Joe Hill is following in his father’s footsteps. The son of Stephen King, Hill has won numerous awards for the horror tales found in his short story collection “20th Century Ghosts”. His first novel “Heart Shaped Box” made it all the way to number eight on the New York Times Bestseller list. In my humble opinion the best work that he has done so far is on his comic book “Locke and Key”. The tale follows the exploits of the Locke family after the vicious murder of the family’s patriarch in the first story “Welcome to Lovecraft”. Now in its second story arc “Head Games”, “Locke and Key” has not dropped a beat.

In the most recent issue Tyler, the oldest of the three Locke children foolishly, invites over his best friend Zack (the malevolent force from the first arc in a human disguise) and Jordan (a girl he wants to impress) to the family home so they can take a look at the neat new toy Bode (the youngest Locke) has found. The new toy is a key that has the power to open up a person’s head and allow knowledge to be put in or out in a physical form. Say you stayed up late watching “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes” instead of studying for your test on “Titus Andronicus”, not a problem, open up your head and shove a copy of the play in; you’re good to go. Have a recurring nightmare? Just reach in and pull that sucker out; you’ll sleep like a baby.

Hill writes believable characters; flawed, yet likable. Each of the Locke children have very distinct personalities that have stayed true from the beginning of the series. On page ten of the story the reader is treated to Jordan’s reaction when Tyler opens his head in front of her for the first time. She laughs awkwardly, slowly stops, cringes in horror, then bolts from the room. A real reaction from a real world character.

Hill’s writing is complemented perfectly by the smooth lines of artist Gabriel Rodriguez. The style of his artwork is such that the characters are fully realized and yet not so hyper real that the tale is too uncomfortable to read. The violence in the comic is both stylized and visceral much like that of any great horror movie. The characters emote not only linguistically but physically as well. It is one of those perfect unions of writer and artist, like Niles and Templesmith or Ennis and Dillon.

For those horror fans who have not yet been introduced to the world of “Locke and Key” “Welcome to Lovecraft” is currently available through IDW in a collected hardback form. For those who have already read the first arc, make sure to pick up the new story at your local comic shop. You won’t be disappointed.

Stoker

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