Speaking via phone from her studio in Corbeil, a town in Ontario, Canada, Johnston, 60, said that after tying up loose ends, she plans to stop writing material about the modern-day characters, although she will make a few mainly cosmetic changes to the classic versions. "I'll fix up some of the old illustrations that I want to improve, and flesh out some story lines," she said.

Although Johnston had originally planned to continue integrating the new and old versions of the comic when the strip ends, she's since decided that "going back in time is confusing to people," so she won't have Michael et al introducing the material.

Labels: comic strips, Ontario