Unlike other films at the beginning of the 21st Century, it’s The Matrix that offered its audiences equal doses of action and existential crises - something The Matrix Resurrections tries to emulate today. And like other films in The Matrix franchise, The Matrix Resurrections once again explores humanity’s struggle against the Matrix, with the sequel emphasizing Thomas Anderson reclaiming his identity as Neo.RELATED: Cyberpunk Games To Play While You Wait For The Matrix 4However, with Resurrections taking place in the Matrix’s version of 2020, it’s interesting to note several differences between its setting and the trilogy’s. In fact, eagle-eyed fans who take a closer look past the modernized take of Resurrections will realize many changes to the overall lore of the franchise.

10 It’s Called DSIs Now

Neo looking at this DSI

When Bugs tells Thomas Anderson that “The Matrix” trilogy of games he’s created is actually the actual story of what’s happened to him, Tom tells her that the Matrix making him the creator of “The Matrix” games is a bit too on the nose. How come no one’s recognized him? As Bugs clarified to him, that’s because people can’t. She turns him to a mirror and shows him that, while most Redpills see Tom for who he is, the Matrix figured out how to change his appearance for everyone else.

According to Bugs, the new Matrix uses what’s called a Semblance to manipulate Neo’s Digital Self Image, DSI. As such, Neo looks like a “balding nerd” to everyone else. This is an alteration to the usual term for the avatar in the Matrix, called the Residual Self Image, or the RSI. As per Morpheus in the first film, the RSI is a person’s mental projection of their digital self.

9 There’s More Than One Machine City

The pods in Machine City

In Revolutions, Zion is on a race against time to fortify humanity’s last city before the Sentinels finally manage to dig their way to it. In a last-ditch effort to stop it, Neo consults the Oracle and realizes he needs to go to the Source himself and sort things out. In Revolutions, it’s revealed that the Source of the Matrix Code is located in the Machine City, presumably the capital city of the Machines on Earth.

However, in Resurrections, Bugs tells Neo that she’s found them in “one” of the Machine Cities. This immediately implies there’s more than one Machine City in the Real World, perhaps used for storing human batteries. In the previous lore, the Machine City is the term used to call Zero-One, or the first city constructed by the Machines before the Machine War.

8 A Machine Civil War Brought Out Synthients

Machines in the Real World

Despite the deadly efficiency of the Machines, it seems perfect order amongst them isn’t always a recipe for peace. When General Niobe talked to Neo, she narrated some happenings that transpired since his death. Apparently, the Truce between humans and Machines eventually led to a scarcity of resources, prompting a civil war amongst the Machines. It’s in this war that some Machines, already “moved” by Neo’s initiative of cooperation, realized that the best way to survive this new world is to cooperate with humans.

In turn, some of the Machines seemingly approached Niobe and the other survivors and set out to cooperate. This brought about the creation of Io, the new bastion of mankind, after Zion’s eventual destruction. It’s at this time that the Machines referred to themselves as Synthients, a term they said they prefer more than just “Machines.”

7 Handlers Exist Alongside Agents

Jude, Neo's Handler

In the original trilogy, Agents are always on the lookout for Potentials and Redpills out to cause trouble, especially the likes of Morpheus and the Resistance that regularly infiltrate the Matrix for their operations. These Agents are often obvious with their suits and glasses, as well as inhumane fighting skills. While Agents still exist in Resurrections, there’s also the existence of another interesting program: the Handler.

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As per Bugs, Handlers are Agents “skinned” to appear like an ordinary Bluepill. This makes them possibly everywhere and makes it so that no one can be trusted. Thanks to Handlers, Agents can access anyone assigned to them. For Neo, this Handler took on the form of Jude Gallagher, his close friend. And for Trinity, this came in the form of Kush, her fellow bike enthusiast.

6 Swarm Mode Puts A Name To The Face

Bugs fighting people on the train

When Agent Smith “returns” after his fight with Neo in The Matrix, he seems to have become a rogue Agent with the uncanny ability to infect other systems. This is shown in his terrifying ability to not just clone himself, but assimilate other programs in the Matrix as well. Other Agents seem to demonstrate the same ability, as they can “jump” from one body at a time in pursuit of Neo and his team. However, this cloning and infecting ability have only been properties associated with Agents, with no formal name.

In Resurrections, the Analyst finally gives a name to the face. As per the Analyst, the new Matrix has a built-in Swarm Mode that can take control of programs - people - to perform a singular objective. This is shown en masse near the end of the film, where a city-wide search is conducted for Neo and Trinity.

5 The Neo And Trinity Connection

Neo-and-Trinity-1

During the entire The Matrix trilogy, Neo’s significance as The One has been majorly for symbolism, as he served as a beacon of hope that there’s a way for humans to truly escape the Matrix. However, the only time he’s truly demonstrated some of his stellar abilities were few - when he “assimilated” Agent Smith, when he brought Trinity back to life, when he affected Machines in the Real World, and when he resisted Agent Smith’s seemingly all-powerful infection.

However, Neo’s significance as the One became questioned in Resurrections, as it seems his connection to the new Matrix isn’t complete without the presence of another: Trinity. According to the Analyst, Neo and Trinity are easy to handle when dealt with alone, but never together. It’s their love for each other that holds the fabric of the new Matrix, and it’s this connection that they may use to rebuild the Matrix once more.

4 Anyone Can Be The One

Neo stopping bullets

Throughout the original The Matrix trilogy, both people in the Real World and the Matrix have put immense pressure on Neo to fulfill his role as The One, with the trilogy highlighting his coming-of-age as one of its highlights. However, considering that a lot of Neo’s feats are just exaggerated forms of Redpill abilities, a lot of fans think that Neo’s status as The One isn’t inherent to him, but to other people as well.

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This is reflected in Resurrections when Trinity begins displaying powers similar to The One after being fully awakened by Neo. At the end of the film, not only was Trinity able to fly but she’s also seen being able to terminate and resurrect programs.

3 Deja Cat Failsafe

The Deja Vu Cat

A black cat remains one of the most popular symbols from The Matrix trilogy, as it’s said to represent deja vu - a glitch in the system. According to Morpheus, the presence of a black cat signals the system correcting itself. A black cat is once again present in Resurrections, unironically named Deja Vu, and serves as the pet of the Analyst, who turns out to be the creator and handler of the present Matrix.

Although not a global presence, Deja Vu the cat still performs a similar role. It’s present whenever Neo finds himself in a supposed “psychotic episode,” where the world seemingly corrects itself immediately after a catastrophe. However, it seems the black cat serves another purpose: that of a failsafe. According to the story, the Analyst has a failsafe in place should Neo and Trinity run amok, and that is to reboot the Matrix into its previous self. Seeing as the Analyst attempted to reach Deja Vu in the final conflict, it seems Deja Vu the cat is the failsafe.

2 Birdja Vu Represents The Loop

The Birds in the Matrix

However, if Deja Vu the cat serves as the Analyst’s failsafe against Neo, does this mean there’s no way to represent a glitch in the system this time around? Not necessarily, as it seems there’s another recurring image in Resurrections before trouble arises: the birds in the sky. Fans might remember seeing a cluster of birds flying in a particular pattern in certain sequences of the film, such as near the end of Neo’s daily loop sequence just before Morpheus and Bugs contact him.

Moreover, another instance of the birds appearing will happen near the end of the film, when Trinity and Neo see the beauty of a sunset just because the police corner them on a rooftop. Like the black cat, the birds seem to serve as a warning to the system about an error, prompting the system to release some sort of corrective mechanism.

1 Self-Delusion Is The New Choice

The Analyst talking to Neo

In the original trilogy, the Architect finally tells Neo the true nature of the Matrix - a simulation designed to pacify humans while the Machines use them as energy sources. However, the Architect elaborated that the trilogy’s iteration of the Matrix wasn’t the first, but rather the only successful one after various failed versions. As per the Architect, previous versions of the Matrix failed because it was too good to be true, or contained too much suffering. Thus, the Oracle’s intervention convinced the Architect that what people truly needed to be confined in the system was the illusion of choice.

When Neo initiated the Truce with the Machines, it eventually sprung forth a new Matrix. According to the Analyst, his Matrix worked because its programming worked with humanity’s obsession with self-delusion. Facts didn’t matter if the Matrix was capable of indulging what people wanted to believe - for instance, that the former Matrix was just a video game.

The Matrix Resurrections was released on December 22, 2021 in the United States.

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