Summary
The following contains spoilers for the finale ofEchoEchoand the beloved animated seriesAvatar: The Last Airbendershare interesting parallels that were spotted by one fan. Looking at the show’s themes, it makes a strange amount of sense.
The lead character in Marvel Studios’Echo, Maya Lopez’s (Alaqua Cox) ability to copy any fighting style was replaced with a powerful connection to her ancestors who sported their own supernatural abilities. It looks like that new idea may be taking inspiration from someplace familiar, and the show’s creators could have paid homage to the aforementioned animated series.Avatar’s story often focuses on a connection to past lives, a theme that carried through to its sequel series,The Legend of Korra. That idea seemed too good to pass up for the folks behindEcho.
Reddit userDominicsjrrecently posted an interesting observation in the Marvel Studios subreddit. In the post, they offered a series of shots from bothEchoandAvatar: The Last Airbenderthat seemingly indicate some familiar themes and possibly some intentional visual homages. This theory focuses on the final episode ofEcho, where Maya fully embraces the connection to her ancestors, accepting the powers they offer her before she uses those powers to affect the mind of villain Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio). AnyAvatarfans out there are already likely taking note of some pretty striking similarities.
As noted in the pictures in the post, Maya’s connection with her ancestors mirrors that of Aang’s connection topast Avatars inAvatar: The Last Airbender. Just like they offer him guidance and power, those Maya is connected with also come together when she’s ready to help her protect her family. This moment onEchocame after several episodes of Maya slowly drawing on that power, though never able to fully embrace it due to her unwillingness to open herself up to her roots and those she cares about. Similarly, past Avatars would appear to Aang in his series to aid him when he was having his own doubts.
But perhaps an even more meaningful connection comes from what Maya does at the end of this particular battle. She uses her newfound powers to enter Fisk’s mind and essentially force him to contend with his own trauma, potentially changing him forever. This is remarkably similar to what happens toFire Lord Ozai inAvatar: The Last Airbender. After Aang struggles with the idea that the oppressive leader likely must die for peace’s sake, he uses his new energybending techniques to remove Ozai’s own powers, effectively removing him as a threat. Even the physical method used in both instances is almost identical, with Maya and Aang pulling it off via the old “finger to the forehead” tactic.
It makes a lot of sense in hindsight. The ending ofEchodrove home the importance of reconciling with one’s past and connecting with family. Meanwhile,Avatar: The Last Airbenderhas always carried some pretty heavy Native American coding, a significant part ofEcho’s identity. Thechange to Maya’s powers from theEchocomicsmay have been a boon from a storytelling perspective but also givenAvatarfans that pleasant surprise.
Echois available to stream on Disney Plus and Hulu.
Echo
Alaqua Cox returns as Maya Lopez in Echo, a first-of-its-kind Marvel Spotlight series. The show explores Maya’s past as she deals with the fallout of her confrontation with Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) in Hawkeye. Unlike previous Marvel projects, Echo is rated TV-MA and explores a grittier, more violent side of the MCU.
