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Frankly, the world has always functioned best when both the vices of good and evil walk hand in hand. Based on that information, one could assume that a society would listen to history and live their normal lives so that the natural good and evil can balance out in the world because its inhabitants have multiple backgrounds. It is also a given that just about any given person will be inclined to hear a story, especially an epic of sorts. That being said, a combination of the two is one of the most ideal scenarios to the human ear. In the case of the Devil’s Key Trilogy, one could ask how are the ramifications of theft of property belonging to Satan going to impact a normal person's life? In Panic! At the Disco’s “Say Amen (Saturday Night)”, “This is Gospel” and “Emperor’s New Clothes”, a wicked act has proven to assimilate a wicked mindset which leads to a shift in his mind, heart, and eventually his physical disposition.

To set the scene, “Say Amen (Saturday Night)” gives a bit of background for the Devil’s Key and its importance (Urie). Stating that the key has been missing in a headline news report shows the urgency of the crime and the desperate need to have said key returned. Brendon Urie, the artist, lives a devout Mormon life. He goes to church, he keeps the Sabbath day holy, he says Amen, and he loves his life the way it is. After stealing the Devil’s Key, his life is spun on its head. The lines of this story portray the idea that Urie is turning away from the Mormon life he used to have and is giving in to his vices and convictions to live a wild and carefree life. Now, Urie lives the life of an unrepentant, Saturday Night partier. The lyrics “swear to God I ain’t ever gonna repent” are extremely powerful at supporting this theory because repentance is reserved for the cleansing of sins and the change from the sin entirely (Urie). Therefore, the refusal to repent shows an indication of recognizing every aspect of one’s sin and being proud of it. It is the approval of becoming the sin and embodying the consequences of following a darker path. This idea of enjoying a carefree life in rejection of the day of Sabbath is honed in the bridge and chorus immediately following because Urie shows how he is able to slightly showing vulnerability and claiming to want to change. However, he blatantly admits that he “could be better but baby / oh it's Saturday Night” and disregards the idea of attempting to change (Urie). This turning point is where the power of the Devil’s key takes control of our character's mind and begins to shift his moral compass. The song ends with a steady, but slowing heartbeat portraying a time to calm down from the hype of Saturday Night to the calm and praise of the holy spirit bleeds into the next song.

The next song picks up with that same heartbeat and “This is Gospel” blurs into a song about battling with addiction and alcoholism with religion (Urie). The lyrics “The gnashing teeth and criminal tongues conspire against the odds, but they haven't seen the best of us yet” is an indirect reference to the Bible story Matthew 25:30 (Urie). Gnashing teeth represent failed individuals who have been condemned, but real-world ramifications are not too far away. Criminal tongues can be inserted where someone might be trapped in a literal or metaphorical Hell. This is another place where that Devil’s Key aspect is brought back to the forefront. Here, it is shown that the Devil’s Key has taken a new form for power. This can be described as the ultimate battle: addiction. It’s as though Satan is attempting to distract Urie from going back to doing the right things via addiction and alcoholism. Being a liberated Saturday Night wild man, it's likely to assume that he now dabbles in drugs and alcohol. That being said, Satan has seen human weakness in the clutches of addiction, so this is his new avenue. Addiction and alcoholism is the new ploy to keep Urie on the path of Night. He writes about “the fear of falling apart” telling a story of how he can feel himself unraveling at the seams (Urie). Urie knows that he is straying away from his Mormon life and losing to the indulgence of the Devil’s Key. However, he understands that this is still wrong and is now on the fence about his next step. His mind is already gone, and now is heart is slipping away as well. The line “confessing their apostasies” is a moment of giving up on Mormonism as well as all religions (Urie). The term apostasy can be defined as “an act of refusing to continue to follow, obey, or recognize a religious faith” (Merriam-Webster). In this regard, to apostatize yourself is to not only refuse your religion but it is to actively work against it in order for you to succeed at your own personal goal. After Urie left the Mormon Church, it is easy to believe that he began to use this new opportunity to side more with the life of Satan and claim the life that the Devil’s Key has for him in store. The song ends with that steady heartbeat turning to a heart monitor, slowing and slowing. Eventually, it comes to that endless beep of the heart finally stopping, showing that his heart now belongs to the trap of the Devil’s Key.

The resolution of this trilogy lies with the song “Emperor’s New Clothes”. In this rendition of the story, Urie has given up on fighting the strength of the Devil’s Key and has embraced it in its entirety. Making gluttonous claims such as “If it feels good, tastes good / It must be mine”, he has overthrown mortal possessions and chosen to make his mark or anything he desires. As disclosed by Phyllis Tickle, this shows an indulgence in one of the seven deadly sins, that being gluttony as well as greed (Tickle). Greed is shown by his refusal for mercy and gluttony is envisioned by his never-ending hunger to possess possessions. Pablo Munich and Sharon Anderson-Gold wrote about how “Kant infamously claimed that all human beings, without exception, are evil by nature”(Munich and Anderson-Gold). Brendon Urie definitely took this theory a few steps further by stealing the Devil’s Key and partaking in the most sinful events within his realm of thought. Using lyrics like “finders keepers, losers weepers” is a childlike taunt; a ploy used to mimic that he has found the Devil’s Key and plans on keeping whatever comes with it (Urie). As the song progresses, Urie develops horns and turns grey. By the end of the song, he has massive demonic wings. Heavy footsteps come closer and a giant shadow towers over his own miniscule stature in comparison. One can only assume that this is the Devil, finally ready to take Urie to Hell with him. The change is now officially complete.

To conclude, theft in general isn’t a wise idea.While consequences usually aren’t leaving your old life to join Satan in the fiery pits of the underworld, there are still plenty of horrible things that could happen to any singular person, no matter who or where they are. All in all, stealing can change you as a person or even change how other people perceive you and your personality. With an expedition, a climax, and a resolution, the original problem was solved in some ways and new ones were brought to the forefront in other ways. While that may be the case, the desired result was acquired in the end. In the case of the Devil’s Key Trilogy, one could ask how are the ramifications of theft of property belonging to Satan going to impact a normal person's life? In Panic! At the Disco’s “Say Amen (Saturday Night)”, “This is Gospel” and “Emperor’s New Clothes”, a wicked act has proven to assimilate a wicked mindset which leads to a shift in his mind, heart, and eventually his physical disposition.

Works Cited