In the film, Lock, Shock, and Barrel serve Oogie Boogie with delight, although out of fear for him. They sing the musical number "Kidnap the Sandy Claws" after Jack Skellington instructs them to find Santa, and wreck minor havoc on the citizens of Halloween Town. Although they are always seen together, the trio appears to have trouble with one another from time to time, seeming to disagree and argue over little problems, and getting into physical fights.
Lock is the leader of Oogie's Boys, but does not always think thoroughly and actually appears to be just the second most intelligent, next to Shock. Lock wears a devil costume; his teeth are pointed sharply, his face is narrow with a pointy chin, and his hair is waxed into two horns, making him quite literally a handsome devil. His barbed tail is actually real and connected to his body.[citation needed]
He loves being large and in charge, and gets upset when others insult him or take the lead. However, he goes along with others' ideas if he cannot come up with anything himself. He proves himself to be right occasionally, such as when he insisted Santa Claus can fit into anything (i.e. chimneys, Oogie's sacrificial shoot).
Lock is dressed as a devil, wearing a plain, long-sleeved, long red shirt, and pants of the same color. His brown shoes have pointed toes that curl upward. His skin is an unhealthy grayish-white color, his eyes are an eerie yellow and his lips are sky blue. His upper eyelids are a pink color, while the lower one is periwinkle. His chin is rather large and the top of his head is quite flat. His ears are set rather low on his head, and his eyebrows are the same shade of red as his clothes, while the rest of his hair is a darker red-brown color. He styles his hair in such a way that he has two "horns" in the front. His nose is pointed, but not nearly as large as Shock's. His mask is a faded red devil's face with horns that curve upward much more than Lock's hair. The mask's mouth is curled into a ghastly smile, showing sharp teeth. He also wears salmon-colored gloves.
Lock was voiced by Paul Reubens in the original film and Oogie's Revenge, while Jess Harnell filled in for the Kingdom Hearts series.
Shock is the most cunning, the most intelligent, the most skeptical, and the only female of Oogie's minions. She has some contempt for the other two for their supposed stupidity, and often challenges Lock for leadership, but ends up following his orders usually. Shock wears a grayish-pink witch costume with a purple elongated hat. There is no difference between her mask and her face, other than the former's green color and lack of any features (except eye-holes and a nose). She is usually quick to patch up any arguments between her and the boys, if not with the nicest methods.
Shock, the only girl of the group, is the tallest, being only slightly taller than Lock, and as well as the thinnest. She is dressed as a witch, wearing a pale purple witch's hat that is about the same height (perhaps even taller) than her. Her hair is wiry and blue, the same color as the makeup she wears around her eyes. She has pale blue lips and deathly gray-white skin. In Zero's Journey, her skin is green, much like a real witch's. Her face and neck are quite long and her nose is enormous and pointed, taking up most of her face. Shock's mask is a plain green one that sports the same large nose as her own face, and its mouth is set in a deep frown. She wears a pale purple dress with a dark purple hem, as well as black boots. She also wears gray gloves.
Shock was voiced by Catherine O'Hara in the original film and Kath Soucie in subsequent appearances such as video games.
Barrel is considered the dumbest and clumsiest of the three troublemakers, despite his protests to the contrary. He is the butt of many jokes made by his cohorts but usually gets even through his own tricks at which he always gets away with. Barrel wears a skeleton costume and has deformed feet, but otherwise resembles a small human boy, albeit one with white skin, sunken eyes, and perfectly combed green hair. His face is round and has a perpetual grin, except when he is angry. Barrel is usually the pilot of the walking bathtub the trio use as transport. He also likes to eat lollipops.
Barrel is the shortest and chubbiest of the trio, sporting the same gray-white skin as his friends, along with forest green lips. His head is spherical and he has short, pale green hair. His nose is very small when compared to Lock and Shock's, and it is upturned. His bloodshot eyes are quite close together and appear to be sunken in, though this could just be an illusion created by the dark makeup around them. Barrel dresses up like a skeleton, wearing gray pants and a like-colored shirt. Both of these pieces of clothing are decorated with bones roughly corresponding to their locations in the human body. His feet are oddly shaped, with three toes of the same length. His mask is that of a skull; a simple, round, white mask with the mouth being bare teeth set in a wide grin, reflecting the fact that Barrel himself is usually grinning.
Barrel was voiced by songwriter Danny Elfman in the original film. Jeff Bennett played the part for the Kingdom Hearts series, while Dee Bradley Baker came in for Oogie's Revenge.
Jack instructs the children to kidnap "Sandy Claws".
Lock, Shock, and Barrel are introduced as Oogie Boogie's "little henchmen". However, they are not very loyal to Oogie as they are simply making mischief to stay on his good side (in other words they serve him out of fear) and would prefer to do harmless fun which they seem to enjoy more. During the climax of the film, the trio are called upon by Jack Skellington to conduct a super important task, which intrigues the Mayor. Instructing them to "leave that no-account Oogie Boogieout of this!", Jack sends Lock, Shock, and Barrel to "kidnap Mister Sandy Claws". The trio make their way to the treehouse, where they sing the musical number "Kidnap the Sandy Claws", going in to detail of how they will kidnap the holiday figure, and how pleased Oogie Boogie will be despite Jack's warning-demand.
Lock, Shock, and Barrel kidnap the wrong holiday figure.
Still preparing for his own Christmas, Sally continues to warn Jack of her premonition. When she leaves, Lock, Shock, and Barrel arrive with a bagged being declaring that they've kidnaped Santa Claus. Jack rushes over to the trio, asking them to open it up, only to be disappointed when the person they've kidnapped is actually the Easter Bunny. Surprised to find out that he is not Santa, Barrel informs Jack that they went through the door, but feel stunned when he confirms what the correct door looks like; showing a green, Christmas tree-shaped cookie. Shock becomes upset at Lock and Barrel, shouting "I told you!" and getting in a fight with her two cohorts. Annoyed, Jack ends up scaring them and demanding that they return the bunny and go through the correct door this time. The trio then leave on their Bathtub and head back to the Hinterlands.
"Trick-or-Treat!" The trio kidnap Santa Claus.
On the night of Christmas Eve, Santa begins to check his list over again, before answering the door. To his surprise, Lock, Shock, and Barrel shout "trick-or-treat" and tie him up in a trash bag. Later that day, they deliver him to Jack and exclaim how big and heavy he is. Eventually, they untie the bag to reveal Santa Claus, which leaves the town's residents marveled with curiosity, especially Jack himself. He explains to Santa that he is taking a vacation, and then demands that the trio place him somewhere comfortable until the holiday is finished. Leaving the crowd of residents, Lock declares that they will take Santa to Oogie Boogie's, as there is nowhere more comfortable, while also incoherently obeying Jack's orders. Santa, still tied in the bag, is taken up into the treehouse, and forced down a tube, while also warning the trio that naughty children don't get any presents. Once he is down in the lair, Lock, Shock, and Barrel listen and laugh along to "Oogie Boogie's Song".
Lock, Shock, Barrel, and the Mayor rescue Jack and Sally.
Later that night, Sally begins to realize that Jack is in danger, and ends up finding Santa Claus trapped in Oogie's lair. In a failed attempt, she is trapped alongside him as well. Meanwhile, Lock, Shock, and Barrel watch as Oogie Boogie begins to play deadly games with them, but the trio are ultimately scared away by Jack, who was presumed dead moments prior. He ends up saving Sally and Santa, and defeats Oogie leading to Christmas being saved last-minute. The children and the Mayor (who they heard earlier about Jack being blown into a pile of dust) end up finding Jack and Sally, and help them to escape.
The trio frolic in the snow, throwing snowballs at residents.
Lock, Shock, Barrel, Jack, Sally, and the Mayor all return to Halloween Town and are greeted by the happy townsfolk who previously believed him to be dead after being blown out of the sky. The citizens, including the trio, all witness Santa flying by the town, gifting them with a snowy Christmas, resulting in all the residents joining in snowy activities, while singing the reprised version of both "What's This?" and "This is Halloween". Lock, Shock, and Barrel are last seen throwing snowballs at residents, including hitting Jack Skellington, and immediately hiding afterwards behind a wall.
Lock, Shock, and Barrel, as they appear in Oogie's Revenge.
Jack, once again tired of the same old tricks for Halloween, leaves town in search of new ideas. In his absence, Lock, Shock, and Barrel resurrect their master Oogie Boogie, allowing him to inflict terror over Halloween Town once again. Oogie kidnaps the Holiday Leaders for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Thanksgiving, Independence Day, and Easter, and imprisons them in his underground lair. Lock, Shock, and Barrel are entrusted with hiding each of the seven Holiday Doors in each area of the town where they wouldn't be discovered. They also raise armies of ghosts and skeletons to counteract Jack's inevitable attempt to fight upon his return. Shortly after Jack comes back, he encounters the trio in the Graveyard, and they refuse to reverse the damage.
Lock engages him in battle and retreats after his skeletons are defeated. When Jack goes to free Sally, Lock fights him once more, this time entering the fray himself, but loses again. Soon after, when Jack attempts to free Dr. Finkelstein, Shock confronts him with an army of ghosts but retreats upon losing. She confronts him again at the Doctor's Lab, using giant metal balls to deter Jack from climbing the spiral ramp to the lab. Jack then orders her to stop serving Oogie, and she agrees but crosses her fingers behind her back. They're next seen at the Pumpkin Patch, where Barrel forces Jack to navigate a maze he's created to reach him in the Big Pumpkin Head. Upon succeeding, Jack fights Barrel and the skeletons under his control, taking from him the Thanksgiving Door and the key to the Residential Area, then like Shock, he orders him not serve Oogie anymore, but like Shock, he crosses his fingers behind his back. When Jack reaches the Mayor's house, he finds Lock, Shock, and Barrel on the roof, where they face off one last time.
Upon their defeat, Jack claims the Independence Day door, but before he can teach them a lesson again, the trio uses a trick switch to open a void beneath him, dropping him into Oogie's underground lair and remarking, "Looks like he really fell for that one." They are not seen or mentioned for the remainder of the game after this.
Lock, Shock, and Barrel appear as antagonists in the world of Halloween Town in several installments in the series, regularly serving as morally ambiguous goons of Oogie Boogie.
In the original Kingdom Hearts, Lock, Shock, and Barrel learn that Jack and Dr. Finkelstein were working together to create a heart. Knowing Oogie has a goal to control a hoard of creatures known as the Heartless, the trio informs Oogie of Jack's latest endeavor, and are immediately sent to steal it. After doing so, Jack, Sora, Donald, and Goofy, follow them to Oogie's lair where they're defeated and forced to surrender.
In Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, the trio returns, repeatedly playing tricks on Roxas during his missions throughout his visits in Halloween Town.
In Kingdom Hearts II, Lock, Shock, and Barrel are seen serving as Dr. Finkelstein's assistants. After intentionally causing mayhem during the doctor's latest experiment, the trio run off into town, eventually bumping into Maleficent, who recruits the trio in her plot to turn Santa Claus into a Heartless. After a while, Lock, Shock, and Barrel mention Oogie, who was defeated in the original game by Jack and Sora. His mention promotes Maleficent to revive the boogie man, enlisting him in assisting her, as well, while Lock, Shock, and Barrel have left to battle Sora and Jack with the aid of a giant Heartless, though they soon meet defeat.
In the second visit, they are blamed for stealing Christmas presents from Santa. In the inevitable chase afterward, Jack and Sora learn the trio were only looking for parts for the doctor's experiment, proving themselves to be innocent.
Lock, Shock, and Barrel make an appearance as a special event and exclusive hero in Disney Heroes: Battle Mode. They were added to the game in October, 2020 during the 2.3.01 update. They are a group of control-type heroes with five abilities: All Caught Up, Scorpion Scare, Unwanted Present, Henchmen's Delight, and Three of a Kind. Together, they deal significant Fantastic Damage to enemies, and scare them as well. In the game, they are friends with Oogie Boogie and the Cheshire Cat, both of which help to increase the trio's stats if the Friendship Disk is acquired. Additionally, Mary Sanderson is friends with Lock, Shock, and Barrel, and attempts to lure them to her sisters, Winifred and Sarah, during her friendship mission.
Though Lock is the leader of the trio, it was not until Kingdom Hearts his leadership was actually confirmed.
Though they appear to have reformed at the end of the film, most appearances after the movie have Lock, Shock, and Barrel reverting back to being antagonists.
Though it seems they are not completely loyal to Oogie, seeing their supposed reformation, they went as far as to bring him back to life, suggesting they enjoy working for him more than being good.
Their names as a whole are derived from wordplay of the phrase "Lock, stock, and barrel," a phrase meaning 'everything', which in turn was derived from the components of a musket.
Despite generally being considered antagonists, the trio is meant to emulate how real children their age act (although, obviously, with an increased fascination for the morbid and the macabre, being citizens of Halloween Town).
In Russia, the trio is voiced by an all-male rock band; because of this, Shock (who is female) is voiced by a man.
This could be because Oogie Boogie refers to all three of them as "Boogie's Boys" despite Shock being the only female.
In a scene eliminated from the film, it would have been seen that after having fulfilled their objective of capturing Santa Claus, they would prepare refreshments and dovecote, then they would go down a cage-shaped elevator where they would hear the Mayor announce the sad death of Jack and they would start celebrating, however their celebration would be short-lived because Jack appears before them to scare them and forcing them to flee. The scene can be viewed here.
