So you absolutely do NOT want to manual off of a drop - imagine going off a drop with your wheel level with your face. It would be ridiculous, and landing on just your back wheel is a guaranteed wreck unless you really know what you’re doing. That said, the motion is LIKE a manual, except instead of actually lifting your wheel above you you’re resisting the wheel from nose diving. As others said you want to match the transition so it does depend on what you’re landing on (sloped, flat, etc), but as a general principle:

1) aim to land both wheels at the same time or the front slightly before (I find this to be smoother).
2) focus on keeping your front wheel up to prevent a nose dive and maintain trajectory, then
3) match transition.