Preview This
You’ll be able to find the first issue of Locke & Key: Head Games in your local comic store, as of the 14th of January. But if you don’t have a local comic book store, or you don’t like to go outside BECAUSE THEY MIGHT BE OUT THERE WATCHING WAITING WATCHING WAITING WITH THEIR FLASHY KNIVES AND THEIR RADIOSCOPIC GRINS… well then you can always subscribe, and the postman will deliver it right to you. That’s really, when you think about it, the safest way to go (except the postman is ONE OF THEM! And his knifey grin will go SLASHY SLASH if you open the door so don’t open the door NEVER open the door pretend you aren’t home and wait wait wait for him to go away). You can order your subscription here from the IDW webstore. I’m sure a gift subscription would be just the thing to give to a friend for Chirstmas as well, if you could trust any of your friends, which you can’t, because beneath their rubber faces… you know. Spying on you. Keeping notes. Be careful.
And if you’d like to see what you’re getting into, well, here’s a seven page preview of issue #1. Page one below, the rest after the jump. And now I’m going to lock myself in my room and put tinfoil in the windows and cut things out of the newspaper.
December 21st, 2008 at 2:37 pm
January 14th happens to be my birthday. What a happy coincidence.
Another great jump, Joe.
December 21st, 2008 at 5:42 pm
Ohhhhh, I’m getting old……eyes can’t quite read the dialogue……oh well! In a bit more than 3 wks it’ll be in my hands! Looks great, Joe and Gabriel!
LK
December 21st, 2008 at 8:33 pm
Laura,
If you click on any one of the pages above, they’ll either open up into a new window or they’ll open up in this current one, but either way — if you click on them again, it should make the image larger, and therefore easier to read. Clicking on them again reduces their size again. Give that a try…
December 21st, 2008 at 8:41 pm
Thanks for the link to the subscription.
December 22nd, 2008 at 6:47 am
Thanks for the news Joe! It’s nice to have something to look forward to during the January blues…can’t hardly wait!
December 22nd, 2008 at 9:08 am
[...] & Key: Head Games Preview Click HERE to read a 7 page preview of Joe Hill’s Locke and Key: Head Game comic due on January [...]
December 22nd, 2008 at 1:49 pm
That’s a lot to give up as preview, thanks!
Thanks for the info!
I think I’ll have to present myself with the gift of a subscription
December 22nd, 2008 at 2:34 pm
I used to have a black leather mini I wore in high school about that length. Heh.
Just ordered 20th Century Ghosts. Can’t wait to get myhands on it!
December 22nd, 2008 at 4:13 pm
Ok – I’m new to this whole “graphic novel” thing. But this already has me very curious. Do I need to read the first Locke & Key issues first? Or can I jump right in with this? Advice please
December 22nd, 2008 at 4:45 pm
Hey Melissa…I’m afraid that you will be lost without the first part of the series, but luckily they are available all in one volume at the bookstore. If you really want to get the jist of what’s going on I’d recommend buying it.
December 22nd, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Melissa,
Ah, well, actually – and this is probably the subject for a brief post – I think you can jump right in if you want. The issue previewed here is a stand-alone story, and I don’t think it would be challenging to follow what’s going on in the issues that follow. That said, picking up Welcome to Lovecraft and reading from the start will probably make for a more satisfying overall experience.
December 22nd, 2008 at 6:51 pm
ok, I’ll be getting Welcome to Lovecraft AND the new stuff as soon as the checks clear from Christmas
Too bad it’s too late to put them on my Christmas list!
December 22nd, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Sorry Joe & Melissa… I didn’t realize that the first issue of “Headgames” was a “stand-alone story”. Forgive me for jumping in with my suggestion. I’m still new to the comic book series biz.
December 22nd, 2008 at 8:26 pm
You’re forgiven…I took your advice anyway, and screw the Christmas bills, just bought Welcome to Lovecraft and will have it in 3-5 days
Let’s see which gets here first – that or Gunpowder ….hehehehe
December 22nd, 2008 at 8:56 pm
Joe, first off, I just wanted to thank you for Locke & Key. I am one of those people who read equal amounts of comics and the more traditional books. Many people seem to look down on comics and graphic novels as a lesser form without any good stories, so I am constantly crusading to convert people.
So far, I have gotten five people close to me to read Locke & Key (none of them are comic readers) and they have all loved it and are going to be getting the new issues as they come out. The whole world is enthralling and it is full of characters that everyone seemed to attach to rather quickly. It’s the kind of comic that will convert many people to the side of comic readers.
I also wondered if you got to pick Gabriel Rodriguez as your artist or if he was assigned. The guys artwork is gorgeous and sets a perfect tone for your story.
Sorry for the long post: just wanted to show my appreciation for such an outstanding piece of work. For me, it is right up there with Y: Last Man, Sandman, and Fables as the best comics. I hope you are given as much time needed to tell the story in full and look forward to future installments.
December 23rd, 2008 at 2:25 am
Hey, loganraider, if I can help answer for Joe, I’m the editor on the book (and IDW’s Editor-in-Chief), so I worked with Joe on finding the right artist for the book. At the beginning, Joe and I talked about artists, what he liked, what might work well for this book, and so on. I ran a few options by him, Gabriel being one of them. Really, with any project we do, there’s rarely ever a name that comes to mind before Gabriel’s. I would have him draw everything we did if that wouldn’t, you know, kill him and wear his drawin’ hand down to a little nub in no time (even more than some of the things he was tasked to draw in HEAD GAMES #3, I mean). So I knew he’d be great for this. I wasn’t all that eager to “share,” since Gabe and I had just spent the last two years working together on a Romero adaptation, Barker’s The Great and Secret Show and Gaiman’s Beowulf. But I knew he’d be the perfect choice here, Joe chose him out of all the samples, and Gabe justified the decision with the very first sketch he made for the book. And here we are a year later and both guys are better than ever.
We actually talked about other people working on other chapters at one point just to give Gabriel a break, and that still might be fun to see other people interpret the characters in this book, but like I say, Gabe makes it nigh impossible to even consider anyone else on art chores.
December 23rd, 2008 at 3:26 am
Joe/Ryall
Will there be any signed issues of Locke & Key Headcases No1 as there was with Locke & Key? I was lucky enough to get my hands on one from IDW site directly 1st time around
December 23rd, 2008 at 1:54 pm
Hey, when are you going to publish another novel? I read all of your published work, and well, I want more. So, are you working on another novel? This inquiring mind is interested…
December 23rd, 2008 at 2:04 pm
N.R., here you can find some clues about Joe’s upcoming novel:
http://joehillfiction.com/?p=393
Best,
G-
December 23rd, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Have a great Xmas Joe. Thanks for the preview.
December 23rd, 2008 at 7:48 pm
Dear Ryall…Please take care of Gabriel’s little “nub”. Don’t let him wear it out! I love his work in L&K and like you, I can’t imagine anyone else doing it. And thanks for the neat info on the comic biz…I don’t know much about it, and I appreciate you telling us part of the process. Have a great Christmas…or Festivus…or whatever you celebrate. Same to you Joe & Gabe!
December 23rd, 2008 at 9:23 pm
Thank you all for your good vibes! My very best wishes to all in this Christmas, hope it will be a time of peace and love to share with your families and beloved ones.
And don’t worry, Betsy. I am filled with energy and enthusiasm for the long ride that, hopefully, L&K will be.
Merry Xmas!
G-
December 24th, 2008 at 2:43 am
Thanks for the info, ryall. I’m a fan of The Great and Secret Show (novel and graphic novel) and that is why I was excited to hear that he was going to be illustrating it. You two made the right choice.
Gabriel, keep up the great work. I love your style; it’s just gorgeous. It’s stylized without being too tooney (if that makes sense). Best holiday wishes to everyone!
December 24th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
Just place my order for the subscription.I will still be buying a set or so at the comic book stores( 3 each is the prime #). I hope that Joe,Shane and IDW will be going to the SDCC this coming year.
December 24th, 2008 at 3:48 pm
Merry Christmas everyone…
December 24th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
OH, and G. I really hope that you can come back to the CON….This time i may bother you more than last time.lol.j/k
December 24th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
January 14th is looking good!
December 24th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
Indeed it is BW.
December 25th, 2008 at 10:08 pm
Just got my signed copies of Lock and Key and 20th Century Ghosts for Christmas!!!! Love the self portriat in 20th Joe. Hope you have had a great Christmas!
December 26th, 2008 at 8:26 am
Mark, I don’t think I’ll be able to be at the CON this year, but we’ll see what happens in the next months… who knows…
Also, hope you and everyone else here had a nice Christmas!
And January 14th is approaching, so L&K’s return is finally REALLY close.
Best,
G-
December 27th, 2008 at 10:14 am
Hi Joe -
I know this is late but I hope you and your family had a great Christmas! Happy New Year!
December 28th, 2008 at 11:42 am
Thanks for the huge (seven pages!) preview. Joe and Gabriel continue to do outstanding work in terms of both storytelling and artwork. I can’t wait for this next story arc. I love LOCKE & KEY!
Best for you all in 2009!
- Patrick
December 29th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
Okay, I’ll have you know that I actually put the latest Dennis Lehane aside to read 20th Century Ghosts and I’m reading it any chance I get.
Friggin’ EXCELLENT! WOW!
December 29th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
For the benefit of those in the UK, thecomicbookshop.co.uk is offering a subscription to Locke & Key: Head Games. This may be a more viable option for UK readers.
http://amazing-fantasy-comics.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=86&products_id=7758
December 29th, 2008 at 11:27 pm
Indsputable the best comic series I have ever read. Your understanding of the comic/graphic novel medium is invigorating. You turn the panels themselves into story elements, no small feat, though, as any professional does, you make it look easy. This preview is so enthralling, I can already “feel” the pace of the story and its momentum is driving each key-stroke.
Nothing but thanks and admiration for the work you have done and the generosity you have shown in such a heafty sneak peek. Know that you have earned me as a fan for life, and that your world and characters are now part of my literary family.
Like a child in a toy store, I eagerly await that new shiny toy(key) to grab my attention, hold it, then throw me for a loop as something unexpected catches my eye (the brain key) like you did with the ending to Welcome to Lovecraft.
Thank you,
Harold Large IV
P.S. Any advice for an aspiring author?
P.P.S I feel like the spirit of your world is Chronicles of Narnia meets Pan’s Labyrinth. Narnia because ANYTHING could be just around the corner, tucked beneathe the seemngly ordinary, and Pan’s by way of the warring dualism between adult reality and child fantasy. Either an inspiration?
January 2nd, 2009 at 10:41 am
Hey Joe…do you have any upcoming appearances?
January 3rd, 2009 at 3:31 pm
I just tried to get to the board and got a page that says “Bad Gateway.” Hmm.
Sounds like a good title for a book, while at the same time it sucks that I can’t get there.
LK
January 3rd, 2009 at 4:31 pm
same here……
January 3rd, 2009 at 7:02 pm
“Bad Gateway”? I’m in a weird mood tonight…sounds like a horror/porno movie. I’ll see if I can get to the board.
January 3rd, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Well…I made it to the board. You guys should try again.
January 5th, 2009 at 4:13 am
Not 2 long of a wait now…..
January 14th, 2009 at 4:03 pm
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March 15th, 2009 at 10:27 am
I just read the hardback. Its beautiful, but the story isn’t as good as this passage. The problem is that while all of the characters in the passage shown are excellent, Dodge, Professor Ridgeway, even Ellie the coach, the main heroes, the Locke children, are not very good characters. In fact the whole Locke family are fairly dull witted. Its a shame. I had Very high hopes for this. I am finally giving up after reading the first Head Games. I had the biggest problem when a man with a gun asks the Locke family for two old keys which he feels are valuable, and they can’t understand what he is talking about. I keep wanting to scream “He is talking about two keys, morons”…
December 24th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Hey. I couldn’t get through to this page the other day. Anyone else had the problem?