S02.E04: Black Box

[ottoDbusdriver]

Episode Description:

Michaela is pushed into the midst of a high-stakes bank robbery perpetrated by a mystery assailant. As Ben and TJ piece together an arcane set of mythological clues, Adrian draws Olive further into the world of the Believers.

 

 

[shapeshifter]

4 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

Episode Description:

Quote

…As Ben and TJ piece together an arcane set of mythological clues, Adrian draws Olive further into the world of the Believers

I don’t recall who TJ is, and is Adrian the girl who recruited Olive, or the preacher? Gender neutral names are probably not a good idea for red shirts and other actors with short screen time. Or at least not for the episode descriptions. Or maybe that’s the point? With gender neutral names for temps, they don’t have to worry about the promo monkeys spoiling the episode. Clever. 
Anyway, looks like I was right with regards to what Cal meant about Michaela and Zeke having to be together: It’s their Destiny to birth a Star Child.🌟 💫   Doncha know? Probably rapidly aging too. Didn’t The 4400 have a type of Rapidly Aging Star Child with magical blood that could save everyone who was doomed or something?

[alvajon]

 

24 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I don’t recall who TJ is, and is Adrian the girl who recruited Olive, or the preacher? Gender neutral names are probably not a good idea for red shirts and other actors with short screen time. Or at least not for the episode descriptions. Or maybe that’s the point? With gender neutral names for temps, they don’t have to worry about the promo monkeys spoiling the episode. Clever. 

I know what you mean--I have a gender neutral name--Adrian is the cult leader and I believe TJ is the college kid that Ben helped a few episodes back.  

[ottoDbusdriver]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

Anyway, looks like I was right with regards to what Cal meant about Michaela and Zeke having to be together: It’s their Destiny to birth a Star Child.🌟 💫   Doncha know? Probably rapidly aging too. Didn’t The 4400 have a type of Rapidly Aging Star Child with magical blood that could save everyone who was doomed or something?

Yep, The 4400 sure did. Her name was Isabelle, and she aged from an infant to a 20-something basically overnight in Season 3.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

Yep, The 4400 sure did. Her name was Isabelle, and she aged from an infant to a 20-something basically overnight in Season 3.

With magic blood? I’m thinking injections of the Star Child™️ blood would save the 828ers from their Death Dates mentioned in the promo above.
But what about Grace’s baby? The 2 babies would be about the same age. Quite the coinkidink.
And what about Michaela’s ex and her new lover (assuming the promo love scene is not just a calling vision) having a physical resemblance? “Who’s the real Star Child Daddy?” plays again. 
Too bad this show is not likely to have Lost level of interesting reveals. 

Edited January 27, 2020 by shapeshifter

[ams1001]

• So...Grace just lets her 10-year-old daughter (sorry, ten-and-a-half) go try to change her flight all by herself because she decided at the last minute she wants to? Uh huh.
• Totally forgot about Michaela's dead friend's mom with dementia. 
• Oh, Olive, don't be telling the cult about the death date. You should know better.
• So, the Grammercy Club is an exclusive, members-only place, but Ben and TJ can just walk in?
• Jared really thinks Michaela can't handle anything without him, doesn't he?
• Really? Guy doesn't know how safe deposit boxes work?
• Who the hell wears their safe deposit box key around their neck (and while they're playing racquetball or whatever)?
• Okay, how many random 6224 sightings are we gonna start getting?
• Lab tech guy needs to get a clue. Jeez.
• Was there any actual significance to the visit with the friend's mom?

[Bulldog]

What year is it suppose to be on this show with Arrival playing at the movie theater?

[shapeshifter]

32 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

Really? Guy doesn't know how safe deposit boxes work?

Maybe more unbelievable was that the bank manager didn't ask if he had a key earlier.

But most unbelievable was that Saanvi thought her experiment was safe in her closet. 🙄

But what really really bugged me was Ben and then Grace's assumption that Olive was going to a) get married and b) walk down an aisle. I have 3 adult daughters over 30. Only one chose to get married and, although I got a kick out of saying that my "son-in-law" was going to pick up something for me, I would have been fine if none of them got married.

[preeya]

2 hours ago, ams1001 said:

• So...Grace just lets her 10-year-old daughter (sorry, ten-and-a-half) go try to change her flight all by herself because she decided at the last minute she wants to? Uh huh.
• Totally forgot about Michaela's dead friend's mom with dementia. 
• Oh, Olive, don't be telling the cult about the death date. You should know better.
• So, the Grammercy Club is an exclusive, members-only place, but Ben and TJ can just walk in?
• Jared really thinks Michaela can't handle anything without him, doesn't he?
• Really? Guy doesn't know how safe deposit boxes work?
• Who the hell wears their safe deposit box key around their neck (and while they're playing racquetball or whatever)?
• Okay, how many random 6224 sightings are we gonna start getting?
• Lab tech guy needs to get a clue. Jeez.
• Was there any actual significance to the visit with the friend's mom?

↑ And the ESU guys standing in the vault while the brothers had "box opening moment"

Then on the street they uncuff the 828 perp so he could give the "sacred compass" to Michaela

Glad to see the lab tech guy that was always hitting on Saanvi got offed. He was very hard to look at.

I'm willing to bet the bar maid that went with Jared is more than a bar maid. Looks like some sort of a setup.

 

 

[Camera One]

This was a pretty decent passenger-of-the-week story.  

Though really, this show is just a bunch of coincidences that may or may not mean anything, so it's hard to get too into it.  Why does that bank deposit box have to be 6224?  Peacocks... protecting people since 1944.  Send me to the Church of the Returned because I have no faith the Writers have a believable and rewarding payoff for this 828 nonsense at the end of their six-year "plan".

So Jared can't have Michaela so he has to go and have random sex with some bartender?  

I liked the scenes with TJ and Olive (and nice to see her get involved with the case a little bit), though she's still in high school so the whole attraction thing is a little uncomfortable.

If not for Michaela and Ben, the Callings would have killed half the passengers by now.

Did Vance really believe that Saanvi could fool The Major?  She clearly ate her apple wrong.  I'm surprised she didn't kidnap Saanvi while she was at it. 

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, preeya said:

Glad to see the lab tech guy that was always hitting on Saanvi got offed. He was very hard to look at.

Awww. Really? I thought he was just dorky. I hope he’s not dead. 

 

2 hours ago, preeya said:

I'm willing to bet the bar maid that went with Jared is more than a bar maid. Looks like some sort of a setup

Holy ice cream cone to forehead, Batman! How did I (and Jared) miss that one!?

 

1 hour ago, Camera One said:

Though really, this show is just a bunch of coincidences that may or may not mean anything, so it's hard to get too into it.  Why does that bank deposit box have to be 6224?  Peacocks... protecting people since 1944.  Send me to the Church of the Returned because I have no faith the Writers have a believable and rewarding payoff for this 828 nonsense at the end of their six-year "plan".

Ha! Seriously! Did they cut a line after the brother said that 6224 was his safety deposit box number where Ben says “Whew! So 6-2-24 is not a death date!”? 
And he wears the key around his neck even when working out!? Both brothers are nuts. 
They did look like brothers, so A+ on casting.

 

 

[mertensia]

I found it refreshing that the brother at first was all "yeah, my brother's dead. You're not my brother" because that's a realistic and rational response.

It's a month later (?) and they still don't know that Olive goes to the cult meetings.  Way to keep track of her.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Ben says a month has gone by -- that puts the show timeline around March 25 2019 -- I guess this means that the evil professor and his yoga class-taking wife haven't made a move yet.

A bug, a bird, a fish and a tiger -- and bring him back.  Oh those super vague callings are back.

What has Zeke been up to for the past month ?  Michaela may not have been returning his calls, but where has he been living ?  With his mom ?

The movie 'Arrival' was released in North America in Nov. 2016, and was out of theaters by March 10, 2017.  So this was likely a 2nd-run theater showing older films, maybe.

Who carries their safety deposit box key with them everywhere, including the squash court ?

Why didn't all the other bank hostages hightail it out of the bank the minute that Logan was in the vault and they were no longer in danger of being shot ? We never did see them actually leave.  Maybe they're still in the bank.  :)

The cops seemed REALLY lenient on Logan considering he robbed a bank and took hostages.
It's not like he was selling cigarette singles in front of a bodega or something similar.

Alas, poor Troy, he just can't catch a break.

Oh noooees, all of Saanvi's research has been stolen -- wasn't Vance supposed to be there to catch the Major's people in the act ?  They only checked the Major's office, they didn't check Saanvi's lab.

Zeke and Michaela finally have some sexy time.  Never saw that coming.  #sarcasm

Edited January 29, 2020 by ottoDbusdriver

[MyArchangel]

9 hours ago, preeya said:

I’m willing to bet the bar maid that went with Jared is more than a bar maid. Looks like some sort of a setup.

 

 

Got the same vibe from her as well. 

[Biggie B]

13 hours ago, ams1001 said:

Was there any actual significance to the visit with the friend's mom?

Validation for Michaela that it was OK to take up with Zeke - he has a good heart, which the friend's mom said was more than sufficient reason to "be happy," if only for a short time.

[ams1001]

3 hours ago, icemiser69 said:

Vance is the one that fucked that up.  Saanvi never brought fruit before to an appointment and then out of the blue she starts eating an apple there?  Who the hell brings food to a session with a psychiatrist?

Did I miss a line explaining the apple?

[ams1001]

15 minutes ago, icemiser69 said:

She was practicing with Vance, but she couldn't stop tugging on her necklace which would have been a tell to the "psychiatrist" that she had been lying.  That is why Vance suggested that she should eat fruit at her appointment to keep her hands busy.

Ah. Yeah, I totally missed that.

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, ams1001 said:

 

1 hour ago, icemiser69 said:

She was practicing with Vance, but she couldn't stop tugging on her necklace which would have been a tell to the "psychiatrist" that she had been lying.  That is why Vance suggested that she should eat fruit at her appointment to keep her hands busy.

Ah. Yeah, I totally missed that

 

I got that part, but what was with the apple left in the empty fake shrink office? Was that supposed to be a neener neener neener  kind of message or something meaning that they knew the Swedish scientist was bogus?

[SoMuchTV]

57 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I got that part, but what was with the apple left in the empty fake shrink office? Was that supposed to be a neener neener neener  kind of message or something meaning that they knew the Swedish scientist was bogus?

That was what I took it as.  If anyone can figure out something deeper, please post!

[KaveDweller]

18 hours ago, Camera One said:

If not for Michaela and Ben, the Callings would have killed half the passengers by now.

That makes me think of Final Destination, where people who survived a plan crash were getting killed by a mysterious force.  The Callings are sort of like that with the passengers, except for super-special Michaela and Ben.

I can't believe Olive told the cult people about the death date. First of all, why would she have thought they knew about it? It's not like the Callings are common knowledge, why would anyone know that specific one? I mean the cult people seem nice enough so far, but that is obviously sensitive information.

 

[newsjunkie]

14 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

The movie 'Arrival' was released in North America in Nov. 2016, and was out of theaters by March 10, 2017.  So this was likely a 2nd-run theater showing older films, maybe.

 

 

23 hours ago, Bulldog said:

What year is it suppose to be on this show with Arrival playing at the movie theater?

Re: Arrival and the movie theater:

I happen to live in that neighborhood in Queens where they shot those scenes and actually saw them filming the final two scenes at night. The movie theater is no longer operational (as is the bank) and they specifically put up the "Arrival" listing for the shoot.  It was watching the filming that got me to catch up with the show on demand from the beginning so that I could watch the episode with the scenes I saw filmed in context.

[foxfreakinmulder]

21 hours ago, Camera One said:

Why does that bank deposit box have to be 6224? 

That gave me one heck of a LOST vibe. This show better start giving me answers and I'm already over the callings. I want to know more about what happened on the flight.

[KaveDweller]

57 minutes ago, newsjunkie said:

I happen to live in that neighborhood in Queens where they shot those scenes and actually saw them filming the final two scenes at night. The movie theater is no longer operational (as is the bank) and they specifically put up the "Arrival" listing for the shoot. 

That is interesting....I wonder if there is some meaning around picking that movie, or if it was just something they wanted to promote.

Arrival was about trying to communicate with aliens, but there was a plot around 

Spoiler

having a kid when you know she will die young. It kind of is similar to the death date thing.

 

[Camera One]

3 hours ago, KaveDweller said:

That makes me think of Final Destination, where people who survived a plan crash were getting killed by a mysterious force.  The Callings are sort of like that with the passengers, except for super-special Michaela and Ben.

The weird thing is the Callings are supposed to be "helping" people.  So far, this season alone, the Ep 1 couple would have driven off a cliff, the Ep 2 kid would have been convicted of murder, and this Ep 4 guy would have been shot dead by police for taking hostages.  We also had Zeke driven to get himself arrested and he would have been sedated/out of it permanently.

Quote

I can't believe Olive told the cult people about the death date. First of all, why would she have thought they knew about it? It's not like the Callings are common knowledge, why would anyone know that specific one? I mean the cult people seem nice enough so far, but that is obviously sensitive information.

I think she only told the cult leader.  He was on the plane, so he would be the only person with the death date.  Most of the other members are non-passengers, I think?  They're just obsessed with the survivors?

1 hour ago, foxfreakinmulder said:

That gave me one heck of a LOST vibe. This show better start giving me answers and I'm already over the callings. I want to know more about what happened on the flight.

I really enjoyed "Lost" and I was wondering why because of these similarities.  But I think it's because "Lost" wasn't just coincidental numbers.  It was a bigger story of survival on an island and inter-relationships between people who were stranded together.  This show has nothing much of substance behind the mystery of how the plane disappeared.

Edited January 29, 2020 by Camera One

[Dowel Jones]

So, Pvt. Logan splashed ashore on D-Day, and was saved by the compass.  Let me guess.  He was shot at precisely 8:28 am.

I know how the 828'ers can save themselves.  Have Logan get another safe deposit box with a better number, say, 7890.  Then they can live in peace, right?

17 hours ago, icemiser69 said:

Who the hell brings food to a session with a psychiatrist?

And what patient ever said "Oh, look, time's up.  Gotta go."

20 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

A bug, a bird, a fish and a tiger -- and bring him back.

All we need is a bar and we got us a joke.

Edited January 29, 2020 by Dowel Jones

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Dowel Jones said:

21 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

A bug, a bird, a fish and a tiger -- and bring him back.

All we need is a bar and we got us a joke

Heh. Might as well add that cult preacher. 
 

 

[foxfreakinmulder]

9 hours ago, Camera One said:

I really enjoyed "Lost" and I was wondering why because of these similarities

I was a huge LOST fan and I think the first 2 seasons have some of the best written episodes in tv history. Manifest using numbers reminded me of Hurley's numbers which I've used myself in the lottery and actually won a little bit of money :-)

[Jacks-Son]

On 1/28/2020 at 2:55 PM, SoMuchTV said:

On 1/28/2020 at 1:57 PM, shapeshifter said:

I got that part, but what was with the apple left in the empty fake shrink office? Was that supposed to be a neener neener neener  kind of message or something meaning that they knew the Swedish scientist was bogus?

That was what I took it as.  If anyone can figure out something deeper, please post!

Nope.  Nothing deeper.  It was the Major's way of saying, "Here's how you fucked up". What I want to know is how did they know Saanvi had a home lab?  Was it just a logical conclusion because her work in her work lab wasn't proving reliable and they figured Saanvi must have had another lab somewhere?

I did laugh at Vance chastising Saanvi for acting like a schoolgirl with regards to Ben, "He LIED to me!".  😛

As far as Olive telling the Preacher about the Death Date, I think all 828'ers should know.  Now, if the General Population knows, I think people would find a way to twist it into something nasty.  I'm starting to wonder if cruelty is our natural state because we resort to it so easily.  If Olive finds solace amongst people who are seeking answers, that's her choice.  She probably wants to know why her entire family is destined to die. Perfectly natural for her to seek answers elsewhere.

[KaveDweller]

17 hours ago, Camera One said:

I think she only told the cult leader.  He was on the plane, so he would be the only person with the death date.  Most of the other members are non-passengers, I think?  They're just obsessed with the survivors?

Oh, I forgot the leader was on the plane. I guess he does deserve to know, but it seems like something you need to be careful about telling someone.

I don't think we can trust cult leaders to keep things like that secret though. That news is going to start to spread. 

[jabRI]

Not  a big deal, but I was a little surprised how messy Saanvi's apartment was. I thought it had been tossed but then she opened her 'secret lab'.  not judging, just surprised because she always seems to put together.

[tennisgurl]

The passenger of the week stuff was pretty good, there would probably be people out there that just would not accept that the people on the plane are alive and back, even if its completely bizarre to ignore what is going on right in front of them.

So now not only is Olive a part of the cult, but she is now seeking out vulnerable people to drag into the cult like any good cult member. Not that Olive sees it that way, but run for it TJ! I guess that led to even more angst and survivors guilt for Olive, although I gotta say, it strikes me as weird that Grace was so cool with her ten year old buying her own ticket to catch up with her family. 

The Callings are being less helpful and more dickish as time goes on. "Hi random already messed up guy, just though I would let you know your gonna die in a few years now byyyeeee."

[HunterHunted]

On 1/29/2020 at 6:24 PM, Jacks-Son said:

What I want to know is how did they know Saanvi had a home lab?  Was it just a logical conclusion because her work in her work lab wasn't proving reliable and they figured Saanvi must have had another lab somewhere?

Apparently, the FISA Court (they almost never reject warrants) and a number of laws that actually give the government broad surveillance powers over weird shit that might be the result of a foreign actor (let's face it, hundreds of people disappearing for 5 years, not aging, and coming back with weird abilities to tell the future is some seriously "foreign" shit) don't exist on Manifest, which is why the US government had to have the Major go undercover as Saanvi's psychiatrist, another as a lab tech at the hospital, and steal Saanvi's home lab (which included a computer), instead of bugging her home, office, computers, and every electronic device. The type of work she was doing needs computers. Even if her home computer wasn't networked, you plant a program to record her data and physically collect it whenever you need to. This show is very dumb.

Edited February 18, 2020 by HunterHunted