Say you were a 19 year old like myself and after getting home from work one day someone at your door hands you a piece of paper that informs you that you’re going to inevitably die in the next 24 hours. How would you react? What would you do with your remaining time? Who would you spend it with?



In this series ‘Ikigami’ we follow the main character a deliverer of these death notices and the various receivers. In this Japanese dystopian society a National Prosperity Act has been passed in which one out of one thousand people between the ages of 18-24 will die as a result of a vaccination that is mandatory to receive when entering elementary school. You’ll only receive your Ikigami 24 hours before your predetermined death, and any family members you have are made responsible for any crimes you may commit. All of this is so the rest of the country can better understand the value of life. This whole world buildup creates for some very interesting and emotional scenarios, time and time again reading this manga I would find myself close to tears. Sadly I haven’t finished the series because I don’t have the resources currently to purchase multiple volumes but 36 in the plot of the show was still going strong without showing any signs of falling off anytime soon. One of the strongest thing this series has going for it is to build and develop interesting characters in just a few chapters time that you’ll care for and invest yourself in even though a tragic fate is inevitable for them. Chapters are usually on the longer side having up to 55 pages or more sometimes. The art style fits the dystopian but realistic atmosphere that this series portrays, you might find it a little off putting if you’re used to more of a shounen/shoujo art style. All the character designs are usually pretty basic, none of the characters have any crazy designs the designs are much more realistic just like another manga I love Bokurano. I found this series particularly very entertaining as I read through 36 chapters in one day without stopping, the character arcs will never feel like their being stretched out too long and usually last 3-5 chapters with very well-done conclusions to wrap them up. Since I haven’t finished the series though I won’t claim to know anything about the material past chapter 36 but I will update this review when I get my hands on the remaining chapters. I give this series an overall strong 8/10 and recommend it for anyone looking for a mature psychological drama series.