When NBC canceled Manifest after three seasons, there were many unhappy fans because the series had a tightly-woven mystery.
Thankfully, Netflix stepped in to save the day and picked up Manifest Season 4.
We’ve watched the first half of the season, and all we can do is wait for the final 10 episodes to wrap up the series for good.
It’s time to look at the new episodes’ strengths and weaknesses.
Best Episode – Manifest Season 4 Season 4 Episode 9
High-concept dramas have a knack for making the mystery too convoluted as the series continues, but “Rendez-vous” revealed some big shockers about the mythology that set the stage for the coming events.
It was also the first time people not on Flight 828 were seen on the plane, leading to the revelation that the entire world was in danger on the death date.
Olive and Jared spent too long worrying about a future without their loved ones that they didn’t stop to think about what the death date meant for the rest of the world.
The episode also featured some of the best acting in the series.
Worst Character – Angelina
This won’t surprise many, but Angelina is one of the most frustrating characters in TV history.
Her only redeeming quality is that she owns how bad she is.
Angelina is undoubtedly the product of the abuse from her parents, but she chooses to interpret the callings as whatever fits her narrative.
For that reason alone, it isn’t easy to care about her.
Holly Taylor went above and beyond to make us hate Angelina, and it’s a testament to her acting that the character is so polarizing.
I would have preferred Angelina to be gone by the final batch of episodes, but it looks like she’s being dragged, kicking, and screaming to the series finale.
Most Emotional Arc – Cal Aging Up, Getting Sick, and then Being Accused of Murder
Cal’s journey on Manifest Season 4 has tugged at the heartstrings.
Ty Doran turned in a performance that carried a lot of weight and emotion, which was needed given the heavy subject matter of Cal’s arc.
Watching family members reject Cal because they deemed him responsible for letting Angelina back into the Stone household was rough.
It was even more difficult watching him at his mother’s funeral and now allowed to be near the front because it would raise some serious suspicions.
Cal wanted to live life as a typical teenager, but there’s been a hurdle every step of the way. Getting close to Violet seemed like a huge turning point … until she was murdered, and he was in the frame for it.
The series likes to put Cal through the wringer, and I don’t see that subsiding in the final 10 episodes.
Most Shocking Development – Zeke Sacrifices Himself to Save Cal’s Life
The series teasing that “everything is connected” certainly leaves you with the sense that everything happens for a reason.
Zeke has been searching for meaning for a long time, and realizing that Cal’s death was imminent was too much for him not to take action.
Hearing him say goodbye to Michaela as his life ended will go down as one of the saddest deaths on TV.
Michaela and Zeke’s relationship has been a large part of the series, and losing Zeke will change Michaela’s journey considerably.
There was a meaning behind Zeke’s death, and it was clearly years in the making after he cheated the death date on Manifest Season 2.
Most Surprising Twist – The Death Date is for Everyone
Manifest excels because you can tell that the mystery has been carefully constructed, and the revelation that everyone will die on the death date was handled excellently.
It changes the trajectory of the series because now everyone who worried about losing their friends and family on Flight 828 has to contend with the death date.
Knowing the entire world is at stake changes the series’ trajectory forever.
Least Surprising Twist – Angelina’s Parents Becoming Serial Killers
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree with Angelina’s family.
Knowing someone was murdering passengers of Flight 828, it became very clear someone was killing people who helped Angelina.
For that reason alone, it had to be her parents. There was no other way to tie this story together.
Noelle was the worst, and her husband was even worse. Thank god they’re gone.
Best Acting – Josh Dallas as Ben Stone
Josh Dallas is a phenomenal actor, and he brought a very different side of Ben Stone out to play on Manifest Season 4 as he tried to bounce back following his wife’s death and the kidnapping of his daughter.
This iteration of Ben was considerably different from the Ben of the prior seasons, and it highlighted how talented Dallas is that he managed to reinvent the character completely.
Overall Grade – A-
Manifest Season 4 Part I was near perfect.
It was the strongest run of episodes for the series to date and completely changed everything as we head into the last-ever episodes.
There are so many unanswered questions, and I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Hopes for Manifest Season 4 Part II
With the series winding down, the characters must find peace, right?
Angelina needs to be stopped at all costs.
My biggest hope is that we get more Saanvi because, even though she’s crucial to the mystery, she sometimes doesn’t get the screen time you’d expect for such an important character.
Hit the comments with your thoughts on the season.
Stream Manifest on Netflix around the world.
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.
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