--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You know that moment in 'The Matrix' when…" description: "\"You know that moment in 'The Matrix' when Neo takes the red pill and is plunged into the real world? That's what it felt like when I first read 'Watchm..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2f/libba-bray-259_audacious_you-know-that-moment-in-the-matrix-when_1979756.png" --- # You know that moment in 'The Matrix' when Neo takes the… ![“You know that moment in 'The Matrix' when Neo takes the red pill and is plunged into the real world? That's what it felt like when I first read 'Watchmen' - like someone was taking a can opener to my head to make room for Moore's audacious brilliance.” quote by Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2f/libba-bray-259_audacious_you-know-that-moment-in-the-matrix-when_1979756.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2f/libba-bray-259_audacious_you-know-that-moment-in-the-matrix-when_1979756.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2f/libba-bray-259_audacious_you-know-that-moment-in-the-matrix-when_1979756.png) > “You know that moment in 'The Matrix' when Neo takes the red pill and is plunged into the real world? That's what it felt like when I first read 'Watchmen' - like someone was taking a can opener to my head to make room for Moore's audacious brilliance.” [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote compares the shocking revelation of reality in The Matrix to the mind‑blowing impact of reading Watchmen, emphasizing how the story reshapes perception. **In simple terms:** Reading Watchmen felt like a reality‑shifting revelation. Key Takeaway Embrace works that challenge your worldview. Themes culture shock literature revelation Mood astonished curious Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - first reading of a graphic novel - discovering a new genre - discussing comics with friends Key Concepts Narrative disruption cognitive dissonance Questions to Reflect On - How did the story change your view of heroes? - What other media have altered your perception? A Different Perspective The comparison may overstate personal reaction; not everyone experiences such a jolt. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Audacious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/audacious/) [Brilliance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brilliance/) [Comic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic/) [Felt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt/) [Felt Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt-like/) [First](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first/) [Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/head/) [Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make/) [Matrix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matrix/) [Matrix Neo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matrix-neo-3373211/) [Moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moment/) [Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moore/) [Pill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pill/) [Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read/) [Read Watchmen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read-watchmen-966676/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Real world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-world/) [Red](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/red/) [Room](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/room/) [Someone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/someone/) [Takes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/takes/) [Taking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taking/) [The real world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/the-real-world/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Watchmen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/watchmen/) [Watchmen Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/watchmen-like-1518223/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/) ## Related quotes > [When I read 'Watchmen,' it changed my view of so many things. It was the first time I'd read a graphic novel really like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-silver/when-i-read-watchmen-it-changed-my-view-of-so-many-things-it-was-the/) [Joel Silver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-silver/) > ['Watchmen' is like the music you feel is written just for you. 'That's my song, no one else gets that but me.' That's why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zack-snyder/watchmen-is-like-the-music-you-feel-is-written-just-for-you-that-s-my/) [Zack Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zack-snyder/) > [In comics, there are depths that don't reveal themselves immediately, and the stuff that you might consider anal about 'Watching the Watchmen' - like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gibbons/in-comics-there-are-depths-that-don-t-reveal-themselves-immediately/) [Dave Gibbons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gibbons/) > [I think with something like 'Watchmen' you can genuinely call that a graphic novel because it has the weight and the intent of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gibbons/i-think-with-something-like-watchmen-you-can-genuinely-call-that-a/) [Dave Gibbons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gibbons/) > [The original series of Watchmen is the complete story that Alan Moore and I wanted to tell. However, I appreciate DC's reasons for this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gibbons/the-original-series-of-watchmen-is-the-complete-story-that-alan-moore/) [Dave Gibbons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gibbons/) > [“As watchmen working through the night we need to come again and again with our petitions, but always knowing that each prayer, each petition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-davis/as-watchmen-working-through-the-night-we-need-to-come-again-and-again/) [Patrick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-davis/) > [“Rich can live better than poor but they cannot live without poor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/rich-can-live-better-than-poor-but-they-cannot-live-without-poor/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [You know, I gotta be honest. I have not done a lot of CGI work. I just haven't. I mean, there were hundreds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-wilson/you-know-i-gotta-be-honest-i-have-not-done-a-lot-of-cgi-work-i-just/) [Patrick Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-wilson/) > [“Laurie: Her pain, her fears, her whole life, y' know? I mean, ordinary people, right? All the things that happen to them... doesn't that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/laurie-her-pain-her-fears-her-whole-life-y-know-i-mean-ordinary/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [“Rorshach's journal. October 16, 1985. Been waiting in Moloch's fridge for three hours. Ate two raw eggs and packet of honey mustard sauce. Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/rorshach-s-journal-october-16-1985-been-waiting-in-moloch-s-fridge/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [My very small part in WATCHMEN is that, every now and then, Alan would phone me: ''Neil, you're an educated man. Where does it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/my-very-small-part-in-watchmen-is-that-every-now-and-then-alan-would/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [The truth is the music is really an incredible personal part of the movie. When I was drawing the storyboards for Watchmen, I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zack-snyder/the-truth-is-the-music-is-really-an-incredible-personal-part-of-the/) [Zack Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zack-snyder/) > [In the sense that Watchmen references movies, comic books, pop culture in general. It knows it's a movie. I really do like movies that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zack-snyder/in-the-sense-that-watchmen-references-movies-comic-books-pop-culture/) [Zack Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zack-snyder/) > [I didn't write superheroes for the first 10 years of my comic career. I was just doing fan fiction. I wasn't thinking about superheroes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-michael-bendis/i-didn-t-write-superheroes-for-the-first-10-years-of-my-comic-career/) [Brian Michael Bendis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-michael-bendis/) > [I think that, for me, Superman just seemed to make a lot of sense to me. After doing 'Watchmen,' it was - you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zack-snyder/i-think-that-for-me-superman-just-seemed-to-make-a-lot-of-sense-to-me/) [Zack Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zack-snyder/) ## More by Libba Bray > [“I have never felt more ridiculous. If this is what it means to be a woman I am not the slightest bit interested.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/i-have-never-felt-more-ridiculous-if-this-is-what-it-means-to-be-a/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [There are no safe choices. Only other choices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/there-are-no-safe-choices-only-other-choices/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [“The King of Crows raked his fingers across the dark until it bled. He licked the blood from his fingers with a forked tongue.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/the-king-of-crows-raked-his-fingers-across-the-dark-until-it-bled-he/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [It is how it has always been. We will accept the legacy of our ancestors,' Asha says, smiling, and in her smile I do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/it-is-how-it-has-always-been-we-will-accept-the-legacy-of-our/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [The trouble with morning is that it comes well before noon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/the-trouble-with-morning-is-that-it-comes-well-before-noon/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [“Spare a copper for our cause?" the girl with the coin cup asks, her voice weary. "I can spare more than that," I say.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/spare-a-copper-for-our-cause-the-girl-with-the-coin-cup-asks-her/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [As one, they leap, laughing, and that is where we leave them - mouths open, arms spread wide, fingers splayed to take in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/as-one-they-leap-laughing-and-that-is-where-we-leave-them-mouths-open/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [I am for hockey. I find I should like to hit something with a stick. -Gemma Doyle Trilogy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/i-am-for-hockey-i-find-i-should-like-to-hit-something-with-a-stick/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [There are times when I wish I could go back and change the course of my life. Make different choices...But the past cannot be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/there-are-times-when-i-wish-i-could-go-back-and-change-the-course-of/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [“Sexuality is not meant to be this way - an honest, consensual expression in which a girl might take an active role when she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/sexuality-is-not-meant-to-be-this-way-an-honest-consensual-expression/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [There is no greater power on this earth than story.” Will paced the length of the room. “People think boundaries and borders build nations.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/there-is-no-greater-power-on-this-earth-than-story-will-paced-the/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [Heaven's brightest and best-loved angel, who was cast out for inspiring a rebellion against God. Having lost Heaven, Lucifer and his rebel angels vowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/heaven-s-brightest-and-best-loved-angel-who-was-cast-out-for/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [“The light is so bright it hurts my eyes. But I don't dare close them. I won't. Instead, I try to adjust to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/the-light-is-so-bright-it-hurts-my-eyes-but-i-don-t-dare-close-them-i/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [“Miss Moore speaks slowly, deliberately. "I know because I read." She pulls back and stands, hands on hips, offering us a challenge. "May I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/miss-moore-speaks-slowly-deliberately-i-know-because-i-read-she-pulls/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) > [“Duff's little moans traveled up her spine, made her head buzz. And another thought grabbed hold: She was doing this. She had the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libba-bray/duff-s-little-moans-traveled-up-her-spine-made-her-head-buzz-and/) [Libba Bray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) [Explore all 774 Libba Bray quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libba-bray/) ## More Audacious quotes > [The most radical, audacious thing to think is that there might be some point to working hard and thinking hard and reading hard and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-most-radical-audacious-thing-to-think-is-that-there-might-be-some/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am, what you call, an audacious man. I could walk into the room of Warren Buffet, and he may not give me the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anubhav-sinha/i-am-what-you-call-an-audacious-man-i-could-walk-into-the-room-of/) [Anubhav Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anubhav-sinha/) > [I look forward to growing old and wise and audacious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/i-look-forward-to-growing-old-and-wise-and-audacious/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [I respect the astute and rigorously unsentimental David Horowitz as one of America's most original and courageous political analysts. He has the true 1960s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/i-respect-the-astute-and-rigorously-unsentimental-david-horowitz-as/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [You can call it what you like, categorize it, vivisect it, qualify, quantify, or dismiss it, and none of it will make grace anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathleen-falsani/you-can-call-it-what-you-like-categorize-it-vivisect-it-qualify/) [Cathleen Falsani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathleen-falsani/) > [We must move forward in the days ahead with audacious faith. The moral arc of the universe is long but it bends toward justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/we-must-move-forward-in-the-days-ahead-with-audacious-faith-the-moral/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Holiness is a disposition of the heart that makes us humble and little in the arms of God, aware of our weakness, and confident…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/therese-of-lisieux/holiness-is-a-disposition-of-the-heart-that-makes-us-humble-and/) [Therese of Lisieux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/therese-of-lisieux/) > [Think about how audacious it is to really believe in yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/think-about-how-audacious-it-is-to-really-believe-in-yourself/) [Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/) > [There's something to be said for going right into people's living rooms. I think actors have always loved that medium - you're right in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigourney-weaver/there-s-something-to-be-said-for-going-right-into-people-s-living/) [Sigourney Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigourney-weaver/) > [Live. Love. Smile. Hug. Laugh. Dream. Do. Create. Have fun. Be intense. Be audacious. Be unreasonable. Act impeccably. Breathe. Be you. Be different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-johnson/live-love-smile-hug-laugh-dream-do-create-have-fun-be-intense-be/) [Brian Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-johnson/) > [Audacious faith is the raw material that authentic Christianity is made of. It's the stuff that triggers ordinarily level-headed people like you and me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-furtick/audacious-faith-is-the-raw-material-that-authentic-christianity-is/) [Steven Furtick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-furtick/) > [I like Diaspora because it's audacious, it's driven by passion, and it's very, very hard to do. After all, who in their right mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-battelle/i-like-diaspora-because-it-s-audacious-it-s-driven-by-passion-and-it/) [John Battelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-battelle/) > [It's an audacious thing to build a model of the cosmos. It's exciting how little we know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shea-hembrey/it-s-an-audacious-thing-to-build-a-model-of-the-cosmos-it-s-exciting/) [Shea Hembrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shea-hembrey/) > [People need BHAGs - big hairy audacious goals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-c-collins/people-need-bhags-big-hairy-audacious-goals/) [James C. Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-c-collins/) > [I think it is conceded that I generally do pretty big things as a manager, am audacious in my outlays and risks, give much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-t-barnum/i-think-it-is-conceded-that-i-generally-do-pretty-big-things-as-a/) [P. T. Barnum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-t-barnum/) [Browse all 113 Audacious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/audacious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You know that moment in 'The Matrix' when Neo takes the red pill and is plunged into the real world? 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