Manifest episode 13 preview: The mystery of ‘Cleared for Approach’

Entering Manifest episode 13 airing on NBC next week, one thing is clear: NBC does not want you to know a good bit about it in advance. For example, they haven’t released an official synopsis! All you have is a title in “Cleared for Approach” — and that is, of course, a reference to airline travel.

What we can say entering the hour is that there may be even more significance than usual here, mostly because “Cleared for Approach” could have been a contingency plan for a season 1 finale. When Manifest was first ordered to series last spring, the idea was to give it a 13-episode order — the same as most other shows on the fall schedule. There was an option to extend that order based on the ratings for the first several episodes, but by the point Manifest did have some positive ratings to look at, the writers were probably fairly far along in determining what they wanted their story to be.

Is there a chance that some elements originally meant for episode 13 were pushed down the road to episode 16, which will be the season 1 finale now? Possibly, but this should probe to be an extremely important episode nonetheless. It’s a chance to dive in further to the show’s mystery and address further the emotional undercurrent that exists within this world. At this point, just about every series regular on Manifest understands some of the high stakes and the emotions that are at play here; it is largely a question of whether they can handle them and find their way eventually to the other side.

Update: We now have an official synopsis for episode 13. Check it out below:

Michaela uses her skills as a detective to find out more about Zeke, a hiker who disappeared for two years and may be one of them; Ben’s family is impacted as public disdain for the passengers of Flight 828 rises.

It doesn’t give too much away, but this does give you more of a sense as to why next week is so important. More answers could be coming and, if nothing else, we are going to get some more info on the mysterious Zeke. You can probably get a sense from reading that as to why NBC wanted to keep it a secret for so long.

Related News – While you wait for more insight, check out episode reviews for past episodes and a whole lot more!

What do you want to see when it comes to Manifest episode 13, and at this point, are you getting somewhat of a good idea as to how you want the series to end? Be sure to share right now in the attached comments. (Photo: NBC.)