- In the Disney+ series, Echo possesses supernatural powers, including talking to spirits, and combat powers that she did not have in the comics.
- In the comics, Echo had the amazing ability to analyze and mimic anyone's skill set, be it combat or otherwise, with absolute precision.
- Balancing this factor in the TV series, Echo is not yet as skilled in combat as her comic book counterpart is.
Marvel’s Echo is streaming now on Disney Plus and if you’ve watched the series already, you know that the way Echo is made is unique in itself. If you have not watched it yet, I’d highly recommend you to watch Echo because the way it is made brings back the nostalgia of watching Daredevil in his golden age and also, Daredevil has made an appearance in the show, thus, connecting it directly to the MCU. Now the big question is, does Echo have superpowers? The answer to that one is slightly complex, so let’s look at Echo’s comic origin and powers in the MCU here.
Spoiler Warning This article includes spoilers for the Daredevil comics involving Echo, as well as the Marvel’s Echo TV series streaming on Disney Plus.
Echo’s Marvel Comics Origin Explained
Making her debut in Daredevil #9 (1998), Maya Lopez became a part of the Marvel Comic Universe as an enemy of Daredevil. As a child, she witnessed the murder of her father and blamed Daredevil for it. Kingpin (Wilson Fisk) took her under his wing and trained her to be a fierce combatant while implanting deep hatred in her heart against Daredevil for killing her father.
However, Kingpin did this to hide the fact that he got her father killed instead of Daredevil. With time, she adopted the identity of “Echo” and eventually fought Daredevil, where she learned that it was Kingpin who killed her father. Maya, filled with rage, shot Kingpin in his, blinding him temporarily, and eventually freed herself from Kingpin’s world.
Later on, once she emerges from all the setbacks she faced because of all the events that happened, she joins the New Avengers and takes up the identity of Ronin, a masked swordswoman who even after being a part of New Avengers, operated mostly as a vigilante.
Oh, and if you are confused, contrary to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Echo was the first one to take up the mantle of Ronin. In the comic universe, Echo was later killed by a Skrull posing as Elektra but was soon revived by the real Elektra using magic.
After her recovery, she dropped the Ronin identity and went back to being Echo. This is when Clint Barton adopted the mantle of Ronin.
What are Echo’s Powers in the MCU?
So, coming to the main point of this article, let’s talk about what are Echo’s powers in the Marvel TV series streaming on Disney+. In this series, some of Echo’s powers are enhanced while some of them are rather toned down compared to the comics.
In the series, we see that Echo is a brilliant combatant who is capable of taking a stand against Daredevil relatively better than any of Kingpin’s other thugs. However, she is not as efficient as she is in the comics.
If we talk about an additional superpower granted to her, in this series, Echo can communicate with the spirits of her ancestors who grant her some superhuman abilities for a limited period. This power of hers is still widely unexplored as of now, but it seems that will be explored further in the future seasons of Echo.
What are Echo’s Powers in Marvel Comics?
If we talk about Echo’s powers in the Marvel comics, she has a skillset similar to that of Taskmaster. Her deafness granted her the ability to mimic anyone’s skill set with absolute precision. Whether it is playing musical instruments or combat, she can analyze and copy the exact combat style of her opponent. She has peak human agility, speed, and combat techniques as well as the ability to wield any weapon she lays her hands on.
In the comics, she goes toe-to-toe with Daredevil, which she was unable to do in the Marvel series. Other than these abilities, she has a connection with nature because of her Native American roots and can communicate with spirits. Also, she is pretty much just a well-trained human. This points towards the fact that the version of her we see on screen is still a very young version of Echo.
Marvel’s Echo offers us a very Daredevil-like experience with a brand-new origin story. This series seems fresh keeping in account all the multiversal stuff going on in the MCU. Now, as of now, we do not know when Echo season 2 will go live but considering the fact that she is gradually developing the powers we see in the comics along with some new ones, Echo has huge potential in the grand scheme of Marvel Universe.
If we look at things, Marvel is slowly moving forward with assembling the Young Avengers, and as Echo’s lore develops, she can join in on the New Avengers in the MCU, the same way she did in the comics. So, let us wait and see where the story of this brand-new live-action character goes and till then, stay tuned!
