Locke & Key

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Locke & Key
Cover of Locke & Key: Welcome To Lovecraft 1 (February 2008). Art by Gabriel Rodriguez.
Created by Joe Hill & Gabriel Rodriguez
Publication information
Publisher IDW Publishing
Schedule Monthly
Title(s) Welcome to Lovecraft
Head Games
Crown of Shadows
Keys to the Kingdom
Clockworks
Formats Original material for the series has been published as a set of limited series.
Genre Horror
Publication date Welcome to Lovecraft
February–July 2008
Head Games
January–June 2009
Crown of Shadows
November 2009 – April 2010
Keys to the Kingdom
August 2010 – March 2011
Clockworks
June 2011 – April 2012
Omega
November 2012 – December 2013
Number of issues 6 per miniseries (but 7 in Omega), plus two one-shots "The Guide to Known Keys" and Grindhouse
Creative team
Writer(s) Joe Hill
Artist(s) Gabriel Rodriguez
Letterer(s) Robbie Robbins
Colorist(s) Jay Fotos
Creator(s) Joe Hill & Gabriel Rodriguez
Editor(s) Chris Ryall
Reprints
Collected editions
Welcome to Lovecraft ISBN 978-1-60010-237-0
Head Games ISBN 9781600104831
Crown of Shadows ISBN 9781600106958

Locke & Key is a comic book series written by Joe Hill, illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez and published by IDW Publishing.

Plot summary

This plot is presented in chronological order. During the American Revolution, a group of Rebels, hiding beneath the future Keyhouse, discover a portal to another dimension, the plains of Leng filled with demons which can mesmerize and possess any who see or touch them. However, when the demons attempt to enter the real world, they collapse into lumps of "whispering iron", which young smith Benjamin Locke forges into a variety of magical keys, including the Omega Key, which seals the entrance to the dimension. The magic of the Keyhouse gradually evolves over the years, including a spell which causes occupants to forget about the keys and the magic of the house when they pass their 18th birthday. In 1988, a group of teenagers, having used the keys extensively in their high school years to their great delight, decide to open the black door with the Omega Key, hoping to trick a demon into entering the real world in order to provide more metal with which to make more keys. However, Rendell Locke's younger brother follows the group and is mesmerized by the door. Attempting to walk through it, he is stopped by Dodge, who accidentally puts his hand through the door, becoming possessed. After plotting to kill his friends and enslave the others at the behest of the Child of Leng possessing him, Rendell kills Dodge, trapping his possessed soul in the well.

Many years later, Dodge's spirit reaches out to a young abused prodigy, Sam Lesser, and convinces him to attack the Lockes and kill Rendell, looking for the key to the Black Door, as well as a key to free Dodge from the well. After the gruesome murder of their father, the Locke kids, Tyler, Kinsey and Bode move with their mother Nina across the country to Keyhouse and begin discovering its secrets. Sam escapes prison and follows the Lockes, recovering the Anywhere Key which allows Dodge to escape the well. Dodge then kills Sam and returns to Lovecraft in the same body as he had thirty years before.

Dodge re-enters high school under the guise of a new student, intimidating his way into the home of one of Kinsey's teachers and Dodge's former friends. Over the next year, Dodge secretly tries to recover the various keys - in particular the Omega Key - from the children, collecting many though hindered by Tyler and Kinsey. Dodge is eventually discovered but manages to switch bodies and possess Bode before they can kill him. Now free to explore the house as Bode, Dodge finally finds the Omega Key and plans his takeover after-prom party in the caves. Releasing several demons, many of the students are killed. Dodge is ultimately undone by Tyler and Dodge's spirit is forced back into the well, though Bode's empty body is cremated before Bode's soul has a chance to return to it. In the epilogue, Tyler returns to the well to finally free Dodge's spirit from the demon, having used a sliver of whispering iron inherited from his father to forge an "Alpha Key" capable of undoing possession. Tyler is able to speak with his father one last time, and restore Bode's physical form.

Publication history

The narrative of Locke & Key is structured in three acts, with each act consisting of two six-issue storylines. Act One's first story arc, Welcome to Lovecraft, was a six-issue limited series published by IDW Publishing. The first issue of Welcome to Lovecraft was released on February 20, 2008 and sold out in a single day, requiring a second printing to be done immediately.[1] The second arc of Act One, entitled Head Games, commenced with the release of the first issue on January 22, 2009.[2] The actual Head Games story was printed in four issues, with a standalone prologue ("Intermission" or "The Joe Ridgeway Story") and a standalone conclusion ("Army Of One").[3]

Act Two of the Locke & Key story consists of two limited, six-issue miniseries; the first storyline of Act Two, Crown of Shadows, began in late 2009.[4] The second storyline, Keys to the Kingdom, began in August 2010.

The first storyline of Act Three was initially announced as Time & Tide,[5] but is now titled Clockworks.[6]

The original publication plan for the issues comprising the second, third, fourth, and fifth story arcs to be released monthly, with the final storyline being produced as an original graphic novel, but these plans have been altered.[7][8][9]

Story arcs

"Welcome to Lovecraft"

Issue Release Summary
#1 February 20, 2008 After the murder of their father, Tyler, Kinsey, and Bode Locke relocate with their mother to the family estate of Keyhouse, located in Lovecraft, Massachusetts. Sam Lesser, one of the teens who murdered Mr. Locke, is in a juvenile detention center and, by gazing in water, communicates with a supernatural force that promises to free him. Bode Locke, the youngest of the family, uncovers The Ghost Door, which separates his spirit from his body.
#2 March 26, 2008 Bode continues to experiment with The Ghost Door and, in his incorporeal form, spies on his brother, sister, and mother. During his journeys, Bode discovers a well that houses a creature who appears as a girl, the supernatural force previously communicating with Sam Lesser.
#3 April 30, 2008 Sam Lesser uses the tools the girl gave him to escape from the detention center.
#4 May 28, 2008 Sam Lesser travels across America, making his way towards Keyhouse. His cross-country journey is mirrored by a series of flashbacks into his memories.
#5 June 25, 2008 The Locke family is taken hostage by Sam Lesser who is seeking the Anywhere Key for his Master, the girl in the well.
#6 July 30, 2008 Bode uncovers the Anywhere Key and trades it with the girl in the well for a promise that she'll stop Sam Lesser. Freed from her prison, she keeps her promise by throwing Sam through the Ghost Door with no chance to return.

"Head Games"

Issue Release Chapter Title Summary
#1 January 28, 2009 Intermission[3] Professor Joe Ridgeway recognizes Zack Wells as Lucas Caravaggio, a teenager who disappeared over twenty years before, along with several other students, and who has long been presumed dead. Joe soon sets out to dig up the truth on Wells, but Zack proves ruthless in his desire for secrecy.
#2 February 25, 2009 Chapter One A shocking death throws Kinsey and Tyler Locke into choppy emotional waters. They turn to Zack Wells for support, not knowing him to be the murderer. Meanwhile, six-year-old Bode Locke tries to puzzle out the secret of the head key, and Uncle Duncan is jarred into the past by a disturbingly familiar face.
#3 March 4, 2009 Chapter Two Kinsey, Tyler, and Bode discover the head key allows them to open up people's minds and play with their memories.
#4 April 8, 2009 Chapter Three Duncan Locke finds himself faced with a dizzying, impossible revelation; Tyler makes the ill-considered decision to share with others the unlikely powers of the head key; and Kinsey opts to remove troubling emotions from her mind.
#5 May 20, 2009 Chapter Four Dodge uses the head key on Duncan Locke, sparing his life but inadvertently leading to the injury of Locke's live-in-boyfriend.
#6 July 1, 2009 Army of One[3] We learn how Dodge maintains control of Ellie even without the use of a head key in a flashback sequence.

"Crown of Shadows"

Issue Release Chapter Title Summary
#1 November 11, 2009 The Haunting of Keyhouse[10] Sam Lesser may be dead and gone, but Dodge still has uses for him, and in the first chill days of October, will make contact with him again. The dead know things the living may not, and Sam's restless spirit has had time to discover the thing Dodge wants to know most of all... where to find the key to the black door.
#2 December 16, 2009 In the Cave Far below Keyhouse lies the Drowning Cave, a place where shadows obscure ancient secrets, and the stones are stained with ancient blood. Kinsey Locke descends into the cavern, looking for answers to her family's troubled past, only to discover that it's easier to get in than it is to get out...
#3 February 17, 2010 Last Light[11] Dodge takes possession of the crown of shadows, and darkness falls upon Keyhouse... with a vengeance.
#4 March 17, 2010 Shadow Play[12] Kinsey and Bode find themselves in a desperate, seemingly unwinnable battle against a rising army of living shadows, while Tyler faces down Dodge in a terrifying duel of wits and wills.
#5 April 28, 2010 Light of Day[13] Four words: "Giants hitting each other." Don't miss the most smash-tastic fight issue of the year!
#6 July 14, 2010 Beyond Repair[14] In a terrible night of grief and rage, Nina Locke discovers a new key, one which opens a cabinet capable of mending smashed objects; but some things, she will learn, are beyond repair...

"Keys to the Kingdom"

Issue Release Chapter Title Summary
#1 August 11, 2010 Sparrow[15] As the new arc begins, Bode Locke discovers a key that unlocks the world of tooth, fang, claw, and feather, in a story that leaves hundreds dead! Hundreds of birds, that is.
#2 October 20, 2010[16] White[17] On a bitter winter day, Kinsey Locke encounters a madwoman who just might be able to unlock the darkest secrets of Keyhouse. But forcing the truth out of her won't be easy, and besides... Dodge has no intention of ever giving Erin Voss a chance to tell what she knows.
#3 November 24, 2010 February 28 spell-binding and skin-crawling issues of Locke & Key — crammed into one.
#4 January 26, 2011[18] Casualties When Squadron Strange accept a mission from a ghost, they find themselves on their most perilous raid ever... straight into the heart of a haunted mansion. Sgt. Rufus Whedon and Corporal Bode Locke have a terrifying lesson to learn: if you're dealing with a dead man, you better think fast and fight hard, if you don't want to wind up one yourself.
#5 March 2, 2011[19] Detectives, Part 1 Tyler Locke begins, finally, to consider what he knows about the terrifying but mysterious enemy that has harrowed the Locke family for months—only to find that all the evidence points to a single suspect: Zack Wells.
#6 April 27, 2011 Detectives, Part 2 'Keys to the Kingdom' comes to a close as Dodge and Tyler Locke confront one another at last. Tyler came armed with the truth; Dodge prefers sharper instruments, and shows his willingness to use them.

"Clockworks"

Issue Release Chapter Title Summary
#1 July 20, 2011[20] The Locksmith's Son Colonel Adam Crais's minutemen are literally trapped between a rock and a hard place; in the first days of the Revolutionary War, they find themselves hiding beneath 120 feet of New England stone, with a full regiment of redcoats waiting for them in the daylight... and a door into hell in the cavern below.

The black door is open, and it's up to a 16-year-old smith named Ben Locke to find a way to close it. The biggest mysteries of the Locke & Key series are resolved as Clockworks opens, not with a bang, but with the thunderous crash of English cannons.
#2 August 31, 2011[21] SMASH! Terror runs wild, and the Locke family comes to grief in the smash-ingest story of the series yet!
#3 December 14, 2011[22] The Tamers of the Tempest The Omega Key to The Black Door has been found by the one, who calls himself The Legion.
#4 February 1, 2012[23] The Whispering Iron The tamers of The Tempest—Rendell Locke, Dodge Caravaggio, and their friends—descend into the Drowning Cave to open the Black Door, hoping to get their hands on some of the fabled whispering iron, the material from which all of the keys are forged. And everything goes according to plan! Not.
#5 March 14, 2012[24] Grown-Ups Lucas "Dodge" Caravaggio returns from the Drowning Cave, infected by a parasite of the soul; the good and loving friend has been left behind, and replaced by something free of all human feeling. Searching for a way to control him, the Keepers of the Keys make a dreadful choice... and set off a chain of events that will end in an unimaginable slaughter.
#6 May 16, 2012[25] Curtain As a storm thunders up the coast to Lovecraft, Massachusetts, the Keepers of the Keys face Dodge a final time, under three hundred feet of stone, in the darkness before the Black Door. Here, water will mix with blood and The Drowning Cave will become a colossal grave, in the final issue of the CLOCKWORKS storyline.

"Alpha & Omega"

The final hardcover is titled Locke & Key: Alpha & Omega, and collects "Omega" 1 – 5, and "Alpha" 1 and 2.[26]

Issue Release Chapter Title Summary
Omega #1 November 14, 2012 Our Regrets The beginning of the end starts here. Dodge has the Omega key, and nothing can stop him from using it...
Omega #2 December 19, 2012 The Soldier A ghost haunts the long halls of Keyhouse—the spirit of Bode Locke, cast out of his body by the Demon named Dodge—and only one person can hear his voice: Bode's old playmate, Rufus Whedon.[27]
Omega #3 February 20, 2013 Last Dance As Kinsey Locke and the other students head to a dance at Lovecraft Academy, the demonic Dodge gathers shadowy forces of his own and enacts his evil endgame. The “Last Dance” begins here.[28]
Omega #4 April 3, 2013 Human Sacrifices The bottomless pit of the Drowning Cave threatens to become a mass grave, as Dodge springs a fatal trap on the senior class of Lovecraft Academy. Hope is as fragile as a candle-flame wavering in the night. . . and as easy to extinguish.
Omega #5 June 5, 2013 The Fall In the Drowning Cave, the black door is open at last, and for the kids trapped down there, the choice is simple: resist and die, or pass through the door and be lost forever. In the hole beneath Keyhouse the stones run with blood, the living shadows run riot, and time runs out... as Locke & Key enters its final chapters.
Alpha #1[29] September 11, 2013[30] In the second-to-the-last issue of Locke & Key, the damned and the saved alike will make their final stand in the Drowning Cave, in a clash of blood and fire. The shadows have never been darker and the end has never been closer. Turn the key and open the last door; it's time to say goodbye.[31]
Alpha #2 December 18, 2013[32] "The End." A door claps softly shut. A key scrapes in a last rusted lock. It ends here: the story of the Locke children and their desperate, tragic battle with the monster set on destroying them... the past. Join Gabriel Rodriguez and Joe Hill for the final chapter of Locke & Key.[33]

"The Golden Age"

A collection of six one-shots.[34]

Issue Release Chapter Title Summary
#1 November 23, 2011 Open the Moon (Guide to the Known Keys) This special standalone issue features an expanded Guide to the Known Keys, an all-new Guide to Failed Keys, and a story of summer-night magic titled "Open the Moon", set in Keyhouse's unlikely past.
#2 August 29, 2012 Grindhouse Set in the glare of a Depression-era summer, in which three Canuck gangsters carry out a heist and hide out at the Keyhouse. Locke & Key: Grindhouse includes an expanded 'Guide to Keyhouse,' which describes the mansion.

Collected editions

Standard editions

Hardcover Release Title Summary ISBN
Vol. 1 October 8, 2008 Welcome to Lovecraft Collects Welcome to Lovecraft #1–6 978-1600102370 (Hardcover)
978-1600103841 (Paperback)
Vol. 2 September 30, 2009 Head Games Collects Head Games #1–6 978-1600048311 (Hardcover)
978-1600107610 (Paperback)
Vol. 3 July 29, 2010 Crown of Shadows Collects Crown of Shadows #1–6 978-1600106958 (Hardcover)
978-1600109539 (Paperback)
Vol. 4 July 19, 2011 Keys to the Kingdom Collects Keys to the Kingdom #1–6 978-1600108860 (Hardcover)
978-1613772072 (Paperback)
Vol. 5 July 24, 2012 Clockworks Collects Clockworks #1–6 978-1613772270 (Hardcover)
978-1613776995 (Paperback)
Vol. 6 February 4, 2014 Alpha & Omega Collects Omega #1–5 and Alpha #1–2 978-1613778531 (Hardcover)

Signed limited editions

On November 11, 2007, Subterranean Press announced a pre-order for a hand-numbered, signed, limited edition of the six-issue run of Welcome To Lovecraft. This edition consisted of 250 numbered copies and 26 lettered copies, both of which sold out within 24 hours of being announced.[35][36] This edition was a hardcover release in a specially designed and illustrated slipcase, and featured exclusive dust jacket art by Vincent Chong and reprinted all 250 pages of Joe Hill's script in addition to the actual comic work.[37]

This was followed by the publication of Head Games, which was also limited to 250 hand-numbered and signed copies as well as 26 lettered copies.[38] The third volume, Crown of Shadows, is available for preorder, and like the previous editions is signed and numbered with the same limitations and also comes with an illustrated slipcase.[39] Cloth-bound trade editions limited to 1000 copies (unsigned, unnumbered, and without the slipcase) were also released. Trade editions for the first two volumes are sold out.

Awards and nominations

At the 2009 Eisner Awards, Locke & Key is nominated for "Best Limited Series" and Joe Hill is nominated for "Best Writer".[citation needed]

It won the 2009 British Fantasy Award for Best Comic or Graphic Novel.[citation needed]

It won the 2011 Eisner Award for Best Writer (Joe Hill), and was nominated for Best Single Issue, Best Continuing Series, and Best Penciller.

It won the 2012 British Fantasy Award for Best Comic or Graphic Novel.[40]

Adaptations

Television pilot

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Main article: Locke & Key (TV pilot)

Dimension Films acquired the film and television rights for Welcome to Lovecraft from IDW Publishing with the intent of developing the property as a feature with John Davis producing.[41] In February 2010, it was announced that Dimension had lost the adaptation rights to Dreamworks[42] with Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci signed on to develop and produce the project.[43] In August 2010 Steven Spielberg also joined as a producer, and the production became a TV series rather than a movie adaptation, with Josh Friedman writing episodes for the show and acting as show-runner.[44]

The TV series adaptation then landed at 20th Century Fox Television. The network greenlit a pilot, produced by Dreamworks TV and K/O Paper Products through the latter's deal with 20th Century Fox TV.[45]

Miranda Otto played Nina Locke, Sarah Bolger was Kinsey Locke[46][47] and Nick Stahl co-starred as Duncan Locke.[48] Skylar Gaertner played 6-year old Bode, and Harrison Thomas played a teenager possessed by an evil spirit.[49] Actor and singer Jesse McCartney appeared as Ty Locke, the series' male lead[50] and Ksenia Solo was cast as Dodge.[51]

Mark Romanek directed the pilot episode,[52] which was filmed at the mansion in Hartwood Acres and in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania, in February 2011. The pilot was also shot throughout Pittsburgh that same month.[53] In May 2011, Fox announced that the project would not be picked up to the series.[54] The studio attempted to sell the project to other networks but eventually ceased efforts due to rising costs. However, the show has been eyed by MTV, though no official talks have been had yet. The pilot was screened at the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con International, where it was well received.[55]

Film

A film trilogy was officially announced at the 2014 Comic Con. Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, Bobby Cohen and Ted Adams will produce the film with Universal Pictures and Kurtzman and Orci's production company K/O Paper Products.[56]

In October 2015, Joe Hill confirmed that the films are no longer happening. However, he stated that TV series is still possible.[57]

Audio drama

All six books of Locke & Key were adapted as a 13-hour audio drama released on 5 October 2015. Produced by AudioComics for Audible Studios and directed by William Dufris, the work features the voices of Tatiana Maslany, Haley Joel Osment, Kate Mulgrew, with appearances by Hill, Rodriguez, and Stephen King in addition to almost 50 voice-over actors[58] and an original score by Peter Van Riet.

Card game

In 2012, Cryptozoic Entertainment released a card game based on the series.[59]

Notes

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ url = http://www.legionofcomics.co.uk/acatalog/LOCKE___KEY_OMEGA__2.html
  28. ↑ url = https://www.inter-comics.com/shop/locke-key-omega-3-of-7
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  30. ↑ https://twitter.com/IDWPublishing/status/372761461451276289
  31. ↑ http://www.previewsworld.com/Home/1/1/71/916?stockItemID=JUN130329
  32. ↑ http://ryallsfiles.tumblr.com/post/66916898702/advance-copies-of-the-final-issue-of-locke-key
  33. ↑ http://www.previewsworld.com/Home/1/1/71/916?stockItemID=AUG130400
  34. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  35. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  36. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  37. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  38. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  39. ↑ http://subterraneanpress.com/store/product_detail/locke_key_crown_of_shadows
  40. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  41. ↑ Dimension Loses Rights to Joe Hill's Awesome 'Locke & Key' Comic!
  42. ↑ DreamWorks Keeping Newly Acquired Property Under Locke & Key
  43. ↑ Exclusive: Kurtzman & Orci To Produce Locke & Key
  44. ↑ Locke & Key Adaptation Becomes TV Series
  45. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  46. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  47. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  48. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  49. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  50. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  51. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  52. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  53. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  54. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  55. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  56. ↑ Kit, Borys (June 19, 2013). "Universal Picks Up 'Locke & Key' Comic". The Hollywood Reporter.
  57. ↑ DiVincenzo, Alex (October 5, 2015). "Locke & Key Film Adaptation Dead, TV Series Still Possible". Broke Horror Fan.
  58. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  59. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

References

External links

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