Manifest season 3’s latest double-episode was packed with major reveals about the show’s biggest mysteries. The NBC series, which has stepped into Biblical territory in the past, dove even deeper by tying Flight 828 and the experiences of the plane’s passengers to the tale of Noah’s Ark.
The show’s third season hasn’t been dragging its feet when it comes to providing important breakthroughs. In the Manifest season 3 premiere, Ben (Josh Dallas) developed a solid theory that when the passengers disappeared, what really happened is that they all died. He believes their return was actually a resurrection, and based on what’s happened so far, it’s looking more and more likely that Ben is right. Another shocking discovery came when they tried to help Pete (Devin Harjes) follow his Callings and survive his impending Death Date, just as they did with Zeke (Matt Long) in season 2. But despite doing everything correctly, both he and Kory (DazzMann Still) died over Jace’s mistakes.
Aired back-to-back, Manifest season 3, episodes 7 and 8 piled on with more shocking revelations. Thanks to Saanvi’s research at Eureka, they were able to learn quite a lot about what’s going on, and while the reveals were enlightening to be sure, it wasn’t all good news. Some of them just opened up bigger questions. Here’s everything the passengers learned in Manifest’s double-episode.
Saanvi’s Lifeboat Theory
As mentioned above, Pete and Kory both lost their lives even though they made the right choices and passed the test presented by the Callings. As pointed out by Olive (Luna Blaise), that’s because the two of them plus Jace were judged collectively. This prompted Sannvi (Parveen Khaur) and the others to come up with a “Lifeboat” theory, which is this idea that the rules of the Death Date test faced by Jace, Kory, and Pete also applies to all the passengers. If one makes a mistake, the “lifeboat” sinks, and they all die together. For them, this was a scary concept, as it means that all 200 passengers have to stay in line and do what’s expected of them if any of them are to have some hope of surviving.
Sapphire May Be The Key To All Manifest Mysteries
Saanvi’s research yielded an eye-opening discovery to Eureka’s science team. Every subject that had returned from a strange disappearance was found with elements of sapphire. This included the Flight 828 tailfin first seen in the Manifest season 2 finale, Ben’s glowing hand, and the three meth addicts. It would seem that sapphire links everything together. This idea was taken a step further when Dr. Gupta (Mahira Kakkar) suggested that sapphire might just be the “signature” of a divine power. If it’s true that God has something to do with Flight 828 (like some characters have wondered), it could be that sapphire is left behind on everything touched by this divine force. This theory was reinforced by Saanvi’s next big find in episode 8.
Flight 828’s Disappearance Is Linked To Noah’s Ark
After analyzing a fossilized, 6000-year-old piece of driftwood uncovered by a seismic event in eastern Turkey, Saanvi found out that it too contained sapphire. And apparently, it surfaced on the same day that Flight 828 mysteriously vanished. Partially due to the fact that it was found near Mount Aratat (the alleged resting place of Noah’s Ark), Saanvi concluded that the driftwood must be a piece of the Biblical ship. What this indicates is that Noah’s Ark disappeared and reappeared just like Flight 828 did. This could be the real reason for how it survived the flood. God being connected to the ship’s survival in the Bible also provides evidence for the divine intervention theory. They know from their investigations into ancient history that what happened to them also happened to others centuries ago, but the passengers didn’t realize that these occurrences went back that far.
Manifest Explains The Peacock Vision From Season 1
In the midseason finale of Manifest season 1, Ben saw a vision of a peacock, which has reappeared a few times since. Most recently, Cal (Jack Messina) found a peacock feather, even though their species of course doesn’t live anywhere near the United States. Cal previously claimed to have seen one in the woods. The peacock vision has popped up occasionally, but none of the characters have been able to figure out what it really means. However, episode 8 may have just offered an answer.
One of the clues that led Saanvi to connect the driftwood to Noah’s Ark was the biological material of a peacock. Given that the readings they got from the peacock DNA matched the other subjects, it was hypothesized that a peacock experienced the same phenomena. Because of this notion that everyone that disappeared is connected in one way or another, the peacock vision is starting to make sense. It looks like what they’ve been seeing is actually a 6000-year-old peacock from Noah’s Ark, and a creature who lived through a predicament identical to the one the passengers are going through now. It’s possible the peacock has been trying to warn them about something, but it’s not altogether clear what that could be yet.
A Volcano Eruption Might Be Coming
Based on what Eureka has learned so far, the seismic event that caused the emergence of the driftwood is related to the same incident that resulted in the tailfin being found. Both may have been coughed up by the dormant volcano, Mount Aratat, and there’s no telling what other secrets it might hold. When considering the nature of Manifest, it’s unlikely to be a coincidence that imagery of a volcano was included in two additional scenes. A volcano was spotted on a Tarot card that Cal dropped, and another was seen in episode 8’s final scene. Cal’s snow globe had a glowing volcano inside it. This strange sight was followed by visions of frightened passengers, who were surrounding by falling volcanic ash. This could be a sign that a volcanic eruption (possibly from Mount Aratat) is coming at some point in the near future. Cal may be receiving this Calling so he can tell everyone about it before it comes to pass. It’s not clear what role this volcano plays in the story, but it’s become apparent that it’s integral to Manifest’s central mystery.