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Episode 1 of Echoes starts with Gina trying to call her twin sister, Leni. She’s been struggling to get through to her, but she leaves a voicemail while on her way to a big marketing meeting. She’s been struggling to get through to her, but she leaves a voicemail while on her way to a big marketing meeting. Still, Gina can’t shake the feeling that something is awry with her sis. When Jack (Leni’s husband) phones back later that night, he admits that Leni has gone missing.

Gina leaves a diary entry for herself on the computer, complete with some handy flashbacks for us so we can see the close bond between the sisters. Gina and her sister, Anna, have been best friends since they were toddlers. They bonded over their shared love of horses and fishing, and their shared fear of heights. When Gina was drafted into the military, Anna helped her pack and prepare for her deployment. They continued to text and talk online even as they left for war. When they returned home, they found that their relationship had changed: Gina had become pregnant and Anna was now working full time. The sisters spent their days together at work, but when night came they would go out fishing or horseback riding together. They would talk until late into the night about everything that had happened during their deployment - from what it was like to be in a combat zone to how much fun they were having while on leave.

Gina heads up to their luxurious house, complete with a white picket fence and a stable. Leni’s best friend Megan isn’t there though, much to Gina’s dismay. Young Mattie (Leni’s daughter) does have a new babysitter called Natasha though, and there’s definitely frostiness between her and Gina.

Sheriff Floss and Deputy Martinez update Gina on what’s going on, admitting that the trail has gone cold on Leni’s whereabouts. It would appear that the stable’s office has been ransacked, there was at least one intruder on the premises and the gates were cut with bolt-cutters. Leni has gone off with her horse but they can’t be sure.

That night, Gina is reunited with her father and decides to take his place on the search party the following day. Gina’s father has health issues. Not only that, but Jack has been under a lot of stress recently as well. What sort of stress? Well, we’ll have to wait to find out!

Gina is staying at a motel because she’s concerned about Natasha. She believes that the doll is a message from Natasha and that she may be responsible.

Leni’s horse, Prince, comes back to the farm early in the morning. Upon investigation, they find dried blood on the side and realize that this is a sign of danger. Gina confronts Jack and wonders just what’s going on between them. This line of enquiry is interrupted when they find another horse dead out in the woods. “What does it mean?” Gina asks. Well, I’m guessing it means there are now less horses in the stable to look after!"

The horse has had its microchip cut out, which seems to be a cover up. Who is doing this and why?

Gina speaks to Jack about Leni’s continuing 12 hour shifts. Only, it’s clear that she’s been lying about that. According to Jack, she’s barely around anymore. He hired Natasha because Jack’s been too busy with work and needed someone to look after their daughter.

Gina is not fully convinced by either of the stories and decides to do some good ol’ fashioned sleuthing. She digs through Leni’s drawers, updating Charlie on what’s happened thus far.

Gina wakes up in the middle of the night, still wearing the clothes from her previous night. She finds a doll’s hand and a photo of the twins together as kids. After a bit of inappropriate kissing with Jack by the door, Gina wanders out to the cave she visited with Leni. There, she finds a doll’s head severed next to the clothes.

This leads us to believe that the person who left the note was someone who knew Gina and Leni well. We also see a glimpse of the past in the form of a flashback, which tells us that Gina and Leni used to switch places all the time. This book also has a handwritten note taunting Gina, which suggests that this person was someone who knew them well.

Reading this seems to suggest that there is some game playing going on here and that Gina is not actually Leni. Instead of choosing, she makes it look convincing and switches over to playing Leni’s role in all this, cutting her head open with a rock. ..

The Episode Review

A big twist at the end of the episode sees us in twin territory as it turns out the pair have actually switched places and have a habit of doing this periodically. Why? To what end? Well, we’ll have to find out but it seems to explain a lot about these fractured memories.

The showrunners have done a good job of creating a sense of unease and suspense, but it’s not clear yet what the story is or where it’s going. The first episode feels like it could be easily trimmed down to its essentials and still be a very strong show.

Either way, this could end up being a guilty pleasure, but it all rests on whether Echoes gives some competent answers to the mystery it’s building for itself. Will this get entangled in a web of confusing mediocrity? We’ll have to wait and see! ..