You apprehensively turn the knob as you open a door into a place filled with wonder and charm. There is a world that sings with color, writes in mystery, and dances with dreams: a world that defies reality. You immerse yourself into the superficial appearance and repress any memories of conceptual ghosts lurking in the shadows. Silhouettes begin to emerge, and a layer of darkness casts over the bluest oceans and greenest valleys. As Dorothy would say, you aren’t in Kansas anymore. 

The new Netflix original series, Locke and Key, combines your biggest dreams with your most chilling nightmares. The plotline follows the story of a family that is mourning the sudden death of their father. After their father’s death, they decided to move into his million-dollar family home where he grew up to unveil the secrets of his past. The house contains many wonders that the three children—Body, Kinsey, and Tyler—will quickly discover.

Magic keys flood the house and they speak to the youngest child, Body. Every key has a different purpose and helps the children understand the true magic present in their father’s childhood. At first, these keys bring light to the family’s dark time that they are going through, but they quickly become their worst nightmare. 

Every character in the ten-episode Netflix original faces their own struggles throughout each episode. Body faces the struggles of being the youngest and not having anyone to lean on for support. He seems to have lost himself after his father’s death and is still not fully recovered. However, he quickly finds a friend with the same interests as him: the neighbor across the street, Rufus. Though Rufus is years older than Body, they both lean on each other in times of uncertainty; which in turn quickly matured both characters and gave them each a new purpose. 

The middle child, Kinsey, is a teenage girl that goes through struggles of self-acceptance. We quickly learn that she somewhat lives her life in her brother, Tyler’s, shadow. Out of all the characters in this thrilling series, Kinsey had the most internal growth. In episode four, she decided to express her true self by dying her hair pink. Though a risky move, this motivated Kinsey to show her peers her true personality and speak up for herself and others. Kinsey’s demeanor always showed strength and determination, but as the series progressed it was emphasized more and more in every episode. 

Locke and Key brought my mind to a place filled with whimsical questions giving me a break from reality. It guided light to the not-so-sunny days and reassurance to the not-so-heartening times. Mystery comes with the cliffhanger ending, so as you turn the key and lock the door tightly, you see one last glimmer of light that doesn’t seem to dissipate.