Warning: SPOILERS for The Dollhouse Family #4

What began with a girl named Alice and her magical toy has turned into an epic tale of malice and revenge in The Dollhouse Family from DC’s Hill House Comics. And as the series reaches the release of Issue #5 of 6, Alice has no choice but to dive into the bloody, horrifying past of the titular dollhouse… in order to kill it.

The horror story from Mike Carey, Peter Gross, and Vince Locke has only picked up steam from the start, spinning threads of old world horror a century in the past tighter and tighter to the life of modern-day Alice. To this point readers have seen the major plot beats explained: a demonic force named Cloax thrust a piece of itself into the world, creating both the dollhouse itself, and the descendants with which to fill it. Alice was strong enough to deny the demon’s temptation as a child, and even more determined to stand her ground once her own daughter Una came into the world. But in our exclusive preview of The Dollhouse Family #5, the latest tragic twist is forcing Alice to finally enter her enemy’s house. But to go in with a plan, she’s about to learn everything readers already now about the dollhouse’s history – along with a few brand new secrets, too.

In the previous issues, the disembodied (angelic?) voice of the book’s narrator had followed the demon’s scheme to its first generation, otherwise known as Cordwainer. Readers could guess how the original spawn of the demon’s bargain ended up trapped inside the dollhouse for a century, right up to meeting Alice’s daughter, Una. And while Cordwainer may not have been the one to trick Una into offering her own soul as bait to finally help Cloax get what it’s after, his story is one Alice must now learn. Because it is also the story of how the demon’s child was born.

And judging by Jessica Dalva’s cover art – depicting the maid who discovered the demon’s spawn in what looks to be that very moment – this story is going to get a lot more horrific before it has hope of getting better. Check out the preview pages below:

Fans are left ask themselves a few questions after reading these pages, which apparently show how Cloax – via the dollhouse – has convinced its ‘family’ to enter for eternity. In no uncertain terms, working its evil to make their lives cold, tragic, lonely, and unsatisfied… so that it may come to them when all seems lost, offering everything they’ve missed. All they have to do is sign over the rest of their days. But what does it want with Alice? And why is the same black cat visible near every one of the dollhouse’s victims? The same black cat that was shown hissing at the dollhouse’s occupants to give Alice a warning, as a matter of fact. The good news is we won’t need to wait long to find out. In the meantime, find the full solicitation details and plot synopsis below:

  • THE DOLLHOUSE FAMILY #5 (OF 6) Release Date: March 11th, 2020 Written by: M.R. Carey Art by: Peter Gross, Vince Locke Cover Art by: Jessica Dalva Variant Cover by: Jay Anacleto The Dollhouse has taken away another piece of Alice’s soul…but this time she’s not running away. This time she’s going to uncover the secret of the House’s terrible birth…and use that knowledge to destroy it once and for all!

The Dollhouse Family #5 will be available from your local comic book shop on March 11th, 2020.

MORE: The New HILL HOUSE: DC’s Home For Mature Horror Comics