I remember the first reasoning being that Reyes was jealous of Morrison being the strike commander and that a battle between both of them led to the destruction of the HQ.
But I have an impression swirling around that tells my gut that this isn’t true (Chu tweet?), and that Reyes actually thought that Morrison was the better pick and didn’t mind? So does that lead the HQ attack being a conspiracy that S76 wishes to unfoil?
If so, why is Reaper hunting Overwatch agents? Especially the uncorrupted ones like Winston, Tracer, and Mercy?
Is Reaper’s condition from the soldier enhancement program as a side effect, and that Moira’s experiments probably just exacerbated the cellular regeneration and degradation, giving it practical applications?
Considering Moira’s experimentation on herself has given her skin metallic growths (at least on her hand, Oasis skin casts doubt on her face for now), I thus don’t think she has caused Reaper’s condition, but rather, had just amplified it. Especially since she experimented on him during Blackwatch, while she turned her right arm into a lab rat at the same time. So, Moira conducted 2 different experiments between herself and Reyes in my interpretation.
One of the examples of [complex characters] that excites me that we’re gonna delve into that I–I don’t even think our audience understands fully yet because we haven’t explained it well yet is that like, Reyes and Morrison, especially in the early days–for those of you unfamiliar with the story, at one point Reyes was in charge of Overwatch when it formed and when it became more of a thing after they defeated the Omnic Crisis, Morrison was actually given the top position of power and Reyes was overlooked because he was too rogue, he was too maverick in his leadership style–he ruffled too many feathers.
And a lot of our fans have assumed “oh, that’s why Reyes and Morrison hate each other,” and the story that we’re developing is actually, like–no, these guys loved each other–like–they’re like, best war buddies. And in a lot of ways, Reyes was relieved that Morrison had to have the more political role, and like, he was like kind of–it’s always easier being the number two guy because you’re not ultimately accountable for all that, Reyes was kind of, you know, in some ways thankful and relieved, um, and weirdly, we’re gonna show how that relationship actually was Morrison’s downfall because for so long, Morrison would actually defend Reyes’s questionable actions.
And to us, that feels more like what would actually happen between real people and less just, um, typical cliche black-and-white “this guy is bad, that guy is good,” you know, we want to have that depth of relationship because I think it’s ultimately more relatable to all of us as kind of human beings.
The jealousy angle was believed by characters in-universe, including Mercy:
According to Overwatch’s former agents, this outcome was inevitable. “After Morrison’s promotion to strike commander, his relationship with Reyes changed,” Dr. Angela Ziegler, medical director of Overwatch, stated during a UN committee hearing. “The tension became more pronounced as time went on. I tried to mend things. We all did. Sometimes when the closest bonds break, all you can do is pray you stay out of the cross fire.” - From Fading Glory: On The Trail of Jack Morrison
We don’t know the answer to this yet - it’s one thing that’s been bothering me too. I hope we get a satisfactory answer.
Now that you mention this, isn’t it weird that she believes that? Because when she joined OW Morrison was already the commander, so how could she testify about how their relationship was prior his promotion? Am I missing something?
To be fair, this comes from some of the earliest lore written - before the game came out, and before they changed direction with the lore (and scrapped First Strike). It’s likely this stance is no longer canon, but since nothing else contradicts it,
She doesn’t really say she thinks it was jealousy, no ? At least in the part you quoted, only that their relationship changed after the promotion, but it could have started getting tense between them for any reason related to that time period, like the shift in dynamics, different views on leadership, Reyes’ health issues, him using Blackwatch in a questionable way like Kaplan pointed out, etc.
Hi!
I don’t think we have ever seen Reaper attacking any of these people you mentioned as it’s his objective. Yes he fought Tracer and Winston but only because they were trying to stop him.
His bio says he has been attacking former Overwatch agents, this might mean the more high ranked officials? The people who probably were aware of his actions and condition, and tried to stop him anyways?
Maybe the people who Reaper THINKS were involved in doing what caused his current deformation?
