Author / Artist:
Motoro Mase
Congratulations! You have been randomly selected by the government…to DIE in 24 hours! Please enjoy your final day and take pride in the fact that your death will inspire others to live life to the fullest! Welcome to the world of Ikigami, the Death Notice, where to keep citizens on the straight and narrow path of productivity and prosperity, each day a different citizen is selected for termination! View the last 24 hours through the very eyes of the people slated to die for their country with no hope of reprieve! What people do when they have no hope of survival will shock you to your core in this frightening, dark series of stories!
Dear Citizen: You’ve no doubt noticed that the world is a troubled place. People are apathetic, lazy, unmotivated. You’ve probably asked yourself: Why isn’t anything being done to stop this systematic decline? Well, you’ll be happy to know measures are being taken. We, your government, have decided society needs a wake-up call. So beginning today, we will randomly select a different citizen who will be killed within 24 hours of notification. We believe this will help remind all people how precious life is, and how important it is to be productive, active members of society. Thank you for your attention and your cooperation and participation in this new program.
Wed, 02/17/2010 - 15:55 — Anonymous
Pull Quote:
In a Japan not too far removed from reality, the government has instituted a program designed to make its citizens appreciate life to its fullest. How? By randomly sentencing citizens to death and informing them of their fate when they only have 24 hours left to live.
Wed, 02/17/2010 - 15:58 — Anonymous
Pull Quote:
“Obedience is the key to happiness,” proclaims the government of this manga’s dystopian society–a tenet upheld by the National Welfare Act, a law that dictates standard immunizations for every first grader in the country (a country that greatly resembles modern Japan). What is special about these immunizations is that approximately one in one thousand of them contains a tiny capsule that settles itself in the recipient’s pulmonary artery. Then, on a pre-determined date sometime between the affected citizen’s eighteenth and twenty-fourth year, the capsule ruptures, killing the person instantly.
Wed, 02/17/2010 - 16:00 — Anonymous
Pull Quote:
It was the unconventional summary on the back of Ikigami volume one that spurred me into buying it. I’m a sucker for dystopian fiction, anything from 1984 to Battle Royal. From the two stories in this volume, Ikigami looks to be a fine addition to the genre. Ikigami does a nice job of blending its episodic stories with the bigger picture. Each story arc focuses on a person who has just received an ikigami, a notice telling them that the nano chip implanted in them as a child will explode in 24 hours, killing them. Not everyone has a chip. The process is completely random and a complex, bureaucratic system is in place so that only a few people know where the nano chips are.
Wed, 02/17/2010 - 16:15 — Anonymous
Pull Quote:
Just reading the back cover evokes thoughts of Death Note. Death Note also dealt (at least in the beginning) with the systematic decline of society. Interestingly enough, "Ikigami" translated means "Death Paper." However, the similarities are only skin deep -- Ikigami is a completely different. It isn't about an epic cat-and-mouse game that raises questions about morality -- nor is it about killing criminals -- it's a episodic examination of "regular" people who have been given 24 hours to live.
Tue, 12/08/2009 - 07:41 — swanjun
Pull Quote:
Ultimately, while I’m curious to see whether Fujimoto will be able to continue to rationalize his job or if he’ll become a “social miscreant” and attempt to effect change, I’m not sure if I’ll be continuing with this series. It’s just such a tremendous downer. In fact, I must now seek solace in some girly manhwa as a mental palate cleanser.
Wed, 02/17/2010 - 15:56 — Anonymous
Pull Quote:
In order to inspire people to find life precious, the government passed a law that during an early childhood vaccination, one in every one thousand of the children will be implanted with a capsule. Sometime between the age of 18-24, on a predetermined schedule, that capsule will break and kill them. Since no one knows if they’ll be one of the ones to die early, people are supposed to be inspired to live well and obediently.
