'Manifest' Season 2 Episode 3 Review: Ben, Saanvi to turn tables against the Major, but who's the mystery mom?
The review contains spoilers for 'Manifest' Season 2 Episode 3 — 'False Horizon'
'Manifest' left its viewers with a major question: Who took Zeke? But as the episode begins, you may have to wait for a long time to find the answer to that question. While the Stone Family struggles to unlock their mysterious wave of frightening 828 callings, Saanvi is back with the Major.
As Saanvi recalls the horrific memory of waiting for her partner, she tells her about the struggle with Alex's loss. "There is an email in my drafts folder I keep writing. I am still so angry," she tells her and the Major tells her to "send it." Sadly, however, Saanvi ends up sharing more details with the Major revealing how the "callings" might be genetically transferrable.
Meanwhile, Ben tells Robert Vance how Saanvi is in danger. When Ben argues they need to find the mole, the Major tells him that they need to let the mole lead us to the Major. He points towards the Major's desire to "control the callings" and that's how Ben realizes everyone on the 828 plane are "toy soldiers."
Michaela is still hung up on getting Zeke out of prison. When she goes to the police custody, she finds out he has been transferred. No one has a clue about his whereabouts and Michaela worries if the Major is involved. Jared, however, tells her to "just let it go already." The two argue about it but nothing good comes out of it. Later, Mich has a shared calling with Zeke as she screams into the void, "Can I talk to him? Just one minute." The two are in the plane, unable to reach out to one another. However, she somehow finds Zeke's location. When police personnel tries to drag her away, she tells him to "talk to the lawyer."
While Saanvi is still wondering whether to send the message to Alex, Ben comes to meet her and tells her about another passenger's insane callings. While she is excited about how it could be their "breakthrough," Ben finally reveals how the Major is accessing her research. She is hurt about Ben's lies and wonders who he is working with. When Ben reveals it is Vance, she feels cheated and breaks her phone in anger.
The episode shuffles between several plotlines and one of the biggest talking points is Grace's second "calling." While talking to another local mom, Grace is told to "open her eyes" and she sees a gargoyle on top of her car. When she tries to contact her a few times more, she realizes that the woman does not want to be helped. She even says something terrible to Grace: " My problem is you and your freak 828 boy. I watch the news. I hope you lose that baby."
At the court hearing, Michaela successfully convinces the court that Zeke is innocent. "Zeke Landon is not a criminal. He even tried to save my life," she says and he is granted freedom. Even as Jared is irked by her actions, she goes to meet Zeke and hugs him.
The mystery, however, lies in their shared callings. In an interview, creator Jeff Rake said, "Michaela, Cal, and Zeke, and ultimately Ben as well and others will come to interpret these callings as a metaphor, that the plane callings represent some type of existential threat to them all. And when I say them, not just the passengers, but anyone who is blessed or burdened by the callings, so that of course includes Zeke as well."
Olive tries to help her family but she feels more isolated when her mom tells her to focus on her studies instead. Slowly, she reaches out to the church of the Believers and she sees it as a new path towards optimism.
Meanwhile, Ben starts teaching as Professor Stone. When students start asking him questions about the 828 plane, he handles it with TJ's help and his hired. In a major twist, it is revealed that the Dean's colleague is the local mom's husband. The two smirk after he hires Ben for the job. Who are the couple and what do they want with the Stone family?
After his face-off with Saanvi, Vance is worried that Ben "blew his cover," but the latter tells him, "I trust Saanvi." While initially, a cloud of doubt looms over Ben's mind, it is shattered when Saanvi comes into the picture to reveal she set up her own surveillance and the files were "fake." The trio identifies a woman named Katherine Fitz from the Department of Defense (DoD) as the Major General. "Now what?" Saanvi asks, to which Vance answers, "Now we turn the tables."
With myriad new developments, the show is finally moving at a faster pace and there seem to be many more mysteries that need to be unraveled. Will Ben, Saanvi and Vance together manage to trump the Major or does she have a way to beat them? Only time will tell!
The next episode of 'Manifest' airs next Monday, January 27, 2020.