'Smilin' Ed' collection announced

Kim Deitch's classic comic strip The Search for Smilin' Ed will be released as a compilation in March.

The series debuted in the 1990s when it was serialised by a Fantagraphics house comic titled Zero Zero. It tells the tale of a demon hiding from his cohorts among the cast of a children's television show.

Speaking to Newsarama, Deitch revealed that he will be revamping the title ahead of its re-release. "I am definitely expanding (and redrawing a little here and there). I am adding 15 new pages at the end and there will be plenty of other new art visuals as well," he said.

"The most ambitious new thing will be a double fold-out of The Kim Deitch Universe. This will be a gigantic panoramic picture featuring 100 of my characters past and present."

Deitch's career began in the '60s, when he introduced characters such as The Sunshine Girl and The India Rubber Man. His recent books Shadowland, Boulevard Of Broken Dreams, Alias The Cat and Deitchs' Pictorama have all earned critical acclaim.

The Search for Smilin' Ed arrives in stores in March courtesy of Fantagraphics Books.