Comics
Review: ‘Locke & Key: Omega’ #3
Delivering another terrific installment, Locke & Key: Omega #3 continues to be a suspenseful horror story and a touching family drama. The deeply flawed Locke family are the most interesting characters you will ever read. As the last issues of the “Locke & Key” series come winding down, you have to be there for the end.
WRITTEN BY: Joe Hill
ART BY: Gabriel Rodriguez
PUBLISHER: IDW Publishing
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: February 20th, 2013
A powerful demon named Dodge has finally unlocked the evil mysteries of the Black Door. With the Black Door open, monsters of hate and madness are able to crossover from their unholy dimension into ours. With the Omega Key in the hands of Dodge, nothing can stop this evil creature from letting loose her demonic kind. As Dodge launches her first attack, not a single person will be spared from her bloodlust. There will be no safe haven for anyone as the battle between good and evil takes place.
What I particularly loved about this issue is how writer Joe Hill combines horror movies and John Hughes teen dramas, such as The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles. The subtext of Hill’s themes are about the pain of being an adolescent, the torture of high school. As the characters reach a major turning point in their lives, Hill allows his characters to grow from childhood. Guilt-ridden since his father’s death, Tyler gives himself a chance to be a normal teenager and attends his high school prom.
The brilliance of Hill’s writing is how his characters explore their own emotional truths. When giving advice to Tyler, Uncle Dunk is really talking about himself. Uncle Dunk hints at the secrets he has kept from his family and how he let himself get locked up in his own prison. A major theme about the Locke family is how they struggle to communicate their own personal loss to each other. What they really want is someone to listen and not judge them.
Artist Gabriel Rodriquez does a great job balancing teen angst and the horror elements. In a wide shot, Rodriquez is able to impress readers by illustrating a crowded high school prom. Every student at the prom has their own tuxedo, dress, and hairstyle. Rodriguez brings out the dark humor as he recreates the famous scene from the movie, Carrie. Evenly matched, Hill’s witty dialogue and Rodriguez’s shot-for-shot homage work well together as the bucket of pig’s blood falls from the ceiling.
The best part of the issue is the suspenseful attack on Keyhouse. Rodriguez and colorist Jay Fotos do a fantastic job depicting the eeriness of the shadow monsters. Using just black tones, readers can easily make out figures of an ancient samurai, a zombie, and a pig smoking a cigarette. In an overhead shot, Rodriguez plays around with the lighting and shadow of Uncle Dunk. After reaching the last page, readers will be left wondering who lives and who dies.
“Locke & Key: Omega” #3 closes on an exciting cliff-ganger. As the “Locke and Key” series reaches its final chapter, an epic finale is promised to longtime fans. Having been a fan since the beginning, I’m anxious to see how it all ends.
4.5/5 Skulls
Reviewed by Jorge Solis
Comics
‘Curse of the Where Wolf’ Bites Into August Release With Trio of Werewolf Theatrical Screenings [Exclusive Preview]
Larry Chaney‘s hairy misadventures are continuing in the sequel graphic novel Curse of the Where Wolf from creative team Rob Saucedo, Debora Lancianese, and Jack Morelli, and its author is celebrating with a trio of horror’s greatest werewolf films.
The Curse of the Where Wolf hits shelves on August 7 from Encyclopocalypse Publications.
That coincides with the launch of a theatrical screening event in Houston, Texas, featuring a trio of seminal werewolf flicks turning 45 this year: The Howling on August 7, Wolfen on August 14, and An American Werewolf in London on August 21.
Each screening features a “werewolf in film” presentation as well as a book signing from Where Wolf author and River Oaks Theatre artistic director Rob Saucedo.
In the new graphic novel, “Being a werewolf sucks. Reporter Larry Chaney wanted to be a hero. Instead, he became a werewolf. Now, caught between incredible new powers and a desire to eat everything (and everyone) in sight, Larry must find a cure for his curse. Or die trying.”
“With Where Wolf, I wanted to tell a whodunit set in a furry convention, so the story was pretty contained within a very specific setting and genre. With Curse of the Where Wolf, I wanted to celebrate everything I love about the possibility of comic books. Curse of the Where Wolf is a funny book, in every sense of the phrase, but it’s also an earnest look at a person’s struggle to become a better version of themselves, especially when the alternative is to become a literal monster,” Saucedo says of Curse.
The original graphic novel was previously serialized as the first webcomic hosted on Fangoria before being collected by Encyclopocalypse Publications in 2023 and has already been optioned for film, podcast, and television development ahead of launch by producers James Fino (“The Freak Brothers” for Tubi, “Rick and Morty” for Adult Swim) and Charles Horak (First Date for Magnolia Pictures).
Expect Larry to find himself in even weirder situations in the 362-page full color sequel; Saucedo has provided Bloody Disgusting with exclusive art pages from the upcoming graphic novel that showcase lupine humor.
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