyed Agents
The General had ingeniously disguised these as Agents, but they were imposters. They started to sabotage the truce agreement, and all the major organizations like Zion, the Machines, and the Merovingian denied being responsible for these. Ultimately, it was found that these were simply a disguise technology developed to implicate the Machines for their actions.
What Happened to Neo!
Neo is the franchise’s most significant character, and he was predicted to be mankind’s savior, the one who would release humanity from the Matrix and put an end to the Machine War. Neo clearly made the ultimate sacrifice in The Matrix Revolutions. However, The Matrix Online had something more to add to this simple fate.
We see his avatar live on through the game, and this brings some crucial possibilities. One of them could be that Neo had enough foresight to realize that the world would need his services once again in the future. Thus, he split fragments of himself inside the Matrix, and he planned for these to be used to maintain the peace created by his efforts.
The game version also confirms that his body was never returned by the Machines, and they continued to voice their innocence in this matter. This certainly allows a possible comeback for Neo in the new Matrix movie, and going by the story this shouldn’t seem like such a shock!
Morpheus Gone Rogue!
Morpheus is a Zion agent serving in the city’s defence force against the Machines, and he is another protagonist in the Matrix trilogy. He devotes his entire life to find the man prophesied to end the Machine war, and he has a personality that commands respect. The game version, however, added a twist to this character.
Morpheus is furious because the Machines failed to return Neo’s body. He embarks on a personal terrorist campaign as a result of his wrath over the disappearance of his friend’s body. In this rogue state, he plants bombs that forces people who are still plugged into the Matrix to see the reality of their world. He continued to believe that the Machines were keeping Neo’s corpse, and these guerrilla attacks were a mark of his protests.
However, such drastic measures made him a wanted man who was hunted down by the humans, Machines, and exiles alike. Eventually, the General creates a digital fabrication of Morpheus, and this brings some awareness into the program. This is where the possibility of an alternate version of Morpheus being created is always lurking around the corner.
The Opposed Cults that formed after Neo’s death
Neo’s death led in the development of two opposing cult-like groups, the EPN or E Pluribus Neo, and the Cypherites, as we’ve already discussed. Kid headed the initial group, and a Matrix sequel comic even claims that he was taught by Morpheus.
This group wants to allow everyone the freedom to exit the Matrix if they choose to do so. However, a sub-section of this group wanted to ensure that everyone should be free irrespective of their choices. The other group followed Cypher’s principle that ignorance is bliss.
Thus, the Cypherites seek to remain in the virtual world and prefer subservience to the Machines. It is later learned that this group is actually led by a machine-built program that is disguised as a human named Cryptos. An extremist faction within this group wants to forcibly reinsert those who have been freed from the Matrix!
The Merovingian – the surprise package!
We weren’t expecting the surprise villain when we initially got our hands on The Matrix Online game! It wasn’t the Cypherites, Generals, or Machines that did it. The real villain was the Merovingian, the chief of the digital underworld. He survives the attempts made by the Vamps and the Lupines, and he even brings the General under his command. His ultimate goal is to get rid of the Oracle and consolidate his influence within the Matrix.
We never get to know for sure, who killed Morpheus, but there is a good chance that the Merovingian was behind the murder. The mystery killer used corrupted exiles to destabilize the Matrix, and this points fingers towards the Merovingian. He even got close to assassinating the Oracle as well, but Kid ruined his plans.
Zion vs. the Machines
The events of the movies, according to the game’s storyline, were followed by a period of calm. Both sides attempted to keep the atmosphere civil, but the process was going to collapse sooner or later. The Machines also had a friendlier Agent, who was to act as a liaison between the two warring parties.
The efforts were there, but they were certain to fail eventually. There were a few events that fuelled the distrust and hostility between the groups. The Cypherite leader was a big incentive, and Neo’s missing body created quite some trouble. Finally, the Machines found out that Zion was preparing for another war, and this was the final nail in the coffin.
The peace could last only seven years, and anticipating the obvious, the humans tried to prepare for another settlement away from the Machines, and stocked up on EMP weapons. The terms of the peace treaty were officially violated, and the second war was imminent!
The Curious Case of Anome’s Unlimit Group
For their combined mission, the General was about to grant Zion a Machine update. The coordinated effort planned against the Merovingian was thwarted when Anome turned rogue and stole the upgrade. This actually sparked an unlikely alliance between the Merovingian and Zion, and Anome went on to form the group Unlimit. They used their powers to enable themselves with special abilities, and the way to identify them was their green eyes. Anome quickly became an enemy to everyone, and finally, the Agents killed him.
The Matrix Resurrections: What does Morpheus absence imply!
Lana Wachowski is back with a new Matrix film, and the teaser has certainly piqued the excitement of fans of the series. We get to watch Keanu Reeves pick up where he left off in the role of Neo, and we also get to see Jada Pinkett Smith and Carrie-Ann Moss return.
However, Morpheus is nowhere to be seen and this has caused speculations regarding his role. In the game, he was shown to go rogue, and then a surprise attack by a mysterious assassin saw him riddled with bullets. But does that imply that he is permanently gone? If the Matrix theorists are to be believed, there are plenty of chances for Morpheus to reappear.
Do you remember the Emergency Jack-Out upgrade for the red pills? This could bypass the permadeath inside the Matrix, and this means that Morpheus could still be out there. Yes, the bullets used to kill him had a particular code to nullify the effects of the upgrade, but this character is simply too dynamic to end!
We do know that the new movie will have Morpheus in some form because Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is officially credited as the one playing the role. It is possible that we will see a new Morpheus who is not related to the old one! As of now, it remains to be seen whether the director chooses to take a different route or go along the tried and tested path regarding this character.
How Neo and Trinity Return in the new movie
With all of the excitement around the next Matrix film, fans are expecting nothing less than the captivating man versus. machine storyline that first brought the series to life. Trinity and Neo both perished at the end of The Matrix Revolutions, as anybody who has seen the Matrix trilogy knows.
In The Matrix Resurrections, however, it is evident that the characters have been resurrected. If sources are to be believed, Neo uploaded their brains before dying because he wanted to have a backup in case something went wrong later. So, Neo continued to exist all this while as ones and zeroes around the digital world.
There are some other ways of bringing Neo back into the story. He could be revived by the Oracle, or simply be time-traveling from the past, but clearly, him being alive as a digital entity is much more realistic. This is also in sync with the religious arc of the storyline. Neo is more of an allegory of Jesus Christ, and just like the son of God, Neo saved humanity.
If the religious side of the franchise is considered, the son of God is supposed to descend from heaven for a second coming, and the Matrix metaphor would be complete with Neo returning to avert a crisis once again. Thus, it would be natural to see an older version of them stuck in the Matrix! If that isn’t convenient for the plot, we don’t know what is! The only tricky part would be Trinity having to accept her boyfriend as a piece of code!
Our Final Words
With all of the excitement around the next Matrix film, fans are expecting nothing less than the captivating man versus. machine storyline that first brought the series to life. Trinity and Neo both perished at the end of The Matrix Revolutions, as anybody who has seen the Matrix trilogy knows.
In The Matrix Resurrections, however, it is evident that the characters have been resurrected. Neo’s return has already surprised the fans enough, and now, it is only a matter of time before we know all about the mysteries surrounding the narrative. Only a few days remain before we can choose between the red pill and the blue pill again!