Review: Locke & Key: Keyhouse Compendium

It’s important to start this review by noting that this is the greatest comic of all time. Is a 984-page hardcover the best way to read it? That’s up to you. Unboxing videos show that it is clearly a thing of beauty, and not huge enough to be cumbersome. Hardcovers aren’t for everyone, but there is certainly a large market for them, so it’s well past time that Locke & Key got one. I have not had access to a physical copy, so this review will be of the comic itself. Which, as I’ve mentioned, is the greatest of all time.

I could end the review there, but it wouldn’t meet the standards of journalism our readers have come to expect. So I should probably explain WHY I think Locke & Key is the best comic ever created. Why it nearly broke my love of reading, by leaving me fruitlessly searching for anything that would make me feel the same way. Why I really want to score it a 6 out of 5 (but can’t because I hate it when reviewers do that).

If you’re into comics, this is probably not the first time somebody has recommended Locke & Key to you. You may even know a bit about it already. If you don’t, it’s the story of the Locke family; primarily the three kids, who are two teenagers and a six year old. After a family tragedy, they move from San Francisco to their old ancestral home in a small town. That home is of course Keyhouse, which is where this hardcover edition gets its name. Whilst grieving and going through the trauma of having their lives uprooted, they discover several magical keys and a number of dark secrets.

Locke & Key is sometimes described as a horror comic. On the one hand, that makes sense. Joe Hill wrote this book, and he is primarily a horror writer. The comic has some horror sensibilities. There are moments that are genuinely frightening, that I wouldn’t like to read alone in a house at night. But calling it a horror comic does not quite sit right with me. I suspect the term causes some would-be readers to pigeonhole the book or dismiss it as not for them. When actually, I believe Locke & Key is for almost anyone who loves comics. It will make you feel so many emotions besides fear. It spans so many genres besides horror. Fantasy, suspense, tragedy, romance, mystery, family drama. The book is even funny, and very frequently at that. It has everything you could want; including characters you care deeply about.

But let’s not give the writing all the praise; this is a comic book, after all. And thankfully the art is just as perfect. Gabriel Rodríguez’s distinctive style will stay with you, particularly the large and emotionally expressive eyes of his characters. The story flows flawlessly through his layouts. And he is at his best when bringing the more fantastical elements to life. Without spoiling too much, his depictions of the workings of each Keyhouse key are essential to making this comic so unique and unforgettable. The brief interludes in completely different styles (including a beautiful Calvin & Hobbes homage) had me checking that this was still the same artist; and yes, it was. The coloring work by Jay Fotos complements Rodríguez perfectly, moving seamlessly between dark suspenseful moments and bright fantasy scenes.

When I said this was the greatest comic of all time, I undersold it a little. It’s the greatest story of all time, in any medium. There isn’t a novel, movie, or TV show that comes close. Locke & Key is the closest thing there is to perfection in storytelling. Not one panel in the 37 issues is wasted. Not a single moment drags or feels like filler. The ending wraps up every loose thread, but will still leave you wanting more. Whether it’s hardcover, trade paperback, or digital, you should buy this comic. If you’ve already bought it for yourself, buy it for someone else; this hardcover is definitely special enough to be a gift. It’s an excellent introduction to comics for a first-timer, because it relies on no prior knowledge or context. The only problem will be that after they’ve finished it, nothing else is likely to compare.

Writing – 5 Stars
Art – 5 Stars
Colors – 5 Stars

Overall: 5 Stars

Writer: Joe Hill
Artist: Gabriel Rodríguez
Colorist: Jay Fotos
Publisher: IDW Publishing

Author Profile

Yavi Mohan

Yavi Mohan is a comic writer (and more frequently, comic reader) based in London. He is frequently overwhelmed by the number of comics in his reading list, to the extent that it sometimes delays his reading. This list includes every issue ever published with Spider-Man as the main character.