The Stones are getting closer and closer to cracking the Death Date and may have just found a new way to steer clear of it. However, after Grace and Cal get into an accident, Ben and Michaela realize someone’s after all the passengers.
Find out what happens in the newest episode of Manifest, “Coordinated Flight.”
Let's get moving, Manifesters! #Manifest starts NOW on NBC. pic.twitter.com/jEdhNHDNWY
— Manifest (@ManifestNFLX) February 4, 2020
At the Church of the Believers, Olive is setting up for the service. Isaiah asks Olive what it’s like living among the Returned and as Olive is about to answer, there’s crashing and shouting just outside where they are. Xers have found the church and are destroying chairs and tables and graffitiing the walls. Isaiah tells Olive to call Adrian while he deals with the Xers, but he soon gets beat up by them. Olive pulls the fire alarm and runs away.
What is happening at the Church of the Believers?! #Manifest pic.twitter.com/I0VHDfc25s
— Manifest (@ManifestNFLX) February 4, 2020
Ben and TJ are in Ben’s classroom, and TJ says first Ben tells him about the Death Date and now some magic compass his sister found in the safe-deposit box is going to be the way they avoid it. Ben tells TJ those engravings on the compass are not part of the original design, and he shows TJ pictures of 19th Century compasses on the Internet. “The weird star in the peacock?” Ben says the peacock was part of the Death Date Calling. So who engraved it and why? A professor comes in and turns on the TV, showing news reports about what happened at the church. “This is never gonna end.” Ben wonders when is Adrian going to realize he is just fueling the fire. And putting targets on their backs, TJ adds. A reporter says the group’s engendered criticism since one of the Passengers became their leader. Suddenly, Ben gets a Calling: “Save her.”
Olive is talking to Adrian about what happened, saying there were four guys, but she ran off after pulling the alarm. She freaked out when she heard the sirens. Adrian assures Olive that Isaiah will be fine, thanks to her. Olive asks Adrian if he’ll leave her out of it when he gives the police the description, saying if her parents found out she comes to the church, they’d never understand. “No one needs to know you were there.” Adrian tells Olive she needs to let go of the fear; that’s her parents talking, not her.
“You’ve already embraced hope. Let your strength be a beacon to others.”
TJ is looking through Twitter and finds there was only one victim from the attack, but it was a man. Ben wants to know who “her” is from his Calling, and TJ asks if he’s sure it had to do with what happened at the Believers. Ben says the only thing he’s sure of is somebody needs his help. Grace calls Ben, and Grace and Cal are driving in the car. Ben tells Grace he had a Calling and asks if she or Cal feel anything. Grace says no, but save who? Ben tells Grace he doesn’t know but has a bad feeling. A blue car is high-tailing Grace and Cal, and they soon get into an accident.
The car struck a tree, and Grace and Cal are out, safe, and talking to a police officer. Grace says by the time she got her bearings; they were gone. Ben finds them and asks what happened. Cal tells him it was a blue truck, and they didn’t even try to stop. They hit them on purpose? Grace says she doesn’t know and tried to get out of the way. The police officer, however, says the driver was probably texting, it happens all the time, but they’ll keep an eye out. Ben’s not letting go that easy, saying there’s has to be witnesses, traffic cameras. “A truck like that doesn’t just disappear into thin air.” While Ben is arguing with the officer, Grace feels something. She tells Ben she thinks there’s something wrong with the baby.
NO ONE messes with Grace and Cal Stone on Ben's watch. #Manifest pic.twitter.com/MyxndR4e1X
— Manifest (@ManifestNFLX) February 4, 2020
Ben and Grace are at the hospital, checking on Baby Stone. It has a strong heartbeat, and according to the doctor,Ā sheĀ appears fine. Ben and Grace are having a girl. Although celebrations are short-lived as the doctor is checking the ultrasound more carefully. She tells the expecting parents she’d like to run more tests to make sure there’s no placental abruption. She assures them there’s no cause for alarm; they’ll just keep them there for a few hours to monitor the baby. After the doctor leaves, Ben reassures Grace. “Through thick and thin.” Grace gets a realization. “Save her.” Ben’s Calling. Could it be about the baby?
Save her. #Manifest pic.twitter.com/XqzrhlyG39
— Manifest (@ManifestNFLX) February 4, 2020
Michaela meets Ben at the hospital, asking how Grace and Cal are. Ben says Cal’s shaken but okay, and Grace is putting on her brave face. They’re still running tests on the baby; it’s a girl. Michaela hugs Ben and says she’s going to be okay; she can feel it. Ben tells Michaela every time Adrian does another sermon or some idiot goes on TV and invokes 828, these attacks ramp up, and it’s just going to get worse. Michaela says there is still a chance that it was an accident, but Ben says it wasn’t. He had another Calling. “Save her.” He tells Michaela Grace, Cal, and the baby were targeted because of 828. Ben wonders how is he supposed to save the passengers when he can’t even protect his own family. Michaela tells Ben it’s not all on him; she’s going after the Xers, Vance is tracking down the Major, and Saanvi is getting close to the Death Date. Ben’s starting to worry they’re not going to make it that far. Michaela says he can’t think that way. Ben tells her he needs all the reports that the NYPD has on violence against passengers; there may be some mention of a blue truck or something. Michaela says that it’s a long shot; there are a lot of incidents. “I can’t just sit here and do nothing.” Ben pleads with his sister, and she gives in. Michaela says she’ll send the reports his way.
Ben is looking through police reports, saying he didn’t realize there have been so many complaints by passengers. Olive and TJ come in, asking what happened. Grace tells Olive some idiot hit them, and her dad thinks it may have been deliberate. “The Calling.” Ben asks why it would warn him if there was nothing he could do about it. Grace says the important thing is they’re okay; they just need to check on the baby, Olive’s baby sister. Olive asks if she’s okay, and Ben tells her they think so and they’ll know soon. Olive asks Grace how she’s not freaking out, and TJ replies, “Moms are superheroes.” He asks Ben if he’s doing research and offers to take over. Ben tells TJ Michaela sent over police reports on attacks against passengers, and in every instant, no witnesses, no evidence, no one will talk. Olive suggests maybe people are afraid to talk and asks if Ben thinks it was related to the car accident. “I just don’t think it. I’m gonna prove it.”
Ben and TJ come back into the hospital room, and Ben tells Grace they’re not random. What happened to her, this recent wave of violence? Ben says the Xers are systematically attacking the passengers. Ben shows Grace the data he and TJ ran. The Xers are coordinating their attacks to overwhelm the police and minimize the chance they’ll get caught. The Xers are organized? TJ says the timing and distribution of the attacks is too precise to be a coincidence. Olive clarifies that her mom’s accident and everything that happened at the church are connected. “Everything is connected. It’s just gonna get worse. I don’t see how this ever ends.”
Olive is at the NYPD, and Michaela sees her. Olive tells her aunt she has something to tell her, but she cannot tell her parents. Olive says she knows what happened at the Church of the Believers; she was there. “I’m one of them.”
Olive is coming clean. š¤Æ What do you think this means for the rest of her family? #Manifest pic.twitter.com/iuHemdxYSV
— Manifest (@ManifestNFLX) February 4, 2020
Ben and Grace are finally home after getting the news that the baby is okay. Ben says he just realized he’s been so focused on the Major and the Death Date that he didn’t see the Xers coming. Grace tells Ben it’s over, but he says it’s not. The Calling said, “Save her.” He didn’t save anyone. “There’s something we’re missing.” The Xers are still out there, and Adrian is making things worse. Ben says he doesn’t know how Michaela convinced a Believer to help. Olive interrupts and admits it was her. She was at the church; she saw everything. “You’re one of them?” Grace tells Olive the Believers are a cult, but Olive wonders why. Because they think that a plane that came back 5 1/2 years later is a miracle? They saw 828; it was a miracle. Ben says they have no idea what it was and Adrian doesn’t, either. Olive tells Ben that doesn’t invalidate his teachings and Ben agrees; he’s entitled to his opinions. What he’s not entitled to, Ben says, is taking advantage of them.
“He’s using 828 to put money in his pocket and, in the process, making the rest of the world scared to death of us.”
Olive counters, saying the rest of the world needs to open their eyes and what church doesn’t ask for money? Grace says sometimes people exploit a difficult situation. Olive tells Grace no, sometimes people are way too narrow-minded to see what is right in front of them. Ben says that’s not fair, and Olive asks if it’s fair to just tell her to accept the Death Date and give up. She didn’t give up when people thought he and Cal were dead, and here he is. Same with Grace and the baby. Don’t they see? Ben calms down and says he does, and he loves that she’s looking for answers, so is he, and he’s not stopping; no one’s giving up. Ben tells Olive that her mother and Cal were targeted, and they could’ve died. He says it might be the Xers who are physically attacking them, but it’s the Believers who are creating this hatred and fear by insisting passengers are different from regular human beings. “You are different!” Grace tells Olive they’re just trying to protect her, and Olive says she’s sick of being protected and afraid. While Ben was gone, she grew up.
Ben is in his office later that night, and Grace finds him, seeing the compass on the table. She looks at its engraving and Ben says he’s been trying to figure out what it means. Grace tells Ben she’s seen it before, not just the peacock. That exact image.
While searching through boxes, Grace explains further that when he and Cal were gone, Olive always insisted that they were out there somewhere. One day, they were walking past a tarot reader and went up to her. Grace gives Ben the tarot card that matches the compass’ engraving and says the star represents hope. The woman said it was what her future held and gave it to Olive. The reader said that they should look to the future with the possibility that everything will turn out well. It became like a mantra to Olive; she clung to it. And when Olive came to the hospital that day, she said those exact words to Grace. “Maybe a miracle did save the baby. Maybe this is all a miracle.” Grace tells Ben this is a sign; what if the Callings are trying to tell them that there’s a way out of this, a way out of the Death Date, a way out of all of it? Ben says maybe they are, but if Adrian and the Believers keep turning the world against them and get them all killed first, what does any of it matter?
Are the callings their way out? And more importantly, will they have enough time to figure it out? #Manifest pic.twitter.com/mhVNwUOfD8
— Manifest (@ManifestNFLX) February 4, 2020
Ben walks into Olive’s room and sees the Church of the Believers brochure. He crumples it up and gets the “Save her” Calling. Later, after another service at the church, Adrian is gathering his stuff together, and he’s attacked by someone wearing a hood. Ben reveals himself and tells Adrian to stay away from his daughter.
Ben Stone in a hoodie just doesn't have the same ring. #Manifest pic.twitter.com/txzppEgStJ
— Manifest (@ManifestNFLX) February 4, 2020
Now that Ben, Grace, and Michaela know about Olive’s involvement with the church, will that change things? Have they finally figured out a way to save themselves and the passengers from the impending Death Date? What are your theories? CatchĀ ManifestĀ every Monday at 10 p.m. ET/9 p.m. CT on NBC.
