The show’s main characters—the Stone family, half of whom were passengers on Flight 828—are aggressively bland.
But the odd qualities of this show go far to explain why that sprawling conspiracy theory jibed with so many people These callings alienate the passengers from others, but they must stay true to the mystery despite their families’ resistance, and the world’s doubt.
There’s also spirituality—sometimes overtly Christian spirituality—all over the place.
A man who was drowned and then resurrected is about to go on national television to reveal that the passengers are having callings, but starts spewing epic amounts of water before dropping dead.
He’s a twin, and when he and his sister Olive are reunited after Flight 828 lands, she has gone through puberty, while he’s remained a little shrimp.
As Dustin Rowles writes for UpRoxx, explaining why he continued to watch the show, even though it’s not objectively good: “It is absolutely bonkers, and yet every character on the show confronts its ridiculous plot turns with complete dead-faced seriousness.” Manifest has a mix of tones you don’t find anywhere else.
Would all of its unevenness and loose ends have come together in the show’s last seasons? Netflix, which has paid for final seasons of canceled network shows like Designated Survivor in order to be able to give viewers a definitive ending, chose in this case not to give us the satisfaction.