The latest episode of NBC’s Manifest indicates that Vance (Daryl Edwards) may hold the key to beating the Major (Elizabeth Marvel) in season 2. The Major has held an advantage against the Flight 828 passengers since she started working as a therapist for Saanvi (Parveen Kaur). Saanvi has been unwittingly feeding their secrets to their biggest enemy, but Vance’s return could turn the tide in a huge way.
In the beginning of Manifest season 1, NSA director Robert “Bobby” Vance was initially presented as an obstacle to the main characters finding out the truth about Flight 828’s disappearance, but over time, Ben discovered that Vance genuinely wanted to help them. For a while, Vance was a valuable ally for the passengers who helped them oppose the Major and Unified Dynamic Systems. All of this changed when Vance was seemingly killed in an explosion in the midseason finale, but the cliffhanger ending of the Manifest season 2 premiere revealed that Vance was still alive.
Manifest season 2, episode 2, “Grounded” gives viewers a hint of just how important Vance may be when it comes to defeating the Major. The episode reveals that Vance didn’t die of his injuries after all, and that his men helped him fake his death. Vance has been keeping his survival a secret because he knows the Major will be after him. Later in the episode, Vance intercepts a message from the Major, who is communicating with her people about a “DNA sequencer”. This is, of course, information that she gathered from her most recent session with Saanvi. Thanks to Vance, Ben and Michaela (Melissa Roxburgh) are now aware that the Major is somehow spying on them.
The Major’s clever attempts to pry information from Saanvi have been successful thus far, but Vance threatens to undermine her efforts. This could mean that Vance is actually the passengers’ best chance of thwarting her plans. Her resources and association with Saanvi have allowed her to be aware of nearly every step Ben and Michaela have taken to solve the mystery of Flight 828. It may only be a matter of time before Saanvi tells her about the death date - if she hasn’t already told her off-screen.
Hopefully, Ben and Michaela will keep Vance’s return a secret from everyone else. Otherwise, the Major will become privy to this information as well. If that happens, the passengers will lose their trump card. Until then, Vance can continue to intercept her messages and spy on her and her people. He can keep giving information to Ben and Michaela about the Major and eventually expose her connection to Saanvi.
In the first half of Manifest season 1, Vance, being a person in a position of power as a the NSA director, was someone who they needed on their side, and his friendship with Ben and genuine concern for the passengers’ safety are part of what made him such an important part of the show, so having him back for season 2 is a big deal for the show. Ben has his friend back - and as an added bonus, a secret weapon they can use against the Major.
More: Manifest: All Characters’ Different Death Dates Explained
