Described as “Dexter meets Richard Scarry,” Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees was one of the most talked about comics of 2024. The Eisner-nominated breakout hit told the tale of a serial killer bear in a seemingly idyllic community of cartoon animals.

Writer-illustrator Patrick Horvath and letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou are heading back to Woodbrook for a sequel, Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees: Rite of Spring. The first issue in the six-part continuation will be published July 9 via IDW.

Return to the seemingly idealistic suburban town of Woodbrook as Samantha, the bloodlusting brown bear, got away with her crimes and is now the town’s one and only serial killer. But times have changed, and Samantha will soon discover there are no secrets in the age of the internet… and those who lost loved ones to her dark temptations are still searching for justice.

In addition to primary covers by Horvath, there will be a movie homage variant line by Stray Dogs’ Tony Fleecs, a storybook variant by Riley Rossmo, and a #1 variant cover by Skottie Young. They’re pictured below, including Bloody Disgusting’s exclusive reveal of Young’s variant and Fleecs’ National Born Killers parody for #2.

“I’m legitimately very excited about these homage covers, and as someone who’s done what seems like a million horror movie covers with cute animals on them — that’s saying something. I’ve actually been actively trying to not do any of these unless they’re for my own books; we do horror covers every month for my hit Image Comics series Feral,” Fleecs tells Bloody Disgusting.

“I feel like these silly covers are one of the things in this business that I’m uniquely great at so why wouldn’t I make my books the only place that you can get them? Well, because I loved the first Beneath the Trees so much. It was one of my favorite books last year, and Patrick Horvath is one of the most exciting new voices in comics. Also, scary animal creators gotta stick together, right?”

Fleecs continues, “Jake Williams, the editor, and Patrick and I came up with a really cool list of classic serial killer movies to pay tribute to with this series. The thing a good homage cover can do is tell you what the book is without you having to read a single word. So, if somehow, someone still hasn’t heard about Beneath the Trees, they’ll see an American Psycho or a Natural Born Killers poster with a cute bear on them and immediately get the gist. We started out with some pretty iconic ones but we’ve got some deeper cuts and cult classics coming up too. Can’t wait for people to see those too.”

“We’re picking back up with the story about eight years after the events of the first book, and find ourselves in what closely resembles the U.S. of the 1990s. The internet and suburban sprawl are shrinking down the world of our cuddly serial killer, and it prompts her to radically reassess how she wants to exist in it,” Horvath explains.

“I continue to be blown away by the response to the first book. In my wildest dreams I never thought it would have caught such a huge wave that spread out to other countries and languages. Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees continues to be a huge gift to me, and I’m grateful for all of the immense support from IDW, the retailers, critics, and fans.”

#1 Cover A by Patrick Horvath

#1 Cover B by Tony Fleecs

#1 Cover C by Riley Rossmo

#1 Cover D by Skottie Young

#2 Cover B by Tony Fleecs