Collective intelligence is a term that was coined by Pierre Levy in his book the

“Collective Intelligence: Mankind’s Emerging World in Cyberspace”. According to

Levy, the term collective intelligence is used to refer to the ability of virtual
communities to leverage the combined expertise of their members. Collective
intelligence essentially provides content creators with an opportunity to advance their
narratives through the knowledge and talents of their audience. According to Long
(2008), collective intelligence functions as a cultural attractor, that brings like-minded
individuals together thereby creating communities or fandoms that makes it easier to
share knowledge and expertise to solve puzzles or fill holes left in the narrative. To
understand the concept of collective intelligence described by Levy we will reflect on
the Manifest Franchise which was recently renewed by Netflix due to the high public
outcry of its fandom after NBC opted not to renew its fourth season.
Manifest
Manifest which is production of Warner Bros pictures has been one of the most
discussed shows in recent times. The show has managed to capture the imagination of
many people who have gone as far as creating a fandom Wiki page to discuss the
intriguing storyline. Manifest initially premiered in 2018 and after 3 successful
seasons on NBC it was unceremoniously cancelled leaving many of its fans in
dismay. However, due to its large fanbase, Netflix quickly took up the show and
renewed it for a fourth consecutive season. When the show first premiered many
people did not have high expectations manly because it involved passengers boarding
a plane and disappearing into the abyss, which has been a cliché in most Hollywood
films. But unlike the numerous TV shows where survivors find themselves in
unknown island or forest and have to fend off new enemies in the wild. Manifest
passengers of Flight 828 actually returned home unharmed, with the only difference
being that their flight took five and a half years instead of the normal 12 hours to
arrive at the designated airport.
The mystery of where the plane has been for the past five and half years inevitably
forms the basis of the show’s storyline. The return of the plane also raises more
question than answers because while the other people in the world have aged for more
than five years, the passengers have not aged a day and still look the same and have
the same clothes they wore when they boarded the plane. More mysterious is the fact
that while the world is astonished by the arrival of people who were presumed dead
five years ago, all the passengers aboard the plane believed that their plane took the
normal time to arrive. The unexplained gaps and holes in this show essentially opens
up new doors for the diffusion of elements of a work of fiction across multiple
channels aimed at achieving coordinated and coherent narration. After the first
episodes, people on social media began to discuss the show leading creation of virtual
communities. Most of the virtual communities have generated theories that try to
explain the gaps left in the show.
Manifest like other contemporary shows incorporates worldbuilding strategies where
the writers gradually expand their hyperdiegesis. During the first episodes much of
the action focused on the Flight 828 passengers trying to get back into the society.
The show was basically circled around the main characters discovering that some of
them came back with unique abilities. For instance, Cal learned that he could get
visions of future events especially when it relates to the passengers of Flight 828.
Michaela on the hand, also learned that like Cal she could also get clues from her
visions allowing her to solve cases at an alarming rate. To expand the hypergenesis of
the narrative the writers introduced a new character called Zeke. Zeke like the flight
828
and he could experience their pain when they were being prodded government
agencies like the NSA continuously probing the passengers and
focused on the After the first few episodes where the passenger’s lives are scrutinized
by the public and government agencies to discover what transpired during the flight.
A new character called Zeke is introduced. whose story is somehow similar to those
of passes

Unlike other TV shows involving missing planes, the passengers of flight 828 went
off the radar for five and half years before finally landing. While the passengers
thought they had arrived on time, they were surprised to find that the rest of the world
had aged for five years, and the most of their loved had moved on past the tragedy, of
the presumed tragedy. One of the main protagonists the story is Cal Stone who had a
twin sister, Olive, however, due to plane overbooking when they were returning home
Cal’s family were forced to take different two planes. While Cal and his father Ben
Stone boarded flight 828, his mother and twin sister waited for the next flight. By the
time Cal and Ben landed home, his twin sister was 16 years old five and half years his
senior while Cal was still eleven years old. Ben stone’s wife Grace Stone had also
started dating another man after having given up on ever seeing her husband and her
son. Another protagonist Michaela stone who had also boarded the flight returns to
find her fiancée and best friend are now married after having been brought close by
grief of losing her.
Manifest as TV show has numerous appealing qualities that are bound to capture the
imagination of the audience. It is an action-packed show full of drama, romance,
mysteries and puzzles that keep people guessing. The main source of mystery and
puzzle mainly revolve around the people who boarded flight 828. While the Stone
family acts as the focal point of the show, every episode introduces a passenger of
Flight 828 who is either is danger or needs help from the from the Stone family.
Michaela Stone who returns to work as a police officer takes up the job of saving the
passengers who are finding it hard to adjust to their new reality. Her work is made
easier by Cal Stone who despite his young age appears to have returned with special
powers allowing him to share the pain of other passengers and share their visions,
which are referred to as callings in this case.
the life of one passenger on the flight. There are numerous flashbacks and
flashforwards in this show that is central as Cal Stone starts to experience visions of
Cal Stone who is the main protagonist of the show seems to share a bond with every
passenger of Flight 828.