Marvel’s Echo is here and it is kicking off 2024 with quite the powerful punch. The five-episode miniseries follows Maya Lopez, a.k.a. Echo, as she returns to her small Oklahoma hometown after attempting to assassinate her former boss/ “uncle,” Wilson Fisk. Once there, she goes on a journey of self-discovery and rebuilding severed connections with her estranged family. In the show’s first episode, we speed through the events that led her back to her roots, including her beginnings as a member of Fisk’s Tracksuit Mafia. And, since Maya was on Fisk’s side, that made her an automatic enemy of Daredevil. We knew that Charlie Cox’s Daredevil would appear in Echo in some form, and now we know exactly how he shows up in the series.
How Does Daredevil Appear in the Echo TV Series?
For fans who were wondering about Daredevil’s role in Echo, there’s not too much to say here. Daredevil only appears in one fight scene in the first episode of Echo. Here’s how it goes down. After Maya’s father is killed, Fisk tells her that it’s time for her to release her rage “in a more constructive way.” He gives her a job as one of his henchpeople. None of the men are excited about having to “babysit a kid,” but Maya soon proves her worth when a fight breaks out. She’s gaining the upper hand against Fisk’s enemies in Echo‘s first episode, but things get challenging when Charlie Cox’s Daredevil bursts on the scene. Daredevil is chasing down Kingpin’s goons, which now include Maya. They get into a rather entertaining fistfight where Maya really holds her own until Daredevil crashes a shelf on her before disappearing. Daredevil only utters a single line in Echo. He says, “I’ve been watching them all night. And then you guys show up.” But, hey, we’re always glad to see Charlie Cox appear as Daredevil on our screens.
It’s not shocking that Daredevil played an incredibly small role in Maya’s story because, well, it is her story. In a TVLine interview, Echo executive producer Richie Palmer affirmed that Daredevil’s small cameo was all about elevating her arc. “He was there in a way like he was in the comics when Maya was first introduced,” said Palmer. “Maya showing that she can go the distance with Daredevil really shows Kingpin, ‘Oh, there’s something to this kid that I haven’t seen before.'”
We see Fisk praise her fighting prowess, and she begins to do some deadly work for her uncle. This plays out differently from Maya Lopez’s comic arc. Echo made her official debut in Daredevil (1998) #9, where she met and fell in love with Matt Murdock. Maya didn’t know that Murdock was Daredevil, who Kingpin told her had killed her father. Matt Murdock later revealed his secret identity to Maya while they fought as Daredevil and Echo. In the MCU, they have no further relationship outside of vigilante and crime gang killer. We do not see Daredevil again in Echo after the first episode. However, the Echo post-credits scene does set up Daredevil: Born Again with Fisk considering a move into the NYC political world.
Does Daredevil Wear a New Suit in Echo?
The Echo scene with Daredevil is not well-lit, but he does wear a new suit. It is not the yellow and red one we saw him wearing in She-Hulk. This one is the red and black one from the Daredevil series. The gritty fighting style of his scene with Maya, as well as others, is truly reflective of all the gritty Netflix Marvel series, which are now a part of the MCU timeline. This only makes fans more hype for the return of Daredevil.
What’s Next for Daredevil and Kingpin After Echo?
Of course, we know that Daredevil: Born Again will bring Daredevil and Kingpin back again after the events of Echo. Based on the series’ post-credits scene, it seems Kingpin—who may not be his full evil self after Maya’s attempted intervention—may decide to run for NYC mayor. He certainly has enough influence and money to pursue this path, and, if he does, that’s going to be very problematic for Daredevil. We will see where things go for them next… Hopefully Echo and Daredevil will get to meet again in the MCU.
