After debuting on Disney+ yesterday, Marvel’s Echo has earned a respectable 67% rating from critics on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. As of this writing, the miniseries also enjoys a 77% “fresh” rating from audiences, putting it right about in line with The Marvels, which scored 62% with critics and 83% with audiences after it was released last year. Echo, a five-episode series, debuted all at once on the streaming platform last night. That’s part of Disney’s ongoing experiment with release dates on streaming; they have tried everything from the all-at-once binge model, to weekly episodes, to a rapid-fire launch of daily What If…? episodes in the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day.
Audience response for Echo is more or less in line with Loki‘s second season, which scored 81% from fans. Still, that show managed 82% from critics. The second season of What If…? went the other way, getting 88% from critics and just 68% from audiences. But as far as totally new material, both The Marvels and Echo are a big improvement over this summer’s Secret Invasion, which earned 53% from critics and 47% from audiences in spite of a lot of advance hype and a story based on a hugely successful comic book series.
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Marvel’s decline from the most prolific hitmaker in Hollywood to a studio making expensive projects that might or might not connect with audiences has raised a lot of eyebrows over the course of 2022 and 2023. Echo may not be a massive shift in that conversation, but has the promise to be part of something special, considering that it ties into the upcoming Daredevil: Born Again series — Charlie Cox’s long-awaited return to the forefront of the Marvel Universe.
Starring Alaqua Cox, all five episodes of Echo debuted exclusively on both Disney+ and Hulu on Tuesday, January 9th. The origin story of Echo revisits Maya Lopez, whose ruthless behavior in New York City catches up with her in her hometown. She must face her past, reconnect with her Native American roots and embrace the meaning of family and community if she ever hopes to move forward. Vincent D’Onofrio will reprise his role as Wilson Fisk / Kingpin, and Charlie Cox will reprise his role as Matt Murdock / Daredevil. Echo will also star Chaske Spencer, Tantoo Cardinal, Devery Jacobs, Cody Lightning, Graham Greene and Zahn McClarnon.
Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Brad Winderbaum, Stephen Broussard, Richie Palmer, Marion Dayre, and Jason Gavin (Blackfeet) are executive producers of Echo. Amy Rardin, Sydney Freeland, Christina King (Seminole), and Jennifer Booth are co-executive producers.