Echo: The Most On Track Marvel Has Been In A While

It’s probably a safe assumption that the plans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the post-Avengers: Endgame era as they are being implemented now are not what they were back in 2018/2019. At the time, Marvel did not own the rights to the various Fox properties like X-Men and Fantastic Four so certainly the cosmic multiversal aspects that are currently in play were off the table in their current form. That said, the consolidation of Marvel Television under Marvel Studios and Netflix’s cancellation of the Defenders-verse shows led to a situation where there was a ticking clock on the rights to the various licensed characters reverting back to Marvel Studios so they could use them however they saw fit. All that is to say that the more street-level side of Marvel appears to be more on track for the overarching narrative storytelling people have become accustomed to and Echo perfectly encapsulates why that side of things is working better than the cosmic.

Echo picks up after Hawkeye (the first episode isn’t a straight recap but it does lay out all the important information it needs to for viewers to remember the story so far) and follows Maya Lopez/Echo (Alaqua Cox) as she goes on the run following her attempted murder of Wilson Fisk/Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio). She returns to her childhood home to reconcile aspects of her past and is brought face-to-face with the consequences of her previous work under Kingpin.

Because Echo is not an effects-bonanza like WandaVision or Loki, and Echo as a character has not had the chance to develop as an entity into and of herself, this show is built on the back of the character work done by Cox. She does a fantastic job showcasing the range of Maya’s experiences to take a character who was the core antagonistic force of Hawkeye and develop her into a complex character with a compelling backstory and interesting motivations. She holds her own well in scenes with D’Onofrio’s Kingpin, who continues to be a force to be reckoned with in his performance.

The other aspect of the show worth noting is the quality of the action sequences in the show. The TV-MA rating allows for an added level of brutality to the fights, something especially highlighted by episode one’s fight between Echo and Daredevil. Beyond being visually fantastic, it does something unique by showcasing a superhero breaking up criminal activity from the perspective of the bad guys.

If there is something wrong with the show, it is the pacing which simultaneously feels too slow and too fast. Part of the issue is the episode count compared to the quality because the show is good enough that it could have been longer without issue. The other part of the issue is that too many of the things that happen in episodes two and three (and the later parts of four) blur together and could have happened in any sequence. It’s an odd situation, however, it’s still a fundamental issue with the show.

One other thing worth noting is that this show will end up being instrumental in the future of street-level Marvel going forward. It is fairly obvious that the Daredevil revival will be adapting the Mayor Fisk storyline from the comics (if not skipping right ahead to Devil’s Reign) and the character work done on Wilson Fisk is important to that going forward. Whether or not viewers see Fisk’s campaign or not, it will create a compelling situation in New York City going forward, maybe something that a certain arachnid-based vigilante that no one remembers the identity of could help out with.

Echo is a must-watch because it is an example of what Marvel Television could be at its best. It is largely self-contained and not obligatory viewing to understand the wider goings on, but is still enjoyable while tying to the wider universe through small cameos. It harkens back to the days of Agents of Shield and The Defenders where it was a type of one-way canon (the shows referenced the movies but the movies didn’t reference the shows) that was enriching for viewers without forcing people to watch things they may not want to. The quality of this show makes it a strong selling point for street-level Marvel and will leave viewers engaged going into next year’s Daredevil: Born Again.

Final Rating: 8/10