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Maya Lopez Reading Order (Echo, Ronin, Thunderbird)

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While Matt Murdock/Daredevil became blind following a childhood chemical accident, Maya Lopez was born blind. Her great ability to lip reading when she was young has delayed her diagnosis. Following her father’s death, a Native American of the Cheyenne Nation and a mob enforcer, Maya was taken care of by Wilson Fisk, the one and only Kingpin. She was sent to a boarding school for special children and discovered she has photographic reflexes – the capacity to memorize anything and copy the exact movements of anything. Her education was then pursued in a school for prodigies.

With a special relationship with Kingpin, this is no surprise that Maya made her debut in Daredevil #9 in December 1999. Created by David Mack and Joe Quesada, Maya was manipulated by Fisk who was using her to destroy Matt Murdock and feeding her lies about Daredevil. Maya took the codename Echo to fight Daredevil before discovering the truth and the Kingpin’s manipulations.

After those events, Maya took the road to find herself and this will lead her to take another alias: she was the first person to be Ronin (before Clint Barton), wearing a suit that conceals her identity, and later joined the Avengers. As Ronin and Echo, she participated in many missions, including a fight against the Hood and Secret Invasion.

Following in the footsteps of characters like Monica Rambeau or Hank Pym, Maya tends to change her alias following her circumstances. Recently, she took Thunderbird as a mantle after being chosen by the cosmic entity known as the Phoenix Force to be her new host. She was then gifted with new abilities including telepathy, flight, superhuman strength, and more.

Maya’s place in the Marvel Universe is clearly expanding, thanks to her introduction to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She was introduced in the series Hawkeye (2021), portrayed by Alaqua Cox, and her own spin-off, Echo, is planned for 2023!

Maya Lopez (Echo) Reading Order

All the illustrations in the article are art by David Mack. For more information about him and his work, see his Facebook page as well as his shop at Kirby’s Comic Art.

Maya Lopez is Echo: her introduction in Daredevil (1999-2004)

Introduced in Daredevil #9, Maya developed a special relationship with Matt Murdock and took the name Echo to hunt down Daredevil who she thinks is her father’s murderer. The reality is different, and Maya will have to do some soul-searching after discovering the truth. Both stories were written by David Mack (also the artist for the second arc).

Becoming Ronin and Joining the New Avengers (2005-2009)

When Maya reappears, it is not as Echo but as the mysterious figure known as Ronin. This is during Brian Michael Bendis’s run on The Avengers where she was recruited to become a member of the New Avengers. Things became quite complicated as Maya was killed, raised from the dead, and temporarily brainwashed, between the Civil War and the Secret Invasion.

The Secret Invasion begins with a brutal battle between the New Avengers and the Hand—one that claims the life of Elektra and reveals that she was a Skrull! What does this mean for Tony Stark and his Mighty Avengers? How about the Illuminati? And how about the Reading Order!

Echo & Moon Knight (2011)

Still written by Brian Michael Bendis, Echo meets Moon Knight in Los Angeles where they begin a professional and personal relationship. Unfortunately, this story ends tragically for Echo…

Echo’s return (2016-2020)

Echo died at the end of Moon Knight, but she resurfaces alive and well after a few years in Daredevil. Maybe she was brought back when the universe was relaunched following Secret Wars (see reading order). Who knows? Echo’s story simply continues, working with Daredevil during Charles Soule’s run, then as one of Sharon Carter’s Daughters of Liberty in Captain America, and as part of the Rebellion, a group of heroes stuck in a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

Echo: The New Phoenix Force (2021-)

During Jason Aaron’s run on the Avengers, the Phoenix Force has returned and has started a tournament to decide who will be her next host. You guessed it, Echo became Thunderbird, the new Phoenix.

Heroes Reborn 2021 (optional reading)! The Marvel Universe was altered so that the Avengers were never formed. Tony Stark never built an Iron Man armor. Thor is a hard-drinking atheist who despises hammers. Wakanda is dismissed as a myth. And Captain America was never found in the ice. So who is the biggest superhero team of this altered Marvel Universe? The Squadron Supreme of America. For more information, go to the full reading order.

the story continues…

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