Character Spotlight—Echo
Echo is an established character originating in the pages of Daredevil and appearing in the Hawkeye TV Show. The TV show will premiere on Disney+
A new year and a new Marvel series from Disney.
In a few short days we will have the start of the Echo series. And you would be forgiven for asking who exactly is Echo.
Echo first appeared on our screens in the 2021 Hawkeye TV show, but has two decades of stories in comic books. And Echo has made good use of those two decades. She’s been a member of the Avengers, she’s gone rogue, become the host of the Pheonix force, been brainwashed, stabbed Doctor Strange and been involved in a few major Marvel events including World War Hulk and Secret Invasion.
When Echo debuted in the pages of Daredevil in 1999, she was Maya Lopez, the adopted daughter of Kingpin. She was an accomplished pianist and ballerina. Despite the death of her father at a young age and a brief stay in a school for children with learning difficulties, she was a young and carefree character.
Unfortunately, being the adopted daughter of Kingpin contains inevitable tragedy. Fearing Daredevil was getting too close to uncovering his criminal organization, Kingpin manipulates Maya into believing that Daredevil killed her father.
Maya watches a number of fighters, including Daredevil and Bullseye, to be able to copy their moves before she starts hunting Daredevil.
In addition to setting Maya onto a path of revenge, Kingpin asks her to start a relationship with Matt Murdock to prove to the lawyer that Kingpin is actually a law abiding citizen (Maya was initially unaware of Kingpin’s criminal activities).
Obviously, Kingpin’s intention is to destroy Daredevil by making Matt develop feelings for Maya who will then attempt to take his life. And Echo is a perfect weapon. She is resourceful, effective and takes down Daredevil on more than one occasion. She is only stopped from ending his life the first they meet because of the arrival of children. Having experienced the trauma of her father’s death, Maya does not want to inflict that on others. If we did need hints that she was actually hero material, you couldn’t have asked for much more than wanting to protect a child.
The Daredevil arc Parts of a Hole written by David Mack, Joe Quesada and Jimmy Palmiotti is worth reading, so no major spoilers here.
Suffice to say, Echo is a persona created by Maya Lopez for the purpose of revenge. With two decades of being a hero, it is interesting to note that during her time with the Avengers, Doctor Strange casts a spell to show the true spiritual nature of a number of heroes, including Echo (there is a Skrull problem at the time). In the projection of her spiritual self, Echo is seen wearing a Daredevil costume. She then admits, “He is why I do what I do”.
On screen, Echo was introduced through the Hawkeye TV Show. Portrayed by Alaqua Cox, Echo is a dark and brooding character. There is more of a connection between Echo and Hawkeye than you might be aware of. In the comic books, Echo was the first character to take on the Ronin persona. You might remember in Avengers: Endgame, Hawkeye that taken on the persona of Ronin after the Blip. In comic books, Hawkeye was given the identity by Echo after she had finished with it.
As we head towards the start of the Echo TV show, we can certainly expect a gritty and dark storyline. The troubled origins of Echo provide a wealth of conflict as well as a challenging look at our ability to control our own destiny.
For Echo’s first appearance check out Daredevil: Parts of a Hole. There is also a recent Daredevil and Echo mini-series to read. (these are paid affiliate links and as an Amazon Associate I will earn a small income from qualifying purchases, but won’t cost you any more).