Locke and Key On The Small Screen…Maybe?
At this years New York City ComicCon I got the chance to sit in on a screening of the now cancelled FOX pilot of Locke & Key. I was not familiar with the story although I have heard great things about the comic book series. I was pleasantly surprises when I was sucked into the story from the first 5 minutes of the pilot. The last show that did this to me was, The Walking Dead. (which if you haven’t seen, do yourself the favor and catch up)
Overall this was a captivating story. Not being familiar with the comic I was not distracted with the idea of whether or not the creaters were faithful to the comic. I enjoyed every minute. Similar to The Walking Dead this is another comic book that has made a impressive transition to television. Only time will tell what the future holds for Locke and Key. It may be a blessing in disguise that FOX dropped it because I think this is a show that can have long life on a cable channel instead of a network. “Come on SyFi or AMC save Locke & Key!!!”
Now for a spoiler filled description of the pilot. (forgive me if I don’t use the names of the characters)
The story begins with a happy family enjoying a family vacation at their lake house. The oldest son along with his sister and younger brother are enjoying a relaxing time by the lake. The husband and wife are cuddled together on the couch. Husband asks the wife, “knock, kncok”. The door bell rings and there is a young man at the door. It is revealed to us that he has a dead body in the back of his pick up truck. The student is a classmate of the oldest son. The husband is a guidance counselor at the school. The young man asks to speak to the husband (his visit is also odd becuase no one from the school knew where they were vacationing) the young man has a gun hidden and enters the house.
Jump to 3 months later. The wife and kids are drive to the old Locke family mansion. It is obvious that the husband was killed. They are in mourning. The younger brother of the deceased husband greets them. He has also returned to live in his family estate.
The youngest son explores the house and discovers a skeleton key. He eventually finds a door where the key fits. It is a door leading to the back of the house. When he passes the doorway he drops dead. His ghost then appears to fly over his body and around the room. He returns to his body and wakes up from the dead. He decides to do it again and now as aghast he ventures about the house realizing that no one sees him. He returned to his body in amazement.
No one really believes the boy as he tries to explain to his family about his amazing feat. During the next couple of days he discovers a voice coming from an old shack off the side of the mansion. Inside there is a well and in it is a young woman. She explains to the boy that she needs his help to get out of the well. She needs some items and later requires a special key which is the bracelet that his sister wears on her wrist. As the plot thickens it is revlealed that the young man that killed the father of this family was sent by the woman in the well. She is trying to regain access to a special key and to some powers that were taken from her. The crazed young man escapes from prison and find the Locke family. He threatens to kill them all if he doesn’t get the key that the woman in the well demands. In the end the little boy gives it to her but only after promising to save his family from the crazed young man that she sent to them in the first pace. She escapes and killed the young man but in releasing him of his body she promises to find him a more suited body in the future.
The stage is set for whats to become of this ever expanding mystery of the Locke Family. The Wife and children along with the brother in law enjoy a moment as they sit along the side of the estate and the wife swings on an old swing attached to an old tree on the property. As the camera zooms past them and into the tree we see that deep inside the tree is a secret chamber.
Check out the extended trailer of the show and tell us what you think.
