We’re all mad here: Fans go apocalyptic at the Wastelands desert festival

Welcome to Wastelands Weekend, an annual orgy of “cosplay” -- dressing up to the layman -- where fans of the Mad Max film franchise flock from all over the continent. (AFP)

Updated on: Sep 24, 2016 3:55 PM IST

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Welcome to Wastelands Weekend, an annual orgy of “cosplay” -- dressing up to the layman -- where fans of the Mad Max film franchise flock from all over the continent. (AFP)

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In combat boots, satin thongs and matching nipple tassels, the burlesque girls of the apocalypse celebrate the end of the world deep in the merciless dust of the Mojave Desert. (AFP)

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Whether via plague, nuclear war or spiders from Mars, the death throes of humanity are not supposed to be fun -- but try telling that to these festival goers. (AFP)

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Once a year, Wasteland City rises from the arid badlands of the northern Antelope Valley, a two-hour drive north from Los Angeles, to host the largest post-apocalyptic themed festival in the world. (AFP)

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This is the seventh year for the Wastelands Weekend, which was first held in 2010. (AFP)

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Imagine San Diego Comic-Con but for fans of Mad Max and the Fallout console games, who aren’t too fussy about pristine restrooms. That’s Wastelands Weekend. (AFP)

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Elaborate sets are meant to replicate a post-apocalyptic world while live bands, DJs and combat and stunt performers carry on into the small hours. (AFP)

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There’s no dress code for the vehicles, but every year a fleet of Mad Max-style junkyard monsters turn up, mounted with gun turrets or armed with metal spikes. (AFP)

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Every settlement, no matter how iniquitous, needs its moral compass, of course, and Wasteland City is no different. (AFP)

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It isn’t just the facilities that dress down for the occasion. Attendees are required to fit in, which means a lot of torn leather, studs, grungy vests and goggles for protection from duststorms. (AFP)