Warning: MAJOR spoilers lie ahead for Season 4, Part 2 of Manifest!
Season 4, Part 2 of Manifest dropped on Netflix, and the inevitable Death Date, which was first discovered way back in Season 1, finally made its way to the passengers. And it almost marked the end of their world (literally). However, thankfully, all life didn't end, and the group of characters survived. Ultimately, they ended up on board Flight 828 again and, to make a long story short, they went back to the year 2013. Afterwards, aside from them, no one else remembered what happened throughout the events of the series. Fans are likely still mulling over the finale and, as they do so, Melissa Roxburgh and Josh Dallas are sharing thoughts.
Manifest's ending was a real full-circle for the series, as fans got to see most of the passengers reuniting with their loved ones in 2013. They also received the “ultimate second chance” at living and maybe even the opportunity to redeem themselves. When it comes to Ben Stone, he was able to be with the love of his life again -- after wife Grace was killed by Angelina in the Season 3 finale -- and see his kids grow up. With the grief Ben went through, that development was lovely to see and Josh Dallas shared some hopeful sentiments with TVLine regarding what lies ahead for the Stone family:
With Ben, and with a lot of the other characters, I don’t see it as an ending but a new beginning. I think it’s only fitting that he is back with his one true love, and he can have a second chance at his life with her and his kids. I’m excited for them.
Fans should remember that in the pilot, Ben and Grace weren’t in the greatest place with their relationship, as they’d been putting all of their focus on Cal and trying to get treatment for him. Since the passengers remember everything, Cal excluded, Ben knows about Saanvi and her cancer research, and he was as anxious as ever to introduce Grace to her. He also noted that Cal and Olive both get their childhoods back. Not only that, but both Ben and Michaela now get to spend some time with their mom, who became ill and died while 828 was gone. The producers really couldn't have created a better ending for the Stones after all they’ve been through, including Ben's profound anger in Part 1 of the final season. Like Josh Dallas said, it really is only just the beginning for them and all of the other passengers.
Meanwhile, Michaela was able to give an answer to boyfriend Jared since, at that the time the plane disappeared, he had only just proposed. The two had a tumultuous relationship after 828 came back and, during the final episodes, they were even in a pretty good place. That is until Michaela told him to be with baby mama Drea since she could see how much the two cared for each other and love each other. This gave Michaela the opportunity to instead find the love of her life, Zeke, who was doing cab pickups the night that 828 landed. Zeke died in Part 1's finale after he sacrificed himself to save Cal, and Melissa Roxburgh says that while the ending may not be everyone’s cup of tea, she stands by it:
I feel good about it. I think everything was supposed to end the way it was. Even if people are upset with certain things, it’s like, that’s life. Things don’t always work out the way we thought they’d work out, but sometimes they’re better. I think they really did a good job of showing that. Some of it’s not what we expected, but some of it’s better.
Of course, no ending is going to please everyone, and chances are that plenty of franchise devotees are going to lay out ways that they think the show could better handled the finale. But in this longtime fan's opinion, everything was wrapped up in a nice bow. What makes it all even more satisfying, though, is that Melissa Roxburgh and Josh Dallas are also happy with how things played out.
It’s hard to believe that after Manifest is now over, but let's be glad that it happened as opposed to being sad that it's ended. And of course, those who have a Netflix subscription can rewatch all four seasons of the former NBC drama now. Do yourself a favor by also checking out the 2023 TV schedule for info on other major premieres.
