Locke & Key follows the Locke siblings through their discovery of magic keys at their ancestral estate. Adapted from Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodríguez’s comic-book series of the same name, Locke & Key is a fantasy horror comedy.
Locke & Key Season 3 Story and Summary
Locke siblings Tyler (Connor Jessup), Kinsey (Emilia Jones), and Bode (Jackson Robert Scott) relocate to their ancestral estate “Keyhouse” with their mother Nina (Darby Stanchfield) after their father Rendell Locke (Bill Heck) is murdered by his former student Sam Lesser.
Their discovery of mysterious whispering keys hidden at Matheson leads them through a series of magical and life-threatening adventures throughout seasons 1 and 2.
Season 3 picks up from the events of the season 2-finale where a possessed Eden summoned the 18th-century British Captain Frederick Gideon (Kevin Durand), only to be pushed down the well by the vengeful demon.
As the devilish captain mobilizes forces by summoning two echoes of former civil war soldiers, James Bolton and Samuel Coffey, the blissfully unaware Lockes prepare for Duncan and Brian’s wedding festivities.
Nina and Bode’s discovery of the Snow Globe Key plunges them into mortal danger when trapped demonic sisters Dorothea and Ada are released. Fortunately, Nina manages to trap the sisters inside the mirror dimension and retrieve Bode from the snow globe.
As the wedding approaches, Tyler, who had left for a road trip following his girlfriend Jackie’s traumatic death, returns to Locke House with a scrambled head of memories. Bode discovers the Timeshift Key on the wedding day, learning of the Harlequin Key when he goes to Ben Locke’s time.
While Tyler struggles with his repressed memories of magic, Gideon and his lackeys break into Keyhouse, stealing the plant key and Bode’s journal containing information about the keys. The incident forces Tyler to extend his stay at Locke House while the family decides to relocate the keys to the Harlequin chest for safekeeping.
Bode’s struggle to accept Nina and Josh’s relationship and his unresolved emotions from his father’s untimely death prompts him to use the Timeshift Key to meet Rendell. Instead, the key takes him back to the time Dodge had captured him with the Chain Key. Things take a horrible turn when Dodge seizes Bode on provocation, taking his place in the present after trapping him in the ghost dimension and setting off the clock’s hourglass.
Gideon plots a siege on Keyhouse, revealing his plan of acquiring all keys to merge the two worlds. Meanwhile, Tyler regains his memories when Kinsey uses the Memory Key on him, and together, they figure out Dodge’s secret. As the Lockes prepare to shield their house against Gideon, Dodge joins them as a reluctant ally in wanting to keep “meatworld” intact.
With Gideon and his echoes laying siege to Locke House, matters soon go awry when the Lockes find themselves cornered by the otherworldly demons. A voicemail from Duncan reveals the function of the Timeshift Key, explaining how anything wrongly brought into their time vanishes when the hourglass runs out to prevent a paradox.
As Dodge in Bode’s body dematerializes to the past, Gideon gains access to all the keys and opens a portal in Locke House, seemingly summoning the end of their world as they know it.
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Locke & Key Season 3 Ending Explained
The Lockes seek refuge with Ellie and Rufus while an inflamed Gideon realizes there remains one last key to be retrieved. Bode returns to his human form making clever use of the Ghost and Animal Keys while Sam’s spirit enters Bolton’s body.
While Nina and Bode attempt in vain to open the Harlequin chest, Gordon forces Ellie to retrieve the final key hidden inside drama teacher Gordie’s mind. With a fatally stabbed Gordie teetering on the brink of life and death, Ellie and the kids barely make it out before Gordie passes, and Sam gets irretrievably left behind in the now-dead Gordie’s mind.
Armed with the Creation Key, the Lockes plan to lure Gideon to the well-house and force him in with a grabber truck. To their despair, Gideon’s demonic strength overpowers the truck and he destroys the well-house in a fit of rage.
Kinsey finally uses magic to defeat magic, using the Creation Key to open the Harlequin chest. Just as an angered Gideon dangles Kinsey over the precipice of the world, she finally uses the Alpha Key on the captain as Nina pushes the demon back into the portal. With Gideon returned to the demonic abyss, the portal begins to close on itself.
What happens to the keys in Locke & Key Season 3?
When Gideon plummets into the portal with two keys, Tyler realizes the portal closes on itself every time a key is returned to its origin world. With a difficult decision at hand, the Lockes ultimately decide to give up all the keys to permanently seal the bridge.
At Bode’s behest, the family uses the Timeshift Key one last time to revisit Rendell and have a touching family reunion before they lose magic forever. The Lockes use the memory key on themselves for one last time before tossing all the keys back to the demon world, successfully closing the portal.
Life seems to be restored to normalcy at Matheson as the town returns to its idyllic life.
The Lockes gradually find happiness as Kinsey reunites with Scot, Tyler sets off for Montana, and Bode finally begins to accept Josh in their lives. Just as all seems serene and peaceful, the show ends with faint sounds of whispers indicating the possibility of more keys at Keyhouse.
Season 3 of Locke & Key is now streaming on Netflix.
Watch the trailer of Locke & Key Season 3 here:
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