'Manifest' Season 2 Episode 1 'Fasten Your Seatbelts' Review: A staggering start and a shocking end
This review contains spoilers for 'Manifest' Season 2 Episode 1 'Fasten Your Seatbelts'.
If you're still reeling under the turbulence from 'Manifest' Season 1, get ready to be back in that zone as Season 2 picks up right where the first one ended. Michaela Stone (Melissa Roxburgh) tried to resolve Jared Vasquez (JR Ramirez) and Zeke Landon (Matt Long)'s gunfight and that didn't seem to end well with a mysterious bullet shot.
As the new season opens, Michaela is wounded and is rushed to the hospital where she has hallucinations. She wonders why they are back on the flight and throughout the episode, keeps getting flashbacks of Cal Stone (Jack Messina) telling her to "save the passengers." While the Stone family struggles in the aftermath of the devastating shooting, luckily, doctors say she might make a full recovery. Ben Stone (Josh Dallas) comes to see Michaela in the hospital and the two talk about how the threat of "expiration date" is real. "Griffin died exactly at the time. It's going to happen to us," Michaela tells him.
A few days later, Ben comes home to see Michaela slowly recovering at home and reveals Grace Stone (Athena Karkanis)'s pregnancy to share the good news with his family. Meanwhile, the Major attempts to tighten her grip on the unwitting Saanvi, all while the clock on the lives of the 828ers continues to tick towards zero.
Once Michaela is back, Ben sets his brain to decode the death dates. Michaela gets a postcard with the words, "I kept running." The two wonder if it is another clue about the death date. Michaela finds the words, "A. Vasik, T. Vasik," on a board and it brings back the same flashbacks. Ben and Michaela figure out they need to look for two Flight 828 passengers who have mysteriously gone missing. The names of the passengers are Anson Vasik and Trina Vasik.
Irked with Jared, Michaela blames him for getting her shot. Meanwhile, Cal goes to look for Zeke and tells him: "You need to be with Michaela because she doesn't have much time." Even though he expresses his guilt for almost letting her "die," Cal convinces Zeke to meet Michaela. With all the flashes from the past, it seems Cal has a big role to play in the upcoming episodes.
Michaela gets another letter in her mailbox that reads: "For them. For you. Goodbye." She tells Ben about it, he says, "We got to find them." Just as she disconnects the call, Zeke is right opposite her in the middle of the street. He comes to meet her and confesses, "I did this to you." She defends him, saying, "It was an accident," but by then cops surround them and Zeke is taken into the jail.
When Michaela is told, "Zeke turned himself in. He knows he is guilty," she responds, "Everything Zeke did, he did for me." It is clear she is in love with Zeke but there seems little chance of the two being together.
Towards the end of the episode, there is a major cliffhanger. Ben goes out to take the trash and sees a mysterious van parked with smoke coming out of it. He runs up to it, asking, "Who are you, what do you want?" Soon, a group of men come out and kidnap Ben. The final scene shows him being confronted by Robert Vance, the director of the NSA, who tells him, "You are not the only on who came back from the dead!"
What does he want with Ben? And why is he doing this now? These questions will boggle your mind as the episode ends and will make you eagerly wait for the next one. 'Manifest' comes back with a bang. The episode has an astounding beginning and a shocking end. If only the makers could work on the pace of the show a tad bit, it would classify for a remarkable thriller. As of now, the new season seems to be setting the stage for something phenomenal and a little patience could unravel the puzzle.