Manifest episode 2: What do we think about the series so far?

We are two episodes in of NBC’s Manifest and it already feels like they have told a seasons worth of stories. This isn’t a bad thing; it simply means that this series has many to tell. First, there is the main story of the entire show, the mysterious disappearance of Flight 828. We know that the turbulence the passengers experienced on the flight wasn’t just that. It was some kind of mythical force that ultimately altered everyone on that flight’s lives. They were meant to be on that flight, but why? Well, that’s what fans will explore.

Second, we know that some passengers are hearing voices and music in their heads which is compelling them to take action. For instance, Michaela and Ben solved an abduction case after hearing voices and Ben saved an innocent young man from rotting in prison for the rest of his life after hearing music. Every episode seems to be taking this format. We get a little of the plane disappearance while Ben and Michaela help people with issues that the police can’t.

Next, we have all of the emotional stories. Michaela is struggling to let go of Jared while trying to reunite with her former best friend, someone who is now married to him. Fans could tell her best friend, Lourdes, was distraught over the whole ordeal. She’s stuck in an impossible place. She married the man her best friend loved thinking she was dead. Lourdes and Jared found comfort in each other that turned to something more. It’s understandable, but also heartbreaking to watch for Michaela, who finds herself in an equally impossible position. As the audience saw from episode 2, she took the high road and pushed Jared out of her mind in order to keep her friendship alive. It was a strong move and one not many would have taken.

For Ben, he struggles to connect with Olive. She keeps deliberately pushing him away. Now we know that she wants to talk him, but we also know she won’t until her mother, Grace, comes clean about the other man. Another impossible position. However, this past Monday, Olive finally took a stand. After having no success in trying to replace all of Cal’s old toys, Olive took Ben up on his offer to reconnect. She took him to a storage unit where she had been keeping all of his and Cal’s things because she had a feeling deep down Cal was alive. While gathering their things, Ben realizes some of the belongings in the storage shed are not theirs. He discovers Grace moved on. It was both heartbreaking and relieving to watch Olive breathe again and to let her father in. In that moment you could tell it was what was holding her back.

The final twist of the episode was a dark shadow of a person was lingering in the background of Cal’s drawings and behind a woman who was on the plane. Cal drew a family portrait with a shadow figure behind him. Ben noticed it, but the scene cut to a parking garage where the audience saw the woman get into her car and drive away while the shadow looked on. In the closing scene of the episode fans watched the shadow kill her, leaving us to figure why are people on the plane being killed and by whom?

While uttering intrigued by this new series, we also don’t know what to completely think of it yet. It’s entertaining enough that we will keep coming back, but at the same time we feel like we are going to end up something because of the many different storylines happening. Much of this will come together in a way that makes sense, but in the meantime we will keep watching with our mouths open patiently waiting to find out what new storyline and twist awaits us.

For this coming Monday’s episode 3, Ben and Michaela realize the woman was on the plane and they begin to fear someone is coming after them. This leads the brother and sister duo to come somewhat paranoid about everything. The FBI also begins to become a stable in the passengers’ lives as the case they are being tasked to solve keeps getting more complicated. The FBI considers it a threat to national security, probably because they don’t know what else to call it. As the episodes premiere it will be interesting to see how they will begin to become affected by all the forces acting from the plane.

Next week fans will also see the other storyline we didn’t mention above and that’s Dr. Saanvi Bahl and Cal. Saanvi discovers something in her blood that wasn’t there before and she finds it in Cal’s too. The first time we saw her we didn’t think much about, but we quickly learned she is one important character. She’s involved in the Stone family’s life because of her treatment of cancer and having the possibility of curing Cal. However, her overall role besides being a doctor has yet to be discovered, and that will be something we look forward too.

Overall, while are still in deliberation about our overall feelings about this show, it is one we will are interesting in seeing where this show we will land next. Manifest airs Mondays at 10pm on NBC. For more news related to Manifest, be sure to visit this link.

This article was written by Samantha D’Amico. If you want to follow her on Twitter, you can do so at SAM_iamXO. (Photo: NBC.)