Golden Age

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Locke & Key: The Golden Age is a series of stand-alone stories that form the prelude volume to World War Key. The first issue produced for the arc was originally published on November 23, 2011, and ended with the DC Comics/Vertigo series The Sandman crossover in 2021.

The Golden Age explores the history of the Keyhouse and the Locke Family in the early 1900s. Its hardcover release, which includes the exclusive story "Face the Music", was published on April 26, 2022

Cover Art

Golden Age Volume Teaser Cover Art.

Golden Age Volume Cover Art by Gabriel Rodriguez

Golden Age Volume Cover Art by Gabriel Rodriguez without the Logo.

Issue List

Note: All the issues have been placed in chronological and hardcover order story-wise as stated by Joe Hill. However, this is not the same order that they were released in.

Locke & Key: Small World

Locke & Key: Open the Moon

Face The Music

Locke & Key: In Pale Battalions Go #1

Locke & Key: In Pale Battalions Go #2

Locke & Key: In Pale Battalions Go #3

Hell & Gone #0

Hell & Gone #1

Hell & Gone #2

First Appearances

Characters

• Chamberlin Locke
• Ian Locke
• Harland Locke
• Fiona Locke
• Mary Locke
• Jean Locke
• John Locke
• Tiberius
• The Spider
• Clint Locke
• Delacorte Locke
• Willem Veidt
• Henrik Veidt
• Eric Murnau
• Haacker

Keys

• Small World Key
• Moon Key
• Orchestra Key
• Stamp Key
• Bitey Key
• Matchstick Key
• Mirror Key
• Tempus Fugit Key
• Key to Hell

Notes

• Joe Hill first announced the Golden Age arc in a tweet on December 14, 2011, under the working title: Locke & Key: The Lost.
• This arc is the first time the series has collaborated and co-printed with another comic book publisher.
• Joe Hill mentioned in a tweet that he included a single detail in "...In Pale Battalions Go..." that is a part of a bigger Locke & Key story, which he states that at this pace he won't get to until he's in his mid-fifties (Joe Hill was 48 when he made the tweet).
  • Gabriel Rodriguez replied to the tweet saying:

“

(Let others live the life of dull iron structure office buildings makers. We're trying to live the life of stonemasons builders of cathedrals) ;P

”

–Gabriel Rodriguez

• Due to the release schedule for some issues, it was initially assumed that Locke & Key: Grindhouse and Locke & Key: Dog Days were a part of the Golden Age arc. However, Joe Hill stated via Twitter that those issues were standalone that didn't belong to any of the arcs.
  • One of the causes for the confusion of Locke & Key: Grindhouse being a part of the Golden Age arc was that early on Joe Hill did officially state that Grindhouse was a part of Golden Age before he changed his mind.