As the new host of the Phoenix Force, Echo has powers that build on their existing powerhouse while adding a new cache of weapons and fighting styles.
Warning: spoilers for Avengers # 44 by Jason Aaron and Javier Garrón are ahead of us.
Echo (Maya Lopez) has now become that avenger new host of the Phoenix Force. In Avengers # 44, Echo became the champion of the Phoenix, displaying a host of new skills that gave her an unprecedented level of power over the other Avengers (from Jason Aaron and Javier Garrón, colors from David Curiel, and letters from Cory Petit of VC). . This is a highlight of the current Avengers storyline, in which the phoenix determined its next host by watching the heroes battle each other in a tournament. Although it appeared that Echo had died early from Namor, the submarine navigator, she still emerged from the seabed to drain the power of the Phoenix from the other Avengers.
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As one of the most powerful cosmic units in the Marvel Universe, the Phoenix Force can be described as the force of life itself, with the source of its force coming from the life force of past and future generations in the universe. Because of this, the performance is almost unlimited. The Phoenix manifests in the Phoenix Force and is constantly on the lookout for a new host, as its sheer power often leads to the corruption of its host. While not every Phoenix host becomes the Dark Phoenix, the Phoenix Force remains a difficult entity to incarnate safely. It is a unit that is independent of time and space and enables the host to effortlessly navigate through the cosmos.
Echo has usually been spotted in Daredevil comics where she was once Matt Murdock’s girlfriend, but the meaning of her character goes way beyond that. She is one of the few Native American heroes in Marvel Comics because she is of Cheyenne descent and is also deaf. The phoenix’s powers build on Echo’s existing powerhouse that turns her into an acrobatic heroine with expert martial arts training and the ability to replicate other people’s movements. As the problem later shows, the unique power of Echo enabled the Phoenix Force to manifest in new ways.
Echo declares itself to be a new breed of phoenix, showing a different variation in the powers of power that merges with their existing abilities. First, like other Phoenix hosts, Echo can fly as a projectile and shoot fire while being surrounded by small birds. The birds that fly with Echo are reminiscent of the raptor manifestation of the phoenix featured in Grant Morrison’s New X-Men run, with a few differences. While Jean Grey’s raptor manifestation as a phoenix were giant, towering birds, Echo’s are much smaller and more numerous. The birds also seem to be acting of their own accord, as they sit on the edge of Star-Childs Nativity at the end of the issue. Whether or not Echo can control these birds on their own remains to be seen, but this aspect of their phoenix leaves compelling questions open for future answers.
As one of her first actions as a phoenix, Echo begins to draw the phoenix power from the fighting Avengers and shows a certain amount of energy absorption. This may partly explain one of the most unusual aspects of Echo’s Phoenix, namely her ability to fight in any style of marital art, whether or not she was familiar with it before she became a Phoenix. While fighting Namor, her story says: “[The Phoenix Force] can adapt to any host, but never has a host been able to use it in so many different ways. Can fight in any style. With any weapon. “This explains why she was able to fight Namor with Atlantean martial arts that she would never have seen before.
Echo also fought Namor with handguns, which she manifested from the phoenix, suggesting that her phoenix exhibits a high level of adaptability in combat. Based on her battle with Namor, Echo also displays invulnerability, which is evident in how she was able to fend off attacks from Namor with little effort. While Maya Lopez is very good at different fighting styles herself, the Phoenix Force has taken this skill to the next level. With all the fighting styles and weapons at her disposal, the possibilities for Echos Phoenix are endless.
Echo’s Twist as a Phoenix is an exciting new installment in the Phoenix canon in Marvel Comics, particularly in terms of how her experience of the being is conveyed through her Cheyenne cultural background. For Echo it means to become the phoenix, to become the “Thunderbird of old and tomorrow” and the character that meant a change between the seasons for the Cheyenne. While the Phoenix Force has been deeply problematic for many heroes in Marvel Comics, Echo shows both a degree of synergy with the power of the essence and some consolation with the company’s legacy, particularly with regards to the Cheyenne culture, which suggests a promising one Future for them indicates.
Even so, the phoenix remains a devastatingly strong character in Marvel Comics, and Echo’s new host status points to a difficult path. At the very end of the issue, Jean Gray telepathically reaches for Echo and tells her: “You are a loner. [The Phoenix] likes loners. But you cannot let yourself be isolated from the things that make you human. Not if you want to keep your soul. And I hope for all of us that you do. “Jean’s words sound especially true when you consider how Echos Phoenix puts her in total command of all fighting styles and weapons. Perhaps the Thunderbird’s unique cultural significance will anchor Echo in her humanity during her time as hosts of the Phoenix. Either way , with one of the most powerful cosmic beings back on stage, the fate of avenger and the universe in general is now in the hands of Echo.
About the author
Jules Chin Greene
(97 articles published)
Jules Chin Greene is a writer, filmmaker and animator based in Los Angeles. She has a BA in English and Cinema Studies from Oberlin College. There she was a research fellow at Oberlin College and won the Award for Excellence in Critical Writing for her dissertation on indigenousness and anti-imperialism in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In her spare time, she enjoys horror movies, roller skating, and otamaton.
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