3
The dead plot against the living, the darkness closes in on Keyhouse, and a woman is shattered beyond repair, in the third storyline of the Eisner-nominated series. Dodge continues his relentless quest to find the key to the black door, and raises an army of shadows to wipe out anyone who might get in his way. Surrounded and outnumbered, the Locke children find themselves fighting a desperate battle, all alone, in a world where the night itself has become their enemy.
“The characters, the setting (complimented by the always gorgeous Gabriel Rodriguez art – can’t forget him), the mystery, the intrigue, everything is all presented and balanced so deftly that it almost hurts.” — Ain’t It Cool News “The wonderful, fully realized and painstakingly rich, relatable characters are ones that I will never forget. It’s wonderfully written, still richly emotional and all around a borderline masterpiece.” — Cin City 2000.com
“The deeply layered mythology, which governs the existence and rules of the various magic keys, is second only to the superbly written cast and their all-too-real emotional struggles.” — Comics Bulletin “In case my past reviews didn't praise him enough, let me reiterate that Gabriel Rodriguez is a master storyteller. As such, Hill once again illustrates complete faith in Rodriguez's ability to show the reader everything they need in order to piece together the story.” — IGN.com
LOCKE & KEY : crown of shadows
Acclaimed suspense novelist and New York Times best-selling author Joe Hill (Heart-Shaped Box) continues his Eisner-nominated story of dark fantasy and wonder: Locke & Key.
HILL • RODRIGUEZ
$24.99
suggested for mature readers
www.idwpublising.com
Written by: Joe Hill Art by: Gabriel Rodriguez Colors by: Jay Fotos
Series Edited by: Chris Ryall
Letters by: Robbie Robbins
Collection Edited by: Justin Eisinger Collection Designed by: Robbie Robbins
ISBN: 978-1-60010-695-8 13 12 11 10
1
2 3 4
Locke & Key created by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez
www.idwpublishing.com
IDW Publishing–Operations: Ted Adams, Chief Executive Officer • Greg Goldstein, Chief Operating Officer • Matthew Ruzicka, CPA, Chief Financial Officer • Alan Payne, VP of Sales • Lorelei Bunjes, Dir. of Digital Services • AnnaMaria White, Marketing & PR Manager • Marci Hubbard, Executive Assistant • Alonzo Simon, Shipping Manager • Angela Loggins, Staff Accountant • Cherrie Go, Assistant Web Designer • Editorial: Chris Ryall, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief • Scott Dunbier, Editor, Special Projects • Andy Schmidt, Senior Editor • Bob Schreck, Senior Editor • Justin Eisinger, Editor • Kris Oprisko, Editor/Foreign Lic. • Denton J. Tipton, Editor • Tom Waltz, Editor • Mariah Huehner, Associate Editor • Carlos Guzman, Editorial Assistant • Design: Robbie Robbins, EVP/Sr. Graphic Artist • Neil Uyetake, Art Director • Chris Mowry, Graphic Artist • Amauri Osorio, Graphic Artist • Gilberto Lazcano, Production Assistant • Shawn Lee, Production Assistant
LOCKE & KEY, VOLUME 3: CROWN OF SHADOWS. JULY 2010. FIRST PRINTING. Locke & Key script © 2010 Joe Hill, art © Idea and Design Works, LLC. All Rights Reserved. IDW Publishing, a division of Idea and Design Works, LLC. Editorial offices: 5080 Santa Fe St., San Diego, CA 92109. Any similarities to persons living or dead are purely coincidental. With the exception of artwork used for review purposes, none of the contents of this publication may be reprinted without the permission of Idea and Design Works, LLC. Printed in Korea. IDW Publishing does not read or accept unsolicited submissions of ideas, stories, or artwork. Originally published as LOCKE & KEY: CROWN OF SHADOWS Issues #1–6.
Joe Hill: To ethan, Aidan, and Ryan. Your Dad loves you. GABRiel RoDRiGUeZ: To José Manuel, Benjamin, and Matías. With love from Dad.
n o i t c u d o r t in
. Vaughan by Brian K
Wait, you’re just reading Crown of Shadows now? What the hell took you so long? Look, I fully understand the appeal of “waiting for the trade,” and IDW puts together some lovely compilations, but Locke & Key is one of the few ongoing comics that demands to be read the day a new issue is released. Since the first page of the first installment, it’s been a top-of-the-pile series for me every single month it’s come out. (Incidentally, way back when I still had hair, I used to put my favorite comics from that week’s purchases on the bottom of my to-read pile, as a little reward for making it through whatever crap I was just buying out of habit. But now that I’m busy and old, I try to read the good stuff the second it’s in my hands, and the crap never.) Anyway, if you’ve already read the first two storylines of this epic-in-the-making, you know it’s not good, it’s fucking great. There’s just not another book on the stands quite like this, is there? The mythology of the world is vast and imaginative, but the family at its core is so real, so relatable. Like I said, I can never wait for these collections, so I don’t know if any of my fellow introducers have already made this obvious connection, but Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez fit together as elegantly as their title. Unlike most of us lowly funny-book writers, Joe is a first-rate novelist who doesn’t need an artist to make him look good. And any silent panel in this collection is proof enough that Gabriel doesn’t need a bunch of highfalutin words to tell a story beautifully. But man, together, these guys sing. I’m pretty sure this is their first collaboration, and already the bastards harmonize as well as seasoned duos like Gaiman & McKean, Morrison & Quietly, and Ennis & Dillon. I mean, just look at how perfectly each scene is paced, how thoughtfully every single page is constructed. I once told another writer that while comics can be creepy or unsettling, they’re almost never frightening. Without the benefit of music, sound design, and editing, I think it’s tough for most fiction to elicit genuine fear. But I’ll be damned if there aren’t a few moments in this arc (particularly during the haunting stand-alone coda) that rank right up there with some of the scariest scenes from those early Moore/Bissette/Totleben issues of Swamp Thing. And while the supernatural stuff is brilliant (I will never tire of learning about new keys), the reason I’m afraid is because of how much I’ve come to care about Tyler, Kinsey, and especially Bode. Those kids aren’t characters, they’re people. Readers love fantasy, but we need horror. Smart horror. Truthful horror. Horror that helps us make sense of a cruelly senseless world. Locke & Key is all of those things… and somehow, every so often, it’s also really goddamn funny. Now that’s just showing off. Whatever, we’ve wasted too much time already. What the hell are you waiting for? Come on in. Door’s open.
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
3
The dead plot against the living, the darkness closes in on Keyhouse, and a woman is shattered beyond repair, in the third storyline of the Eisner-nominated series. Dodge continues his relentless quest to find the key to the black door, and raises an army of shadows to wipe out anyone who might get in his way. Surrounded and outnumbered, the Locke children find themselves fighting a desperate battle, all alone, in a world where the night itself has become their enemy.
“The characters, the setting (complimented by the always gorgeous Gabriel Rodriguez art – can’t forget him), the mystery, the intrigue, everything is all presented and balanced so deftly that it almost hurts.” — Ain’t It Cool News “The wonderful, fully realized and painstakingly rich, relatable characters are ones that I will never forget. It’s wonderfully written, still richly emotional and all around a borderline masterpiece.” — Cin City 2000.com
“The deeply layered mythology, which governs the existence and rules of the various magic keys, is second only to the superbly written cast and their all-too-real emotional struggles.” — Comics Bulletin “In case my past reviews didn't praise him enough, let me reiterate that Gabriel Rodriguez is a master storyteller. As such, Hill once again illustrates complete faith in Rodriguez's ability to show the reader everything they need in order to piece together the story.” — IGN.com
LOCKE & KEY : crown of shadows
Acclaimed suspense novelist and New York Times best-selling author Joe Hill (Heart-Shaped Box) continues his Eisner-nominated story of dark fantasy and wonder: Locke & Key.
HILL • RODRIGUEZ
$24.99
suggested for mature readers
www.idwpublising.com