The Ending Of Lockwood & Co. Season 1 Explained
If the young adult classic "Goosebumps" were remade today for a stream-friendly audience, it might look something like "Lockwood & Co." Based on the best-selling books by Jonathan Stroud, the Netflix show follows a rookie group of teens with psychic abilities who fight to control London's growing problem with ghosts. Lucy Carlyle (Ruby Stokes), George Karim (Ali Hadji-Heshmati), and Anthony Lockwood (Cameron Chapman) are the trio that makes up our lovable team, playing with fire and their professional reputation right up until the season finale. With plenty more planned for fans thanks to series lead writer and director Joe Cornish, the Season 1 finale could just be the beginning of a bigger supernatural mystery.
From its opening moments to its final scenes, "Lockwood & Co." is a show that commands viewers' attention. Early reactions have already been quite positive, with some bizarre behind-the-scenes details already making headlines. Like any good finale, the ending of Season 1 leaves viewers with about as many questions as answers. What ghosts and ghouls are waiting to attack the team? Before we find out, here's the ending of Season 1 of "Lockwood & Co." fully explained. Spoilers ahead.
We know who killed Jack Carver
Throughout "Lockwood & Co." Season 1, the team members aren't exactly strangers to the authorities. After landing in serious trouble for burning down a client's house in Episode 2, Lockwood and Lucy are haunted by Inspector Montagu Barnes (Ivanno Jeremiah). As a trade-off, Barnes enlists their help to find out what happened to Jack Carver, leading them to meet critical figures like Flo Bones (Hayley Konadu) along the way. By the season finale, it's an entirely different story, as George discovers that the killer has been Miss Joplin all along.
Adapted from the character of Albert Joplin in the original book series, it's safe to say that the endearing yet villainous Pamela Joplin has been sufficiently fleshed out. Not only does she provide the main hook for Lockwood, Lucy, and George rekindling a level of trust, but she serves as a stark reminder that all is not what it seems. With a quick demise waiting for her, it could be argued that her intentions behind getting Lockwood & Co. on her side haven't been fully explored. Even so, the twist serves as an epic halfway moment for the "Lockwood & Co." Season 1 finale, with George dealing with the double bluff right in front of his eyes.
George comes to grips with his identity
They say three's a crowd, and for George Karim, the mantra is most definitely a reality. In the build-up to the "Lockwood & Co." Season 1 finale, we see George transform from an overly confident sidekick to a third wheel who feels increasingly out of place in the trio. Having Lockwood all to himself is something George has arguably seen as a comfort blanket, and the success of Lucy's hiring seems to come with its own problems. Lucy's hidden past instantly makes George suspicious, guarding information and personal interests in a way that keeps her at a distance. In the season finale, the tables are turned, with George's safety in the hands of Lucy.
Being held as a hostage (or supernatural bait) by the remorseless Miss Joplin, George confronts the fact that Lockwood & Co. have functioned better as a trio all along. It's a lovely moral lesson on the importance of friendship, even if it may be blindingly obvious to viewers. At the same time, George has to deal with his own issues around trust, having quickly grown close to Miss Joplin in the prior episode.
To Fittes or not to Fittes?
By the time we get to the "Lockwood & Co." Season 1 finale, it's not overly clear if the Fittes Agency works for good or evil. Once again, we explore Lockwood's personal past with the team — how he previously trained under their guidance before leaving to strike out on his own. Lockwood's chip on his shoulder against the establishment plays a major role in the show, and the season finale is no exception. Not only do we see Lockwood & Co. physically battle it out against the Kipps team, but the agency holds a firm grasp over what could be the team's final fate.
With Lockwood emerging unscathed from the night's events, the trio and the Kipps team end things with an uneasy truce. Though the fighting ends on shaky ground, Penelope Fittes (Morven Christie) still seems to be orchestrating bigger things to come behind the scenes. Presenting herself as approachable and poised at all times, her true intentions behind this well-oiled facade have yet to be fully revealed. Whether they like it or not, Fittes and Lockwood & Co. are embroiled in one another, meaning that greater battles could be on the horizon.
The bone glass causes even more trouble
Moving from urban legend to nightmare reality, the bone glass is something that lurks in the background from the beginning of "Lockwood & Co." Made from the human bones of seven different spirits, the bone glass is supposed to show enlightenment to whoever looks into the mirror. The entire setup for the season finale revolves around Joplin trying to get the bone glass to reveal all, but she does so with perilous consequences. Lucy and George's lives are put directly at risk when they try to safeguard the bone glass, using the skull as a way to stop Joplin from fulfilling her own goals. But as the skull says, something isn't right, leading to some interesting revelations about the nature of the bone glass.
It doesn't come as much of a surprise to learn that the spirits are trapped. The glass looks like it's starting to break, and the seven imprisoned souls emerge. Then suddenly, it all vanishes into thin air, along with Joplin. While this solves the immediate problem, it also leaves some big questions hanging. Though the members of Lockwood & Co. seem relatively unfazed by what happens, there could be a larger threat to the world that they and DEPRAC now have to confront. Given the immense power of the bone glass, these events could lead to fatal consequences.
Lockwood's past comes back to bite him
One of the looser threads sewn into the Season 1 narrative of "Lockwood & Co." is that of Anthony Lockwood's past. At first glance, it seems totally implausible that a young kid could live in a Zone 1 townhouse, let alone be running a supposedly successful business with the help of one of his mates. We quickly learn that all is not what it seems, as government guidelines state that minors must be supervised by adults within a supernatural agency. Not only does this not properly get resolved, but we never really drill down into how Lockwood, as we see him, came to be. Alongside his difficulties with the Fittes Agency, it's alluded to that Lockwood's father was some kind of prolific researcher, with the house being left to him after his parents' passing.
In the season finale, this question rears its head once again, with Lockwood being directly confronted by Penelope Fittes' mysterious aide, the Golden Blade. Claiming to know everything about Lockwood's past — with his own true identity supposedly concealed — the shadowy figure shoots Lockwood, leaving him for dead after falling into a pit. Nothing Lockwood has done so far has prompted a need for him to be killed, and Fittes makes it perfectly clear that he isn't seen as a professional threat. Could there be more to his backstory than we're being led to believe?
Lucy comes face to face with a Type 3
If anyone knows the dangers of a Type 3 becoming an urban legend, it's Lucy Carlyle. Still reeling from the aftermath of her training that resulted in the Wythburn Mill incident, Lucy once again faces off against a Type 3 in the Season 1 finale. It's not entirely unexpected, especially given Penelope's personal interest in Lucy's blossoming talent. She's been set up to be an outstanding Listener since the show's first episode, though Lucy ultimately experiences the same sensation of "ghost locking" that her best friend Norrie suffered from in the opening episode.
Weirdly, the battle against the Type 3 ends as quickly as it begins. Lockwood ultimately jumps in to save the day, but Lucy also emerges triumphant. Before being locked, she seems at peace with the fact that she's gained the ability to talk to ghosts, which may put a larger target on her back. It remains to be seen whether this will be explored in further detail, but now that Type 3 ghosts are more than a myth, it's likely we'll be seeing a lot more of them.
What happens to Miss Joplin?
Introduced to Season 1 of "Lockwood & Co." as one half of an unassuming undertaking service, Miss Pamela Joplin's personality changes as quickly as a ghost attack. Appearing somewhat naive and angelic at first glance, Joplin becomes a fully-fledged villain in the closing moment of the season finale. Using George — who she has successfully befriended — as both a hostage and bait for the Type 3 ghost, Joplin accidentally gets her wish of the bone glass working. After Lucy protects herself using Lockwood's stolen skull, the bone glass appears to break. When Joplin looks into it, she immediately vanishes into thin air, leaving the seven spirits to escape.
You could say Joplin gets exactly what she deserves, given the mirror's purpose of showing the heart what it truly desires. But what has actually happened to her? If we think of the supernatural element of "Lockwood & Co." as a gateway between worlds, there's a huge chance that we won't be seeing Joplin in any future installments of the show. That being said, the element of surprise is what keeps us on our toes, meaning Joplin could return in an entirely new form — or even intertwined with the seven spirits themselves.
There could still be plenty of secrets
Like any good drama, keeping secrets is the lynchpin of "Lockwood & Co." Season 1. Lucy does her best to keep a lid on her dramatic training, Lockwood keeps his past at a distance, and George's best form of defense against being attacked means revealing very little about himself. In the season finale, there are still plenty of questions left unanswered, meaning hidden secrets could easily come to the front in the future. The biggest unknown is the future of Lockwood & Co. itself. While the team has kissed and made up, their professional well-being hangs in the balance, with Lockwood's past threatening to throw their hard work out the window.
While the trio's future is uncertain, outside forces also have a lot to answer for. We still don't know what happened to Joplin, the true identity of the man who shot Lockwood, or what Penelope Fittes is scheming from a distance. On top of all of this, it's unclear how the wider world will react to the knowledge that Type 3 ghosts actually do exist, rather than just being urban folklore. Whatever the answers are, widespread chaos is likely to follow.
What's behind the locked door?
From the moment Lucy gets hired by Lockwood and George, one question looms in the background — what's behind the locked door? Serving as the halfway point between the team's downstairs hub and the upstairs bedrooms, the middle part of the house has been kept off-limits to all but Lockwood. Even though we never see him blatantly enter the room, there are plenty of clues as to what could be waiting behind it. In the season finale, we're left on the most appetizing cliffhanger of them all, with Lockwood finally ready to show the others what he's been hiding.
Common sense tells us that the room behind the locked door most likely holds the secrets of Lockwood's family. Only vaguely known as researchers, Lockwood's parents are left mysterious through Season 1, creating questions as to why Lockwood has been left without a family unit. There's also the fact that the agency is able to operate without supervision, with the mystery room perhaps holding an answer there too. From DEPRAC hostages to more stolen supernatural artifacts, anything could be behind the door — including nothing at all.
Lockwood & Co. has renewed strength
What really wins out in the end? Friendship. The star trio of "Lockwood & Co." is in an unsteady truce from the first episode onward. Lucy's introduction throws the agency through many unexpected hoops, and Lockwood's refusal to do things by the book doesn't help. At the beginning of the season finale, Lucy and Lockwood are at a breaking point following a build-up of arguments throughout the season. Thanks to a life-or-death situation, it's up to each member of the team to make sure the others get through the ordeal safely. Even while Lockwood is sitting in the back of an ambulance, it looks like the three have finally found a way to be cohesive.
Heading into a possible Season 2, it looks like the crew will be tighter than ever before. Making them harder to break apart during another season of drama and setbacks should make it all the more satisfying to watch — especially if the Season 1 finale has set them up to knock them back down again. On the other hand, there's something more heartwarming about watching friendship blossom in the face of adversity. Sometimes, the talking skulls provide all the uproar we need.
Fittes and DEPRAC keep their cards close
While Lockwood, George, and Lucy take center stage in the finale of "Lockwood & Co." Season 1, the Fittes Agency and DEPRAC aren't far behind. As the drama of facing off against the Type 3 calms down, Penelope Fittes and her mysterious sidekick are seen escaping the area in a private car. The pair hint that DEPRAC now has the bone glass, which has sustained a hefty bit of damage. While their plan to kill Lockwood off doesn't succeed, Penelope says that they need to take "extra precautions" before they go any further.
With such a cryptic sign-off, it's difficult to guess what these extra precautions might be. We know they can't be related to the bone glass, as it's stated to be out of the public domain and heading straight to the furnaces. Instead, it's most likely to be aimed at Lockwood and his friends, who may now be seen as a real threat by the agency that controls it all. It also remains to be seen whether DEPRAC will actually dispose of the bone glass or try to resurrect it for their own purposes.
What can we expect from Lockwood & Co. Season 2?
As of the time of this writing, there is no confirmed Season 2 on the horizon for "Lockwood & Co." However, that doesn't necessarily mean that this supernatural story has come to an end. Speaking to Empire, writer/director Joe Cornish revealed he has plans for multiple seasons of the show and hopes it continues to be picked up by Netflix. "One of the things I don't like about episodic telly is when it doesn't know how it's going to end," he said. "But the story in the books is very well-plotted. Jonathan Stroud solidifies the world and thinks of clever ways to explore it the more the books go on. It really goes somewhere, and it does have an end. So yeah, we'd love to do more."
There are a few telltale signs of what we might be likely to see in these planned seasons. The books are a great place to start, although the story might not completely stick to the original. Lockwood, Lucy, and George each have their own fair share of issues to work through, with Lockwood's complete family history yet to be revealed. The mystery of Joplin's sudden disappearance still hangs in the air, with DEPRAC and Penelope Fittes potentially holding the answers. At the same time, the everyday folks of this parallel world might just be in more danger than they think, given that Type 3 ghosts are now able to wreak havoc regardless of curfew. Hopefully, Netflix gives Cornish the opportunity to keep the story going.