Schedule Monthly Publication date July 2006–April 2015 Genre Post-Apocalyptic fiction Publisher Oni Press | Format Ongoing series Writer Antony Johnston Number of issues 60 | |
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Artist(s) Christopher Mitten
Ben Templesmith Creator(s) Antony Johnston
Christopher Mitten Similar The Pirates of Coney Island, We Will Bury You, Ignition City, Dead Space, Viking | ||
Wasteland is a monthly comic book series written by Antony Johnston, drawn by Christopher Mitten with covers by Ben Templesmith, and published by Oni Press. It debuted in July 2006 and ended in April 2015.
Contents
The series is set one hundred years after the Big Wet, an unspecified disaster that destroyed modern society and, it is assumed, changed the world's coastlines. The story takes place somewhere in America, now a barren desert and dustbowl without modern technology. The seas are poisonous, and subsistence farming with small amounts of livestock appears to be the norm.
The book also has theme music, composed and performed by Johnston, which can be downloaded from the official website.
Format
Each issue of Wasteland is 32 pages long (with the exception of issue #1, which was a special double length premiere) and contains 22 pages of comic story, one episode of the prose serial travelogue Walking The Dust, a letters column and preview page for the following issue. The remainder of the pages are taken up by ads, normally for other series from Oni Press and/or by Wasteland's creators.
The letters column sometimes contains pieces of submitted fan art, and Johnston himself often answers the letters.
The F.A.Q. section of Johnston's website has the series slated to run for 60 issues.
The Big Wet
The most-seen explanation for the apocalypse comes from the Sunner religion, a sect that worships Mother Sun and Father Moon. According to their legend, the Big Wet was a retribution on the people of A-Ree-Yass-I for shunning the 'gifts' Mother Sun and Father Moon offered them. It seems as though this mythic place's name is a play on words by the author, and a linguistic contraction in-world, for "Area 1/I" (or perhaps "Area SI" = Area 51)—a military base/lab where the bomb was created.
Storylines
Thus far, the comic has established two distinct storylines. The first follows a scavenger named Michael who roams the wasteland, trading what he can salvage. His life changes forever when he finds a machine that talks in a forgotten language, supposedly giving directions to the fabled land of A-Ree-Yass-I, where mankind's downfall began. Michael tries to trade the machine at a small town of Sunners called Providence, and his fate becomes intertwined with the town's sheriff, Abi.
The second storyline follows the political machinations of a large city known as Newbegin, where the city's leader Marcus (aka Lord Founder) is oppressing the Sunner population, most of whom are slaves.
Sunner beliefs
Sunners have been shown to hold the following beliefs:
Language
Many words and phrases from our own time have changed to fit the world of Wasteland, and writer Antony Johnston has stated in interviews that the comic's language is carefully constructed.
For example, many epithets involving animals have become solely references to goats – "Son of a goat", "Goatshit", "I'll be a goat's uncle", and so on. No reference has yet been made in the book to Christ or Jesus; although God is mentioned in "Walking the Dust" text pieces, and issue 14 (set 55 years after the big wet) there is a priest who wears a cross, carries a bible, and refers to himself as a member of the "Cross Chain" religion. The names of places and cities are new or changed ("Providence" is almost certainly not Providence, Rhode Island due to its non-coastal location, and one as yet unseen prominent city is referred to as "Wosh-Tun"). Although the book clearly states it is set "Somewhere in America", no character has yet named the country as such, instead referring to their location simply as "the country" or even "the world". It is therefore assumed that place names have been lost and/or forgotten.
Based on the geographic descriptions in the "Walking the Dust" essays, accompanying the first 15 issues, it's likely that "Wosh-Tun" is Washington, DC. It's mentioned that east of Wosh-Tun lies the Black Water that separates the main land from the East Reach. The East Reach is connected by a landbridge to the mainland, which lies north of Wosh-Tun. It's possible that the Black Water is Chesapeake Bay and the East Reach is Delaware. West of Wosh-Tun lie the Suntop Peaks, which stretch far to the south, ending in a large peninsula. This could be a reference to the Allegheny Mountains and Florida.
Some words have the suffix "-age" added to them.
Collections
Oni are releasing trade paperback collections on an ongoing basis.
The series was afflicted by serious delays after issue #26. Issue #27, originally planned for July 2009 was delayed to January 2010, mainly due to Johnston's involvement with Dead Space, Dead Space: Extraction and other projects.
As of July 2009, Oni are also releasing hardcover collections.