Cast: Jackson Robert Scott (Bode Locke), Connor Jessup (Tyler Locke), Emilia Jones (Kinsey Locke), Darby Stanchield (Nina Locke)
The series is an adaptation of a cartoon about the Locke siblings and their mother moving into the Locke house which was the house that belonged to their father's family before their father was murdered. While they're staying there, they are trying to build a new life while also discovering things about the house, their father's past and trying to get past their trauma. Without spoilers, I can only say that it is worth a watch especially if you're into fantasy as a genre.
Personal thoughts: First off, this is my first review of a Netflix series and I haven't quite finished watching it so I'll just comment on the bit that I watched. I thought it is interesting and raises questions as to where it's going and what it's about. It portrays the struggles of the teen characters and uses the two other characters, their mom and their little brother Bode, to deepen the plot by finding the function of the keys and finding out more about their father's past which will probably become more relevant in the future episodes considering the name of the show. I liked how the settings looked which plays a big part in why I like it and recommend it. I looked up the settings and found out that they're all towns in Canada. The town is actually in Lunenburg which is a small town in Nova Scotia. Another thing I liked was the functions of the keys. It's pretty interesting how each of them has its function whether it's good or bad. I also liked that there was imagery that supported the siblings' trauma, like the scene where Kinsey is supposed to play the girl that drowns in blood and the guilt that Tyler feels when he's about to have sex. These kinds of scenes did help to convey the message of their traumatic past.
What kind of felt a little clishé was the 'new people in town' trope. It's the easiest way to drop a new character in the story and widely used by writers. Even the kids themselves seem confused as to why they were supposed to be moving out but thankfully the writers supported the idea of them starting a new life specifically there with the mother searching for her husband's past life. I think I just like the idea of the main characters knowing more about their surroundings and not ending up a bit empty towards what's happening around them. Another thing I'm not very into is their possible romantic interests. I just thought the dialogues were a bit basic (especially between Tyler and the girl that says she turns into a pumpkin when it's late) I think their interaction could be made more interesting. Tyler just having the confidence to go up to a girl and not saying much was not very interesting or realistic in my opinion. What someone in Tyler's situation would most probably do would be noticing a girl they like from afar but not talking to her unless he has a reason to or anything to say considering he's emotional and not feeling talkative or confident at all.
I also thought the fact that everyone in town mentioned their father's murder so casually to them was kind of weird and a bit too much maybe. As an example, the ice cream guy mentions it twice when he first meets Kinsey. Given that it's the first time he met Kinsey and knowing that it creates a weird environment, you'd expect him to not mention it when he's trying to befriend her but that wasn't the case. At least the pumpkin girl didn't mention their father's murder which is something to be thankful for.
Lastly, I guess the pace is a bit slow so you have to stick to it for at least two episodes but I still recommend it to anyone who's into fantasy, teen drama, mystery etc. and doesn't mind a couple of little clishés since the parts about keys make up for a lot of the small things I mentioned. Overall, this show gives you a lot to like with it's interesting and original plotline, mystery and production.
