5

I'd be interested to hear if anybody can squash this one for me. Some questions explain 'what the Train-Station is' and 'how he got there' (he touched the source and ooh that caused him to be somewhere between the real world and the matrix) but these are abstractions, abstractions don't work until there's hardware to implement.

When I was growing up this plot jump made perfect sense because I could invoke the following logic: "This movie is cool, I like it."

I'm rewatching it as an adult after a college education, and I'm wondering how on Earth Neo could actually be plugged into the train-station without being connected to something via brain-needle. Kind of a huge plot hole here. This all starts in movie #2 when he's like "wait, something's different" and somehow he fries three sentinels with his mind. Trying to reconcile these two components of the trilogy, I can only think of the following, fragile solutions:

  1. All the machine-grown humans have some latent wi-fi-esque hardware integrated into them.

    I find this answer shaky and unsatisfying upon investigation.

    1. A machine would not integrate wi-fi hardware into a human that it expects to to remain in a static location with a hard-wired connection for its entire life.
      One might try and argue, "Well what if the cable fails? Then there's a backup!" But if that is the situation, A far more elegant solution is to have the back-end system be of two hard wires, a primary and an auxiliary. In the event of a primary failure, load is shifted over to the auxiliary, and some IT request ticket is raised to replace the faulty-primary. (If you laughed at the IT request thing, the entire Matrix Trilogy is an IT ticket request essentially).

    2. If the machines knew humans would escape, as explained by the Architect, it is unlike a machine would provide so many facilities for humans to enter the matrix, as opposed to bottlenecking them all through their phone-terminal entries.
      Bottlenecking means better managability, cost-free. Sure, they "broadcast their pirate-signal" to the matrix, but any way you slice that, it becomes strange and not-machine-like to provide both a wifi/hard-link networking solution for its human users. The broadcasting thing is more likely workflowed as such:
      brain-hw -> hard-link -> 'wifi'-broadcaster -> matrix-terminal -> matrix as opposed to the brain hardware already being capable of wireless activity, and the cables being somehow like guitars to an amplifier.

  2. All machines operate on brain-waves or something, and neo has unlocked some latent brain-wave-amplifier hardware that was integrated in him at birth, thus being able to fry squid telepathically and enter the matrix/train-station.

    Again shaky, for similar reasons as (1).

  3. Some kind of wireless hardware was installed in Neo during his muscle-atrophy days in the original film, and it is somehow new technology that nobody knows about

    Probably the most plausible answer, but still not very satisfying. This could also explain why whats her face says to trinity about neo that she's "never seen anything like this " (regarding the neural patterns of being jacked-in), if it were such a cutting edge technology, then of course it's plausible that she's not reading the Zion Herald and didn't hear about the new wi-fi implant for your brain-stem. No more of that painful 'jack-in' headache!

Anyway, I could not find any explaination on how they're expected to achieve this, so I guess its all up to interpretation.

Improve this question
10
  • 1
    I think Neo had supernatural powers rather than a brain wi-fi, as far as the end of the series goes. Because he was a jesus style semi-religious figure, rather than having some special hardware. But I can't recall offhand where the train station fits into his matrix access.
    – Mark Rogers
    Sep 27, 2017 at 23:18
  • Remind me again what the evidence is that the train station isn't connected to the Matrix? I get that it's "somewhere in between" but how do we know there's not a connection between the Matrix and there? It's been a long time since I watched the movies, so I don't remember how explicit it's made that there's no way to get from one to the other.
    – Steve-O
    Sep 28, 2017 at 0:36
  • The fundamental source of confusion, IMO, is that we thought we were watching science fiction, but the writers were writing a fantasy.
    – Harry Johnston
    Sep 28, 2017 at 0:45
  • @Steve-O : The train station is probably connected to the matrix, since it's a pathway leading to it, but the point it, that Neo was not plugged into the matrix at that time, but instead lying around in the real(?) world without a physical connection to the matrix.
    – Florian Schaetz
    Sep 28, 2017 at 6:12
  • 1
    “When I was growing up... I could invoke the following logic: "This movie is cool, I like it."” I’m going to say something that may blow your mind: you can still do that as an adult.
    – Paul D. Waite
    Oct 29, 2017 at 12:41

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
7

I find that there are two camps of thought on this.

1) This is evidence that the world outside the matrix is just another layer of matrix used to correct the error that leads to The One.

2) The world the Matrix takes place in has actual mind-body dualism in it and Neo's mind left his body in that sequence.

Personally, I find both of these reasonings unsatisfying; but I also find the movies to be philosophically bankrupt to begin with so who is surprised? I think a 3rd option is available - the Matrix doesn't make sense and was poorly written.

But for the sake of in-universe explanations let's inspect these two options.

There is a lot of shaky evidence that the "real world" is also a layer of the Matrix. For instance, Smith is able to download himself into a real human. Neo is able to, with his mind alone, cause a bunch of real world machines to stop moving. It is infeasible for humans to function as batteries and this is an obvious lie. So on. So it certainly seems possible that this is the case. I give it 8 mcguffins out of 10.

On the other hand, many of those same things (super powers, being outside your body, Smith coming into someone else's body) can be explained in a world that has mind-body duality. Considering the other religious themes in the series, it is very likely that this is what was intended. Neo is very slap-across-the-face-obviously meant to be Jesus. So adopting a worldview where souls exist and can carry personality outside the body is probably reasonable to people that would overuse such themes like that.

Taking the tongue out of my cheek for a bit. I think these films are great fun, but thinking this deeply about the philosophy 101 level thought that underpins it will just end up giving you a headache.

Improve this answer
11
  • 3
    The "Matrix within a Matrix" fan-theory has been repeatedly and comprehensively debunked, not least because it would have made the entire film series worthless/pointless. It's hard to see any directors as (emotionally) invested as the Wachowskis doing that to their baby.
    – Valorum
    Sep 28, 2017 at 4:17
  • 4
    I've downvoted. This is basically a rant on the things you don't like about the film rather than a sensible attempt to answer the question asked.
    – Valorum
    Sep 28, 2017 at 4:18
  • 3
    @Valorum I eagerly await your explanation. I stated that I didn't find either explanation satisfying and while my answer is undoubtedly snarky it explores what I see as the only two remotely reasonably options. If you have a third, I really do want to see it.
    – DampeS8N
    Sep 29, 2017 at 0:17
  • 1
    @Moo A work of fiction isn't obliged to make sense, and particularly it isn't obliged to make sense to you.
    – Cadence
    Dec 26, 2022 at 23:33
  • 1
    @Cadence good works of fiction arent trainwrecks that cause significant discourse afterward about basic plot lines.
    – Moo
    Dec 27, 2022 at 3:30
-1

POSSIBILITY #1 If you're looking for the most scientific explanation, it's that the train station exists outside of The Matrix but within the Zion-Matrix (layer 2 of the simulation). Everybody only believes they are free because it's easier to control a prisoner if they believe they've already escaped.

Evidence for a second simulation: 1) Neo's orange-vision in Revolutions while outside the Matrix, as well as frying the Sentinels in Reloaded. 2) Mobil Ave (the train station)

POSSIBILITY #2 Cybernetic implant and augmented reality imposed by the Machine City. Neo didn't fry the Sentinels. Instead, when he gestured, Deus Ex Machina played along and fried the sentinels as they approached him. Neo claimed he could "feel them", but as a result of the implant sending confusing signals into his brain. They then put him in a remote coma and jacked his RSI (residual self-iamge) into the Matrix, where it eventually escapes back into his actual brain, which can seemingly be influenced remotely. Perhaps his unique Neo hardware also granted him infrared vision in the real world when it was deemed necessary by the machines to get him safely back to the Source.

Evidence for remote control hardware: 1) The sentinels are long range remote 2) Neo already has machinery in his body (the head jack)

Improve this answer
3
  • Welcome to SFF:SE. We recommend having a look at the tour, which contains helpful hints for using the site.
    – Politank-Z
    Oct 29, 2017 at 10:47
  • The Matrix-Within-a-Matrix fan theory has been comprehensively debunked, not least because it would have meant that the three films were meaningless.
    – Valorum
    Oct 29, 2017 at 11:33
  • If by meaningless, you mean that the protagonist's actions didn't ultimately achieve anything, I don't think that would be true. Even if there were another layer of simulation, it's suggested that Neo's iteration of The Matrix went differently than those before. Regardless, the OP asked for a logical explanation. The simpler answer would be that the Wachowskis gave Neo superpowers outside the Matrix, which would make The Matrix a fantasy series rather than cyberpunk.
    – Edahsrevlis
    Oct 31, 2017 at 5:16

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.