A Stunning Finale at Breakneck Speed
The grand finale. No dragging things out. (In case you were hoping for more installments.) But perhaps that’s for the best, because in the previous volume, while not excessively, Locke & Key did slow down a bit when the focus shifted to everyday teenage problems. Well, there’s none of that here. Not a single panel is wasted. The conclusion hurtles forward at breakneck speed, right up to the final frames.
You start in 1775, discovering how and why Ben Locke created the keys. Then, instead of immediately stashing them in a very dark place where no one would ever find them, you jump to 1988 to find out what his descendant, Rendell—the father of the Locke kids—messed up. Now, in the present, it’s up to the kids to fix his mistakes, though it will come at a great personal cost.
The Necessary Level of Acceptance
Joe Hill is absolutely a 21st-century, deeply politically correct author. Alongside the dizzying pace of his graphic novel’s plot, he also makes sure to sensitively highlight the importance of accepting others, whether that involves race, sexual orientation, or disabilities. His father must be very proud of him from a parenting perspective. And maybe Hill feels the same about his father, the great Stephen King, given the respectful nods, like the homage to the infamous scene in Carrie.
And speaking of the master, the infuential paternal legacy is very much present in Joe Hill’s case as well. Starting with the fact that many iconic King novels feature children who are the only ones to confront evil—just as in Locke & Key. And continuing with the fact that Hill’s NOS4A2 is practically a Stephen King novel in disguise. However, when it comes to this graphic novel, there’s no need to worry—it speaks in a completely unique voice, showcasing a deep understanding of today’s teenagers (while King’s expertise tends to be with a slightly younger age group).
An Impressive Family Saga – and Insane Evil
The gothic Locke house, the shadows, the keys, the impressive family history stretching back centuries (glimpsed through episodic flashbacks), and the visions of mad, self-serving evil are all remarkable creations in their own right.
No One Draws More Lifelike Hobbits than Gabriel Rodriguez!
The artwork in Locke & Key is top-notch. That is, if you can get past the fact that the characters sometimes inexplicably resemble hobbits. Rodriguez is undoubtedly an equal partner in creation, tasked with depict everything from everyday kids and seductive eroticism to epic-scale events. Would this comic be just as successful if it weren’t his brush bringing to life the eternally curious, golden-hearted Bode (the series’ most well-crafted character), the towering shadows stepping out of the darkness, the ethereal ghostly figures, or the devilishly beautiful, irresistible evil villain, complete with the madness visible in their eyes? Who knows, but one thing’s for sure: the final installment turned out damn well!
Rating: 8.6/10
Locke & Key: Master Edition, Volume Three by Joe Hill & Gabriel Rodríguez
348 pages, Hardcover
Published in 2016 by IDW Publishing
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(Master Edition, Volume Three collects Locke & Key: Clockworks (#1-6), Locke & Key: Alpha & Omega (#1-6))
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Review(s) of the previous volume(s):
Locke & Key: Master Edition, Volume One
Locke & Key: Master Edition, Volume Two