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Manifest

Manifest season 4

Credits

Cast

Network

Reviewer

Kennedy Unthank
Paul Asay
Emily Tsiao
Kristin Smith

TV Series Review

Most travelers are all too familiar with airline delays and interminable layovers. But … five years?

Seems excessive, but that’s what happened to the passengers on flight MA 828.

Hey, don’t blame Montego Airlines for the kerfuffle. It wasn’t the company’s fault (as far as we know). The plane took off on time, after all. And when the flight never showed up in New York, everyone had to assume that it had crashed somewhere out to sea. Sad, yes. Tragic, yes. But it sometimes happens.

Then, five-and-a-half years later, the plane, filled with nearly 200 souls and their outdated smartphones, lands as if nothing happened. Sure, they experienced a little turbulence on the way, but what would a long flight be without a little spilled coffee and a startled scream or two, right?

So, like a bevy of jet-lagged Rip Van Winkles, they return to a land much changed from the one they’d left. Children have grown. Spouses have moved on. Loved ones have passed away. Jobs have been filled and apartments sold.

And that’s not the only inconvenience our passengers are dealing with.

FINAL BOARDING CALL

Manifest takes a particular interest in the Stone family. Because their original flight was overbooked back in 2013, some family members went on home as scheduled, while others took the next flight out and landed half a decade later.

Young Cal Stone, a little kid suffering from seemingly terminal leukemia, returns to find a promising new treatment (yay!) and a “twin” sister (Olive) who’s now in high school (yay?). Cal’s dad, Ben, must somehow make up for five lost years with Olive and his wife, Grace. And after experiencing some relational turbulence of their own, Ben and Grace have a newly healthy son, a near-surrogate son (in fellow 828 passenger T.J.) and a daughter whose very name speaks to new beginnings: Eden.

Then there’s Michaela, an NYC police officer. She’s moved on from the fact that her one-time fiancée moved on without her. And she shares something in common with her new husband, Zeke. The dude disappeared himself while hiking, only to reappear after about a year away.

These and other characters find that they’re not only forced to rebuild lives and reconnect with people, but that they must also heed mysterious visions and voices urging them to do things—things that often feel utterly ludicrous in the moment but often save lives.

But it’s more than that: They also discover that they’re all connected in some mysterious way—a connection that goes beyond just sharing the same ill-fated flight.

It’s almost as if they were all meant to be on that plane, and now, they’re trying to discover if it was some sort of nefarious force meaning them ill or perhaps God resurrecting them for a purpose.

And, we eventually discover, that purpose just might relate to the end of the whole world.

CARRY-ON FEES

Manifest (as colleague Adam Holz suggested in a blog) is something of a mash-up between Lost and This Is Us: Passengers have an inexplicable experience aboard a seemingly ill-fated plane, but instead of chasing down smoke monsters and opening mysterious hatches, they’re finding human connection and meaning.

On top of that, Manifest tackles one of the most ticklish topics of all: The place of faith and finding meaning in what can sometimes feel like a meaningless world. And as the characters begin to understand their purposes, familial bonds will deepen.

The setup—the very name of the show, really—seems predicated on that sense of meaning, on the idea that the threads of our lives form some sort of cosmic tapestry, one inherently woven by a Creator. The lives of these characters have meaning, and that meaning gradually becomes manifest. And we, as viewers, can extrapolate that idea to our lives, too: We touch the lives of others in mysterious-but-profound ways.

The “Callings” the survivors hear and, most of the time, follow, suggest that they came back for a reason. Lives are saved. Relationships are repaired. And even if there’s some question as to who these Callings originate from (at least one passenger suspects that the passengers of 828 are serving other, perhaps more diabolical forces), there’s no question that in the short term, people are being helped by some benevolent force.

That’s just the start of this spiritual story. Our characters soon discover that a “Divine Consciousness” is behind all of what has happened to them—and it’s not exactly a Christian one. Yes, some Christian elements do emerge in the series, but so do themes from other religions, too, all syncretized together with a bow on top. It leaves the show feeling more like it was unwilling to commit to any central theme. And in fact, many of the most devout Christians in this show end up being the baddies.

This dive into other religions and mythologies comes up throughout the series. As series creator Jeff Rake (himself a practicing Jew) tells Metacritic, “We get into Chinese mythology and some other non-Western religion, and in the end, that was really important to me—not because I’m trying to preach, not because I’m trying to convert people to this religion or that, but all of these world religions fundamentally come down to a couple of the same themes: Redemption, forgiveness.”

There may be a little turbulence we feel along the way in other areas, too; Romance plays a role in the occasional episode. (In fact, one episode shows a couple stripping off their clothes in preparation to hop into bed together, and we’ll see a few prominent LGBT characters, too.) Furthermore, characters die, and others are attacked. Language can be a bit rough at times, as well.

In general, however, Manifest seems to be sticking to its broadcast television roots, which still makes it one of the cleaner shows on the streaming service despite its issues. But it still hits some rough spots, and it might require the captain to turn on the seatbelt sign regarding its spiritual heading.

Episode Reviews

Jun. 2, 2023 – S4, Ep11: “Final Descent”

Following the detainment of all Flight 828 passengers, Ben and Michaela plot their escape. Cal recovers his powers after months of them being inert.

An explosion occurs, and a man is shot in the head. We see the resulting blood leaking from the wound.

Michaela has a couple visions of Zeke, and we’re told that Michaela is in the “Divine Consciousness” during these moments. Cal also has a Calling. Ben references God choosing him and Michaela as leaders.

Ben and Michaela help the partner of a lesbian woman, and much of the episode’s plot focuses on the couple. We hear a reference to sex.

Someone makes a reference to flatulence.

The s-word is used three times. We here seven uses of “h—,” and occasional uses of “a–,” “b–ch” and “b–tard.” God’s name is used in vain five times.

Nov. 4, 2022 – S4, Ep1: “Touch-and-Go”

Despite everyone else moving on, Ben refuses to believe that Eden is gone. Michaela pursues a mysterious calling, leading her to a strange man. Cal uses his newfound anonymity to find a helpful object.

In a recap, a man is shown with blood on his hands. A woman is seen stabbed and bleeding. Someone quotes Jeremiah 29:11.

Scientists are presumably killed by an intense light. A man is shown with scarred letters and numbers on his skin. Another man is found pinned under a branch with a bloodied forehead. A hand reaching from the darkness elicits a small jump scare.

Two people are seen apparently naked (covered under sheets), and they kiss. People talk about overcoming drug addiction.

A supernatural wind directs Ben, and Zeke uses his supernatural empath abilities on a couple of people. A woman says she’ll pray for someone.

“H—” is used seven times. “A–” and “d–n” are both used once. “Screw” is used derogatorily twice. God’s name is misused six times, including once in the form of “g-dd–n.”

Apr. 1, 2021 – S3, Ep1: “Tailfin”

Ben investigates a Calling in Cuba, where two fishermen have found the tailfin from what appears to be Flight 828. Meanwhile, Zeke and Michaela discover a missing girl from the flight in Costa Rica while on their honeymoon.

A religious couple (with multiple crucifixes in their home) locks their daughter in a cell in the basement, believing her Callings to be demonic. Michaela believes the Callings are a sign from the universe. Ben believes everyone from Flight 828 was resurrected by God. Ben, Michaela and Cal experience a Calling where they are all screaming and about to die. Three dead people rise to the surface of the lake where they died and awaken. Someone references Romans 8:28.

A girl locked in a dark cell nearly slits her wrists with a knife. Ben is thrown backward and knocked unconscious by a force when he touches the tailfin (and it leaves a glowing light on his hand). Several people point guns at one another. Zeke pretends to faint so Michaela can sneak through someone’s house.

We see people in bathing suits. A woman’s dress shows cleavage.

Someone says, “God bless the internet.” We hear several misuses of God’s name as well as “a–,” “h—”, “d–n” and “d–mit.”

Mar. 23, 2020 – S2, Ep11: “Unaccompanied Minors”

The “callings” that our main characters receive are getting more and more perplexing—and sometimes they’re loaded with an element of doom.

Ben’s young son, Cal, keeps seeing three looming shadows on his bedroom wall. Ben himself envisions a train about to hit him. And Michaela’s own callings keep telling her to let known criminals go. Meanwhile, Michaela’s boyfriend, Zeke, continues to struggle with the frostbite that’s slowly killing him.

Zeke, a former drug addict, confesses to his recovery group that going through the steps has felt pointless lately. “It’s hard to work toward something when you know that you’re dying,” he says. The counselor suggests that he still has purpose—to find closure. Instead of begging for forgiveness for the people Zeke hurt, maybe Zeke is being kept around to forgive someone else. It sets the stage for an unlikely-but-touching reunion with someone who hurt Zeke deeply as a child.

We hear a great deal of conversation about spiritual matters. Michaela’s mad at the Caller (whom she associates with God, though the voice speaks with Michaela’s own voice) for apparently taking Zeke away from her. She stresses that she’s followed every calling she’s been given without fail. “How am I supposed to know that this is supposed to be for some greater good if you let him die?” she asks. “How can I keep listening?” At the end of the show, she actually does ignore a call—which asks her to let an obviously bad criminal go. (The criminal utters pronunciations of a “holy war” on the horizon, too.)

Ben, Michaela’s scientific-and-skeptical brother, is more open-minded about the callings having a spiritual root, though at the episode’s open he worries that the passengers of 828 are false prophets mentioned in the book of Revelations, serving up “signs and wonders.” “You must be really desperate for answers,” Michaela kids him. “The science guy looking in the Bible.” The necessity of forgiveness and the beauty of second chances is also highlighted. We hear a partial quote from the Bible, telling us that “all things work together for good.” (The quote, taken from Romans 8:28 is used frequently in the show, but the full verse goes, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”)

A running man trips over a cart and falls. Another tumbles out of a first-story window and onto a pile of garbage. Guns are pointed. A man nearly throws himself in front of a subway train, but is prevented from killing himself at the last moment. Zeke’s frostbite looks pretty terrible in a couple of scenes.

We hear about a sprawling scheme to steal cold medicine and make methamphetamine out of it. We see the lab where the meth cooking is done, along with the folks who cook it. Michaela and Zeke cohabitate and kiss, but Zeke does propose marriage at the end of the episode. Someone says “h—.”

Jan. 21, 2019 – S1, Ep12: “Vanishing Point”

When their son Cal goes missing, Ben and Grace must work together to find him before corrupt government officials find him first. Michaela questions Autumn, a fellow flight 828 passenger, on the whereabouts of Cal, while trying to figure out what her mysterious visions mean.

A woman is interrogated and thrown against a wall by a female police officer after withholding crucial information. A woman fears for her life and the life of her child. A couple flee from government officials by car.

Two police officers lie to their squadron. A young boy runs away in freezing temperatures. A man passes out from hypothermia and receives care for his bloodied, injured hand.

We hear multiple uses of “h—” and one use of “d–mit.”

Nov. 26, 2018 – S1, Ep9: “Dead Reckoning”

In Manifest’s cliffhanger fall finale, Ben, Michaela and NSA Director Vance work vigorously to identify the hidden location of the abducted passengers from Flight 828.

Whoever has taken them is performing painful electroshock experiments on the drugged abductees, while some others who were aboard the plane can psychically feel their pain every time someone is shocked. Buildings explode, and we witness an extended gunfight with automatic rifles. Several people are killed from gunshot wounds and an explosion. One person ends up unconscious and in a hospital bed. A flashback shows Flight 828 being violently jarred by turbulence, terrifying its passengers. Afterward, we again see passengers being questioned about what happened. Someone has a bloody nose.

A woman wears a cleavage-baring top. A husband kisses his wife’s head. Couples hold hands, and one couple talks about divorce.

There is a reference to drinking beer; we see wine bottles in a rack. Someone lies about a traumatic experience. There’s a suggestion of a big betrayal coming later on.

A woman prays to a supernatural force and begins to have faith that such prayers could affect the outcome of things. A character supernaturally sees a pathway to safety in a crisis situation.

God’s name is misused three times, and Jesus’ name is abused once. Other profanity includes five uses of “h—” and one of “d–n.”

Sept. 24, 2018 – S1, Ep1: “Pilot”

When it turns out that their flight back home is overbooked, the Stone family splits up, with a few members staying behind to catch the next flight (and nab $400 vouchers). Turns out, the delay is a bit longer than they anticipated. When they get back—more than five years later—things have changed quite a bit.

As Michaela frets and pouts over a mistake she made, her mother tries to comfort her with the first phrase from Romans 8:28. “You know my favorite verse,” she says. “All things work together for good.” Michaela responds, “You know I don’t believe that anymore,” When she returns and learns that her mother has died in the intervening years, Michaela sees that her mom put the verse on a throw pillow before passing. Michaela refers to it (without apparent irony) as her mom’s “mantra.” She later sees significance in the verse in a different way, as the figures “8-2-8” show up elsewhere in her life.

She also goes to church and reads from a pew Bible. (The camera actually zooms in on the printed text as she reads Romans 8.) When the priest comes by, Michaela asks if she can take the Bible with her. “As long as you put it to good use,” the priest tells her.

Michaela and others hear strange voices in their heads and receive mysterious premonitions. The plane they flew on blows up inexplicably—apparently because “whatever force brought us here” didn’t want the plane to be dismantled during the ensuing investigation of it. The fact that flight 828 made it home is referred to as “a miracle.”

Two girls are abducted: When they’re discovered, the apparent abductor swings a metal crowbar at a detective before being subdued. A boy is nearly hit by a bus. Turbulence severely shakes an airplane cabin, jostling bags from overhead compartments. A sick boy receives chemotherapy, and some doctors want to keep him from experimental treatment (because it would potentially botch a new study). We hear references to a fatal car accident.

Two people follow the advice of the mysterious voice in their heads, but commit a felony to do so.

Grace Stone, Ben’s wife, texts a person who may be her lover. Ben says that Grace once used sex to bribe him to do something.

Alcohol and drunkenness are referenced a couple of times. We hear people say “thank God,” but they also utter God’s name inappropriately twice (once with the word “d–n”). The word “h—” is also spoken.

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Kennedy Unthank

Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He doesn’t think the ending of Lost was “that bad.”

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Paul Asay

Paul Asay has been part of the Plugged In staff since 2007, watching and reviewing roughly 15 quintillion movies and television shows. He’s written for a number of other publications, too, including Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. The author of several books, Paul loves to find spirituality in unexpected places, including popular entertainment, and he loves all things superhero. His vices include James Bond films, Mountain Dew and terrible B-grade movies. He’s married, has two children and a neurotic dog, runs marathons on occasion and hopes to someday own his own tuxedo. Feel free to follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.

Emily Tsiao

Emily studied film and writing when she was in college. And when she isn’t being way too competitive while playing board games, she enjoys food, sleep, and geeking out with her husband indulging in their “nerdoms,” which is the collective fan cultures of everything they love, such as Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate and Lord of the Rings.

kristin-smith
Kristin Smith

Kristin Smith joined the Plugged In team in 2017. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. She and her husband, Eddy, love raising their children Judah and Selah. Kristin also has a deep affection for coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan).

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