Locke & Key: Season 3 (Final)
Based on: Locke & Key comic by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez
Developed by: Carlton Cuse, Meredith Averill, Aron Eli Coleite
This season had a lot of ground to cover to wrap the series up, and I'm impressed how well it did so.
There were only a couple things I didn't like about this season, and one of them was just personal preference. One thing that was genuinely cringey was a rushed wedding to an NPC (very background character) that the show tried to make look heartfelt and nice. The wedding took place within one of the first eps and we were supposed to care about this relatively side character (Duncan, who we do care about, but he still isn't major) getting married to someone who we've never seen before and won't see again. The wedding also felt very out of the blue; it must have been brought up in season 2 and I just forgot. The only other thing I wasn't fond of is more of a minor note.... I just didn't like the main villain. He felt a little forced, a little out of place, and maybe I didn't like his brutish, ugly appearance after a season of two conniving, strategic ladies. I honestly liked the first main villain, Dodge (Laysla De Oliveira) the most, and would've preferred to have her for the whole series. But 💁watcha gonna do? Kevin Durand was just fine in the role and I'll get over it 😂
To follow up with one of my favorite things this season: they conquered the whole "adults can't remember magic" thing established in season 1. In season 1, it was just a quirk to have to hide everything from their mom. In season 2, it became an increasingly bigger deal, as Nina went from aware that *something* was going on to genuinely hurt, at the end, by knowing that her kids were hiding something big from her and she just didn't understand what it was. One of the final scenes of the season 2 finale was Nina beginning to cry in her room because she felt this mysterious distance from her kids that she couldn't traverse. The kids had created a key to allow Duncan to remember earlier that season, and Bode, seeing his mom so broken, decided to use it on her. Thus, in season 3, Nina was fully on board. Later in the season, Tyler, who was also just beginning to age out of remember, was also brought into the fold. Thus the entire Locke family was united this season against their powerful enemies. One of my favorite things in any story is for all protagonists to be on the same page and well-armed against their enemy, presenting a united front.
Much of the season was simply the Lockes trying to figure out who Gideon (the season's villain) was and what he was up to. Nothing in the midst of that was very pivotal, but it simply allowed for a lot of fun shenanigans between all the heroes and villains, including a few episodes when Bode was possessed by Dodge. It was a bit painful for me to watch his family not recognize his drastic change of personality was the result of something magical. I also really appreciated a glimpse into a few more keys this season gave us, including a snow globe key that turned the house exterior into a winter wonderland, an animal key that turned the characters into animals, and further exploration of a wing key that gave its users birdlike wings to fly.
But the thing loved most about this season was how well it truly wrapped things up. Not just with magic and demons, but also with the characters and their family. One compelling point Gideon made was that humans had enslaved demons (beings of his world) by holding them against their will and using them as keys. For that reason, he felt no qualms kidnapping or killing humans. Because of this logic, I had no qualms with the final choice the Locke family made: releasing all keys back to the other world. It also meant losing any and all magic they had access to and a long family tradition, but when considering Gideon's statement, I think that's more than fair. I'm not a fan of slavery no matter what the form.
Before they threw all the keys back, though, they did something special as a family. They used a new key from this season, a time travel key, to go back in time and see their father/husband, Rendell (Bill Heck). It was done in a very tasteful and sweet way, with the whole group of present-day Lockes traveling together to a moment when Rendell was alone in the house and knew who they were. They simply spent an hour together on a couch telling stories and simply being together. Once the hour was up, they all felt at peace and allowed the key to take them back to present day. With that done, they proceeded to send all of the keys back to the world they had come from.
With the keys gone and the portal closed, there was no more possibility (or reason) for any other demons or ill-intentioned creatures to bother them. They effectively confirmed a peaceful life from that moment on. It was a great way to close up the series and ensure a proper "happily ever after," and I really appreciated it.
It was a great series and well-rounded. I would have enjoyed a bit more explanation on things on a series-wide level, like knowing how the original portal opened and what the demons wanted with the keys and with the Lockes in previous seasons. But I can live peaceably not getting these answers.
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