GN Review -- Locke and Key, v. 2: Head Games / Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez

While it isn't my intention to just constantly review titles that aren't for children--it's coincidence, I swear!--it really is noteworthy to mention Locke and Key again for its sheer narrative appeal.  I recently got a hold of volume 2, entitled Head Games, and figured I'd put it in the pile of Things That Will Eventually Be Read and Reviewed.  Then I opened it up to glance at a few pages, and ended up sitting down to read the whole thing over the course of a little over an hour.

It was that good.

This arc of the Locke and Key saga focuses on the Head Key, which Bode finds at the end of the previous volume.  He shows he siblings, Ty and Kinsey, how it can be used to add and remove things to and from one's head--literally.  Suddenly you have the ability to learn any subject or skill instantaneously, or to remove bad feelings or fears.  Keeping this a secret proves too big a task, and Ty brings two classmates, Jordan Gates and Zack Wells--who is actually the evil entity Dodge, who's managed to switch to a male body with the help of another of Keyhouse's keys.  Jordan freaks out and runs away, but Zack-Dodge feigns awe and wonder, and gets the siblings to trust him before secretly using the key to manipulate those around him who might figure out who he is.

I have to give props to Joe Hill, who is proving highly adept at taking multiple plot threads and weaving them together in support of a larger narrative arc.  Dodge, who seems to have gotten away scot-free at the end of volume 1, turns out to have more than a few problems keeping anonymous, and must permanently stop the snooping of an old professor who has pieced his secret together.  This story takes up the entire first part of the narrative, complete with background on the professor, his relationship to Dodge and Rendell Locke, and his own concerns about what "Zack" might mean for the Locke kids.  It's a fascinating tale, the events of which help touch off the episode of the Head Key.

There are also plot threads involving Duncan Locke, who it turns out is gay; homophobia, directed at Duncan and his boyfriend by the ignorant townsfolk where he currently lives; Ellie Whedon's travails in keeping Dodge around as her "nephew," when it's made explicit that she had once been Dodge's lover; Kinsey's desire to not feel bad feelings; and Ty's desire for normalcy and companionship.  All of these elements have a part to play in shaping the overall narrative, and Hill handles them all in a way that fits together wonderfully.

While there's plenty of action and grim adventure in this story, there's also a sense of impending dread that permeates the entire narrative, and you get the idea that this is a saga that will continue to develop, shift, and change as the stakes get higher and higher for everyone.  The Locke children are basically set up as the protagonists, and the slippery Dodge is obviously the main antagonist, even though they don't realize it yet.  It makes for compelling reading, with plenty of murder, mayhem, and malice sprinkled throughout.

Gabriel Rodriguez continues to knock it out of the park with his art on this series, rendering characters, settings, and details in a clear, at times viscerally expressive style.  He takes things a step further by putting down his process to drawing the pages of Locke and Key in a detailed essay and exhibition.  It's highly educational and insightful, and gives a good idea of how involved the process of penciling, inking, detailing, and editing just one page of a comic can be.  Throw in the fact that most comics are twenty-two pages every month, and it really hammers home the message that there's more to drawing comics than picking up a pencil and doodling.

Overall, I would currently rank Locke and Key as one of the most compelling comics out there, adult or otherwise, that leaves you wanting to know what happens next when you finish each volume.  Head Games has definitely maintained this feeling, with tight storytelling, great artwork, and a cliffhanger that leaves you wondering what will happen now.  Highly recommended.

GN Review -- Locke & Key, v. 1: Welcome to Lovecraft / Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez

I first ran across Locke and Key a few years ago, probably not long after it was first released.  I read it, and remember being vaguely impressed with it at the time, but then was soon lost to other superhero comics at the time.  Then I had a conversation with my youngest sister, who I asked if she would prefer any horror in her comic books.  She responded in the enthusiastic affirmative, and Locke and Key came back to mind.  I re-read the first volume, and it still packs as much of a wallop in a second reading as it ever did in the first.

Welcome to Lovecraft, the first volume of this series, deals with the events that bring the Locke clan to the family estate known as Keyhouse, located in Lovecraft, Massachusetts.  Having lived in San Francisco until the murder of their father, Rendell, by one of his students, Tyler, Kinsey, and Bode Locke, along with their mother Nina, travel across the country to the house to pick up and rebuild their lives.  Unfortunately, it seems the estate has other plans in store for the family, as Bode, the youngest child, discovers how to die and turn himself into a ghost by going through one of the doors.  Additionally, he begins having conversations with a voice in the old well on the estate grounds, which turns out to belong to a malevolent entity that seems to share a strange connection to the estate, and to Bode's father.

The entity, it turns out, is actively working to bring Rendell's murderer, Sam Lesser, across the country to the estate to finish the job he began with the rest of the family.  Having seen the entity, who we eventually come to know as Dodge, in a picture of the Keyhouse in Rendell's office, Sam was lured in by the promises of power and freedom Dodge offered, and allowed himself to be manipulated by the spirit.  Possessing intelligence but no empathy or moral compass, Sam murdered Locke on her behalf, and broke out of prison with Dodge's help.  His sudden arrival at Keyhouse causes the family to confront a demon from their past, and young Bode must decide whether or not to trust Dodge's word to save them.

To say this is an intense story would be a gross understatement.  It starts off with a murder, and is viciously replete with details.  We have gunshots, people being bludgeoned with bricks, and one person taking an axe to the back of his skull.  There's plenty of blood, tears, death, and grit teeth as Hill makes clear to the reader that this family is not ever safe.  Even if they may think they are, we are made at all times to know better, and to worry for them.

The children are the main characters, and their reactions to the past tragedy and present circumstances highlight their personalities as they try to deal with things.  Tyler would love to break down and lose it, or run off on his own and start his life anew, but he's trying hard to hold it together to give Bode a role model.  Kinsey, who sported a look and attitude that signified her disdain for what anyone else might think of her, is trying to look and act as normal as she can to avoid dealing with the questions and looks of her new classmates.  And Bode, being the youngest, takes escapism to the extreme as he explores the house, becomes a ghost, watches over his family, and converses with a voice in a well.

One particularly amusing/disturbing scene is a comic Bode draws for his teacher, describing his summer in a very truthful and upfront manner.

I've also heard more than one person call this series Lovecraftian, which I rather take issue with, based on this first arc.  It seems like they got hung up on the title, Welcome to Lovecraft, and decided that gave them leave to utilize the adjective without doing any research.  While I'm not the biggest aficionado of H.P. Lovecraft's works--I've maybe read slightly more than a dozen of his works--I've read enough and done enough research to know when the word is being misused.

Lovecraft's works involve, among other things, a horrible knowledge of humanity's insignificance in the universe, that either results in death or insanity for the protagonist.  This story involves a murder, possibly a haunted house, and a ghost or spirit that wants to manipulate and/or harm the family.  While there are some themes that touch on those mentioned in Lovecraft's works, the story itself is not (at least yet) Lovecraftian.  Hell, if anything, I'd say this story has more influence from Stephen King than Lovecraft, with the jailed murderer escaping with the help of an incorporeal entity.  Though I suppose calling this story "Kingian" or "Kingly" would sound a bit off for various reasons.

Artistically, it's hard not to stand in awe of Gabriel Rodriguez's work on this series.  The art is detailed, expressive, and just realistic enough to make you cringe in fear or unease for the hapless family.  The grisly scenes of violence are rendered with plenty of blood, but there's also a conveyance of viciousness, desperation, and a primitive struggle to survive that does just as good a job of making them intense as the gore.  There is also an unmistakable tone that comes with each character: Sam is remorselessly creepy, Ty is stoic but hurting beneath, and Nina is the picture of denial and desire to forget.  It's all done extremely well, and supports the narrative beautifully.

Overall, while I couldn't possibly recommend this series to kids, with all its blood, murder, and scenes that strongly indicate male-on-male fellatio, it's impossible to deny that this intense, disconcerting read is a delight for fans of the horror genre.  While I wouldn't call it Lovecraftian, I would say that it's still worth a read for anyone with a strong stomach, a love for scary storytelling, and an eye for good artwork.  Highly recommended.