Manifest's Biggest Questions Answered & Mysteries Explained

The passengers of Flight 828 have long attempted to understand the Callings, and they have solved some of the show's biggest mysteries in season 3.

Manifest’s abrupt cancellation left a number of loose ends, but not all of the show’s mysteries went unsolved. Over the course of its three-season run, the Flight 828 passengers have worked hard at heeding the Callings they receive in each episode. Due to their investigations and attempts to understand the meaning behind these messages, the characters have learned a lot during their journeys.

Ever since the show began, Ben (Josh Dallas), Michaela (Melissa Roxburgh), Saanvi (Parveen Khaur), and all the others have been determined to find out the truth behind the plane’s disappearance, the purpose of the Callings, and how they can survive the Death Date. Later, the Al-Zuras reveal, Zeke (Matt Long), and other related discoveries made them realize that Flight 828 wasn’t an isolated incident. Unexplained vanishings and sudden returns like what occurred with their plane have happened at other points in human history. Following these leads has resulted in some important revelations, thanks in large part to the introduction of Eureka in season 3. Though the government-sanctioned operation hasn’t always been on the same page as the passengers, their scientific resources have proved useful.

Despite Eureka’s assistance, there’s still a great deal that none of the passengers or the scientists understand yet. Had Manifest continued, how Captain Daly (Frank Deal) popped in at the facility surely would have puzzled the science team for some time, as would the Cal debacle, considering that the character went missing and came back five years older in the span of a single episode. Unless Manifest gets a proper ending somehow, issues such as Captain Daly's return will most likely never be addressed. However, some lingering questions did get answered during season 3. Here are Manifest’s biggest solved mysteries.

Ben’s Resurrection Theory Explained

Manifest may have already explained what happened to the passengers (and the plane) when it disappeared. In the season 3 premiere, Ben came up with a theory that everyone who had this experience actually died. After finding Flight 828’s tailfin, Ben came to believe that what it meant was that the plane really did crash during the storm that night and that the plane that got blown up in season 1 was in fact a “resurrected” version. He now thinks that everyone on the plane died in the storm and was brought back to life five years later, possibly by divine means. Adding credence to Ben’s ideas is the fates of the three meth addicts. Jace, Kory, and Pete all seemingly drowned in the season 2 finale but were shown waking up at the end of the season 3 premiere. So while his theory hasn’t been outright confirmed, all signs point to him being correct.

Manifest’s Divine Connections Explained

Manifest season 3 built on the theory that the show’s central mystery is related to a divine entity, whether it be God or someone else. The idea is that God may have resurrected the passengers and gave them the Callings so that they can help people. The research at Eureka provided some degree of evidence of a supposed divine link to the Flight 828 passengers. Elements of sapphire were found onsubjects who had disappeared and returned. Afterward, Dr. Gumpta noted that sapphire has long been thought to be the “signature” of the divine. If that’s true, that would explain why sapphire was found on the tailfin, the Noah’s Ark driftwood, Ben’s glowing hand, and the three meth addicts throughout Manifest season 3. It would mean that they were all touched by God.

How The Passengers Can Survive The Death Date

The biggest threat facing the characters in Manifest is the dreaded Death Date, which hinges on the concept that a person who returned from a disappearance only gets to live for as long as they were gone. In other words, the passengers are all destined to perish on June 2, 2024, which is exactly five and a half years after their return. Ben, Saanvi, Cal, and Michaela have a long time to wait before their Death Date comes (which likely wouldn’t have arrived until the planned final season), but there were other characters who were gone for much shorter periods of time, such as Zeke and the meth addicts. It was based on them that the passengers were able to learn if it really is possible to avert their fates. Zeke nearly died on his Death Date in the season 2 finale, but by following his Calling and saving Cal, they were, fortunately, able to prevent his demise. Zeke now serves as living proof that getting past the Death Date in one piece is possible.

The conflict with the meth addicts threw a wrench into this in the middle of season 3. Just as they did with Zeke, the main characters tried to help them avoid their Death Date by following their Callings, but a misinterpretation of a vision resulted in Jace trying to kill Michaela and Cal. An old story from ancient history called “The Last Trial” clued Olive into what the Death Date really is: a test made by the Callings (or whoever sends them). If a person fails to make the morally right choice, their story on Manifest ends when their Death Date comes. That's why Zeke was able to get past it in season 2. By this logic, it made sense that Kory and Pete could too, but it was not so. Instead, they died along with Jace. The two characters dying for their mistakes is why the passengers now understand that the only way for them to live beyond June 2, 2024, is for all of them to pass their test. If one character makes the wrong decision, it could doom the rest of them. It’s a demanding task to be sure, but at least they finally know what has to be done.

Meaning Of The Peacock Sightings Explained

At Eureka, Saanvi found 6,000-year-old peacock DNA on a piece of ancient driftwood. After further study, she determined that the driftwood belonged to Noah’s Ark from the Bible. According to her research, the peacock DNA carries the same genetic marker as the passengers and everyone else who’s disappeared, which would indicate that Noah’s Ark and Flight 828 both experienced the same mysterious phenomenon. Though the Noah’s Ark connection was one of the show’s most shocking twists, it didn’t come without proper setup. Both Ben and Cal (Jack Messina) have had Callings that involved peacocks, but none of the characters ever really understood why. After realizing that these birds appeared frequently in their research, Ben and Olive (Luna Blaise) speculated on their importance but didn’t get anywhere.

It looks like Ben’s peacock vision from Manifest season 1 was actually a hint of sorts pertaining to Noah’s Ark. The peacock that Ben saw may be the very same peacock that traveled aboard the ship 6,000 years ago. Ben could have seen him because everyone who has had this experience (including animals) are connected to each other via the Callings. Until more news is heard, there are plenty of other unanswered questions that Manifest has to take care of somehow.

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