DVD Review: “Manifest: The Complete Series” puts the mysteries all in one place

Manifest was a compelling science fiction drama that premiered on NBC inj 2018 and ran for three seasons, and NBC cancelled it while questions were still outstanding. Fans of the show launched a campaign to save the show, and the passion and dedication of those fans helped convince Netflix to rescue it from the broadcast scrap heap. Netflix did produce a fourth and final season, giving the series a proper conclusion and the fans an emotional conclusion to the story arcs of their beloved characters.

The mystery of what happened to Montego Air Flight 818 hung over the entirety of Season 1, as we learn more about how the characters on that flight adjust to having been missing for 5 years, and the mystery of how they reappeared after that much time, having not aged an extra moment.

The biggest change, as the passengers and the public are still trying to figure out what happened, how and why, is that the the passengers have begun displaying gifts — having visions, hearing voices guiding them to perform tasks — which they name Callings. These Callings lead the passengers to follow the voices and try to interpret the visions to find out what trying to complete these tasks they’re being compelled to undertake could mean.

The slow introduction of different factions in the NSA and other agencies, as well as in the public who want to detain, control, use or kill the Flight 828 survivors, and the drama around how these 191 people try to reintegrate into society, and figure out what happened to them and why.

The drama around the relationships between reunited families, or passengers whose families experienced additional losses while they were away is well done, and the intrigue surround the reasons why which people are experiencing Callings and why gets excruciating at times (but in a good cliffhanger drama sort of way). Putting together the pieces of the puzzles becomes an audience game in itself. Viewers are trying to piece together the mystery the same time as Ben Stone is figuring out the mystery on his end, based on information he’s been seeing, and Callings his sister Michaela (an NYPD detective) has. The appearance of other people with Callings who’ve survived similar deaths/disappearances adds to the larger mystery, and various developments do sustain the story through to the series finale.

This DVD set is an adequate yet pretty physical media resource for the entire series, but unfortunately for fans, it’s following the pattern of many recent releases for TV series that didn’t fall into the “blockbuster” category. Those sets — both individual seasons and complete series box sets — tend to include bonus features, ranging from creator commentary tracks to behind-the-scenes featurettes, sometimes even “home videos” shot by cast members on and near the sets.

For me, those extra content touches show that the studio or corporate entity that created or financed the show acknowledges that the fans were the ones that helped that show get the ratings and good social media buzz it did because those fans connected emotionally and resonated with the series premise, the characters, and the story being told. I would have hoped there’d be at least one feature, but also having on hand Manifest Season 1 on DVD, which was also featureless, the lack of extras should have been expected.

The set consists of 14 DVD discs, in a stacked plastic container. It’s adequate, but I’m beginning to mildly loathe this design because it seems to break so easily. The clips to close the package sometimes slip, which makes me worry that someday they might break. Unlike other sets with this or a similar design, the section that secures the discs is actually separate from the outer case. Usually these flip sections are connected to the case to secure them one level further, but this one is not. It’s not even a case of where it slid loose from the external case structure, it’s just free floating when open. The discs are completely secure with the case open or closed, so that’s not an issue. It was just a jarring thing to see.

There is no digital code for this set, and seeing as how all four seasons may be available on Netflix for a long time to come (given it’s popularity still with repeat viewers and newcomers to the series), this really isn’t a problem. What worked when Netflix rescued Lucifer from cancellation seems to be working again with Manifest.

Manifest: The Complete Series is available on DVD on June 4, 2024.
Includes all 62 episodes from all four seasons.

When Montego Air Flight 828 landed safely after a turbulent but routine flight, the crew and passengers were relieved. But in the span of those few hours, the world had aged five years – and their friends, families and colleagues, after mourning their loss, had given up hope and moved on. Now, faced with the impossible, they’re all given a second chance. But as their new realities become clear, a deeper mystery unfolds and some of the returned passengers soon realize they may be meant for something greater than they ever thought possible.

Stars Melissa Roxburgh, Josh Dallas, J.R. Ramirez, Luna Blaise, Parveen Kaur, Matt Long, Holly Taylor, Daryl Edwards, Ty Doran
Created by Jeff Rake