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Daily Dead has published an exclusive preview of “Death Tree,” one of four stories in Image Comics and Syzygy Publishing’s Dread the Halls 2026 holiday horror one-shot. The 48-page anthology is scheduled to go on sale Dec. 2, 2026, and is available for preorder, according to the publisher’s announcement.
Daily Dead has published an exclusive preview of “Death Tree,” a holiday horror story by writer and letterer Jordan Hart and artist Fábio Veras that will appear in Dread the Halls 2026. Image Comics and Syzygy Publishing say the 48-page one-shot is scheduled to reach comic shops on Dec. 2, 2026, with preorders available now.
The preview centers on a family that brings a haunted Christmas tree into its home, according to the publisher’s description. The supplied preview announcement identifies Hart and Veras as the story’s creative team but does not provide further plot details, so the scale of the threat and how the story ends have not been established in the material.
Dread the Halls 2026 is described by its publishers as the third annual holiday horror one-shot. The 48-page anthology contains four stories, with creators including writers Jordan Hart and Chris Ryall and artists Chris Anderson, Drew Rausch, Fábio Veras and Well-Bee. Other story premises include elves facing werewolves, self-aware parade floats fighting above Hollywood and a large-scale nutcracker battle.
The comic is planned for release with six covers, according to the announcement: Maria Wolf’s Cover A and 1:50 Toxic Variant; Hart’s Wrapped Variant; and three Joe Jusko covers, identified as the Bizarre Variant, 1:25 Unwrapped Variant and 1:100 Foil Variant. Those ratio variants are described as retailer incentive editions; the announcement does not specify how many copies participating shops must order to qualify beyond the ratios in their names.
A Third Holiday Horror Anthology
The preview gives readers an early look at one story in a comic built around seasonal horror, while the release date and preorder information give collectors and comic-shop customers a concrete buying milestone. The anthology’s format also brings together several creative teams and sharply different holiday premises in one issue, rather than extending a single story across a series.
For readers following the title, the new issue continues an annual publishing project from Image Comics and Syzygy Publishing. The publishers pitch this edition as a return to the series’ blend of supernatural threats and dark humor; that is promotional framing, not an independent assessment of the stories. The preview itself confirms the haunted-tree premise and its credited creators, but does not establish how the finished anthology will be received.
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How the 2026 Issue Is Set Up
The publisher describes Dread the Halls 2026 as the third annual installment of its holiday horror anthology. Its stated approach is to take familiar Christmas imagery and use it in horror and comedy stories. The four-story lineup ranges from elves and werewolves to a haunted tree and a battle involving an oversized nutcracker.
In the press release, Hart said the issue’s stories and art styles push the series into what he called “unexplored territory.” Ryall, who is also a writer on the issue, pointed to a Joe Jusko cover as a meaningful part of the project. The release says Jusko’s work helped inspire the creation of Dread the Halls; that origin account is attributed to Ryall and the publisher’s announcement.
The announcement lists the comic’s Lunar code as 1026IM0285 and says it can be preordered through retailers or directly from Image Comics. It does not supply a page-by-page breakdown of the preview or say how many pages of “Death Tree” are being shown.
““A happy family that accidentally brings a haunted Christmas tree into their home””
— Jordan Hart, writer and letterer
Plot Details Still Under Wraps
The available source material confirms the “Death Tree” premise, its credited creators and its place in the anthology, but does not provide a full synopsis or enough preview pages to establish the story’s complete plot. Its ending, characters’ fates and connection to the other three stories remain unspecified.
The Dec. 2, 2026 date is presented by Image Comics and Syzygy Publishing as the planned on-sale date. The announcement does not describe any schedule contingencies or confirm whether all six listed covers will be available at every retailer. No sales figures, print run or reader response are provided.
Release and Preorders Ahead
Readers can preorder Dread the Halls 2026 through comic retailers or Image Comics, according to the publisher. The next stated milestone is its planned Dec. 2, 2026 on-sale date. Further preview material, retailer availability and any changes to the release schedule have not been announced in the supplied report.
Key Questions
What is the “Death Tree” preview?
It is an exclusive preview published by Daily Dead of a holiday horror story in Dread the Halls 2026. The publisher describes its premise as a family accidentally bringing a haunted Christmas tree home.
Who created “Death Tree”?
Jordan Hart is the story’s writer and letterer, and Fábio Veras is its artist, according to the preview announcement.
When does Dread the Halls 2026 go on sale?
Image Comics and Syzygy Publishing list Dec. 2, 2026 as the on-sale date. The date is the publishers’ announced schedule.
What else is in the anthology?
The 48-page one-shot has four stories. The publisher describes other premises involving elves and werewolves, self-aware parade floats fighting above Hollywood, and an oversized nutcracker battle.
Can readers preorder the issue?
Yes. The publisher says it is available for preorder through comic retailers and Image Comics directly.
Source: dailydead.com
