Non-Superhero Comic Spotlight: Locke and Key

Locke and Key has been on my list of shame for a while now. I’d always meant to read it, but I never got around to seeing it through. I had heard nothing but good things for the IDW series from creators Joe Hill (writer) and Gabriel Rodriguez (art) and I liked that it was a horror comic, which is one of the few genres not flooding the market. On the bright side, waiting so long meant I could get all of Locke and Key in collected editions and read straight through the entire series. Experiencing a series this was is typically the preferred reader experience, at least for myself, and in this case I feel it certainly helped the book read smoother but also highlighted some issues in pacing and plot. Let’s begin by answering the question, what is Locke and Key?

Locke and Key is a Lovecraftian horror story focusing on (unsurprisingly) the Locke family and their time at Keyhouse, a family estate located in Lovecraft, Massachusetts. Hidden throughout the estate, different keys begin to pop up, unlocking doors to other dimensions and introducing a variety of interesting dynamics into this universe that for the most part work well thematically, and as interesting science fiction and horror. What unfolds is a compelling tale of a family going through incredibly dark, difficult times, and learning to deal with this in their own different ways. While the breadth of this story is rooted in mysticism and the supernatural, what lies beneath is a collection of character studies and a compelling look at the importance of family and friendship.

In case you haven’t realized already, Locke and Key has a very on-the-nose approach to themes and symbolism. From the title of the book to the town being named “Lovecraft” this book knows exactly the story it wants to tell and exactly the type of book it wants to be. What this book lacks in subtlety, however, it makes up for in confidence. Fortunately, the story is inventive and interesting, the characters are compelling and the themes are relatable and add to the depth of the book. Often, writers get too caught up in creating clever symbolism or overt themes, and the story suffers. Other times, writers are too focused on telling a specific story that it ends up being a hollow narrative with little substance beyond what sits at the surface (see: most superhero books). Joe Hill manages to walk the line quite well with Locke and Key. It’s both a very interesting story that doesn’t get caught up in trying to sound smart, or deliver a certain message and also a very personal and compelling book about family and friendship that never loses its humanity even in the wake of the increasingly absurd supernatural events. If the H.P. Lovecraft inspired science fiction were to be stripped away, Locke and Key would still be an interesting story about death, grieving and learning to carry the burdens and expectations that come from previous generations.

There are many parts working together to make Locke and Key a compelling book. One of the most interesting is this series’ world building. While the majority of this book takes place at Keyhouse, the book does a good job at making the world fully realized and fleshed out. Throughout the course of the story we see glimpses of Keyhouse at different times throughout history and this all comes to a head with the Locke family of present day. It’s through the time shifts in perspective that we begin to understand fully what is actually going on in this story, and with every key discovered there is usually an interesting backstory that sets up further “rules” for the world of Lovecraft. By the end, we are left with a fully explored world and story unlike any other I’ve seen or read. While I loved the world of Lovecraft, the longer this story went on the more I felt Hill was beginning to either break or invent rules in order to move the plot along. Inadvertently, this cheapens certain events that should and could have meant a lot more to the story, adding weight and ramifications to the actions that unfold. The keys themselves, while an incredibly interesting plot device, also allowed characters to escape consequence. Most of the time, the keys were used in a respectful way to storytelling, often adding an element of mystery and excitement to the book, but it was also used as a crutch to fall back on and allow Hill to write himself out of some difficult situations that could’ve been explored better in some other way. On the whole, my complaints with this series are few and far between.

While there are a few hiccups along the way, Locke and Key is arguably the best, most well received book IDW has published. As Joe Hill’s foray into writing comic books he steps up to the plate and manages to get a triple base hit. This book is so close to being one of the standards by which horror comics are measured. Well worth any reader’s time and money, Locke and Key has enough substance at 37 issues (not counting a few one-shots and specials that aren’t part of the main story) and has been collected into easily digestible collected editions for each story arc, making this book quite accessible. While it is broken up into separate story arcs, Locke and Key reads as one continuous narrative that needs to be read from start to finish, as it was published. What it lacks in polish it makes up for in creativity, and while it has its plodding points, you would be doing yourself a disservice to not give this book a chance. More than likely, you will be hooked within the first issue.