While most holiday tales focus on sugarplums and goodwill toward men, Oni Press is bringing something darker down the chimney this year with Yuletide, a horror-tinged holiday adventure from writer George Northy and artist Rachele Aragno.
This three-issue series of double-sized issues counts down to Christmas with a story that’s more interested in the eerie, ancient roots of the season than its twinkling lights and festive cheer. And we’ve got an exclusive look at some pages from the first issue.
Set in Christmas, Pennsylvania—a town that bills itself as “the merriest place on Earth”—Yuletide follows a group of teens who find themselves caught between their town’s obsession with America’s biggest holiday and something far more sinister lurking beneath the tinsel and tradition.
“I’ve long been fascinated by the dark, strange, obscure Yuletide monsters from various cultures, from Germany to Iceland to Wales. The way these demons have been buried and forgotten felt like the perfect metaphor for how we often bury our own darkness and personal demons throughout the holidays,” Northy said. “If Buffy taught us ‘High School can be Hell,’ then Yuletide will show that the best way of dealing with our own holiday demons isn’t by pretending they aren’t there, it’s by facing them together.”
Check out the preview and the solicitation for the first issue below, and look for it to arrive at your local comic shop Oct. 15.
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