Locke & Key “Farewell”

Well, that’s the end of that.  Was it worth the trip?

For the most part, yes.  True, I mentally tuned out when the show was doing more high school-level drama stuff, and they seemed to be heading a bit back in that direction for the finale, but all things being equal, Locke & Key was a largely fun adaptation of the comic book series.  It’s not peak TV or anything, but I found it fun more often than not.  Pretty much any time the characters busted out the keys, there was a chance something cool was going to happen.

But like I said, this show wasn’t perfect.  The Lockes were very quick to forgive Sam, even if he died (the second time) a hero and ally, but what am I supposed to expect with something like two episodes left and the longer one was only 40 minutes?  Gideon’s defeat, thanks to some creative use of the Creation Key and the Alpha Key, worked out pretty well, even if it became clear that artistic talent was not a requirement to bring things to life.

But then came the end, where the Lockes realized the only way to close the portal in their living room was to toss all the keys in there.  Bode alone is reluctant to do so, and he’s what?  Eight?  Why does he have a vote?

But then the series decided to go out in a manner that was, I dunno, sweet.  Use the Time Key to visit Rendell one last time before he died, and that guy takes the whole “impending death” thing in stride from the looks of things.  Then there’s the montage set to somber music as they toss the keys in one by one, with some flashbacks to the first time each key appeared on the show for the early ones.

Quick note:  no one has fond memories of Dodge’s key that turned people into demons, so why that one got a flashback, I have no idea.  Probably just to remind the home audience which one it was.  I would have thought they would have tossed that one in right away without giving it a second thought.

However, the series opts to go sweet in the end, and I am not generally a fan of unearned sweetness, and I don’t think Locke & Key earned that sweetness.  Everyone seems to get a happy ending, and there’s a hint there may still be some keys in the Keyhouse.

All things being equal, I did have fun with this one once it got going.  It wasn’t perfect.  I don’t think this show ever knew what to do with the Nina character.  She was either ignorant of what was going on or suddenly being treated like an expert just because she knew the keys existed.  Bode also seemed more whiney as a character towards the end, what with his general resistance to his mother’s dating or being the only one who wanted to keep the keys, but he was still a child.  Tyler forgot about his dead girlfriend very quickly from the looks of things in the finale, but maybe he’s still going to take it slow with his new gal pal from Montana.  But these are mostly minor quibbles, and I don’t think I watch a show like this for the characters as much as I do for what the keys will do and how the characters will use them to save the day.  Plus, even if Kinsey dropped an F-bomb in this last episode, this really did feel more like a show aimed at younger viewers as opposed to whatever it is that seems to be going on over on House of the Dragon or whatever.  So, no regrets on watching this one, but hardly my all-time favorite.

8 out of 10 forgotten wonders that happened right in front of someone.

Anyhoo, time for something new.  And if I want something where my complaints are more about the plot and less about the acting and is very much the exact opposite of this show in terms of tone…well, The Handmaid’s Tale came back for more.

Will Elizabeth Moss’s generally great acting continue to wow me more than her character’s plot armor?  Well, I guess I will be finding out again very soon.