‘Echo’ Is a Perfect First Entry in Marvel’s Spotlight Series

Marvel’s Echo hit Disney+ with all its episodes dropping at once, and this is the first time we get to see how exactly Marvel’s “Spotlight” series will work. What makes Echo stand out is simply how good Alaqua Cox is as Maya.

Having seen the first three episodes provided to press before the series premiere, I’m excited to dive into the final two the minute they drop on Disney+. Part of it is my dear love of the street-level heroes in the Marvel canon, and while Maya Lopez isn’t a “hero,” she is our protagonist and brings us back into the world of characters like Daredevil (Charlie Cox) and Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio).

The first episode of the series does feel like, at times, a recount of Maya’s story from Hawkeye with an “in case you missed it” vibe but has one of the best fight sequences out there thanks to Maya’s square off with Matt Murdock. From there, the show takes a much needed departure to make this Maya’s story, and we get to see a different side to Alaqua Cox as a performer when she takes Maya back home.

Maya left without keeping a relationship with people like Bonnie (Devery Jacobs), who is her family, but Maya was so caught up in the world of Wilson Fisk that she lost touch. So, for the show to focus on Maya rebuilding those relationships makes it focused completely on Maya, and it is great to see this side to the complicated hero/villain. But of the episodes I’ve seen, one thing is clear: Alaqua Cox as Maya is one of the best casting choices Marvel has made.

Maya Lopez is one of the best in the Marvel canon

Cox proves time and time again throughout the show that she is a star. Maya Lopez, in Echo, goes through things that require her to make do with a new prothesis, and seeing how Cox takes on the energy of Maya in those moments, where she effortlessly continues to fight back and get out of situations, is truly what makes the show rule.

She is so incredibly brilliant as Maya, from the more subtle moments where Maya is trying to reconnect with those from her past to the moments where she is a complete badass. All of it proves that shows like Echo and the “Spotlight” are going to work to bring us the stories of our heroes and favorite characters that we want to see more of.

I hope we get more of Cox as Maya in the future because she is one of the best parts of the Disney+ era of Marvel shows. Getting to see her grow in Echo just makes the desire to see more of Maya Lopez that much deeper.

All five episodes of Echo are on Disney+ now, and if you’re a fan of the street-level Marvel characters, this is a show for you.

(featured image: Disney+)