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 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:
They worship 'Mother Sun' and 'Father Moon'
They cremate their dead in the open air
They are pacifists (though they appear to make exceptions for non-human creatures)
Fires are considered a form of tribute to their gods
Collections
Oni are releasing trade paperback collections on an ongoing basis.
Issue #7 'Children of the Sun' and Issue #14 'Death Walks Behind You', #20, #25, #32, #39, #45 and #52 were stand alone stories.
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.[2]
As of July 2009, Oni are also releasing hardcover collections.
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